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Post by HardheadedSofthrtd on Nov 5, 2003 16:44:36 GMT -5
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Post by Vivian on Nov 5, 2003 17:55:26 GMT -5
Yes, Zafar sure is quick, isn't he! GREAT ARTICLE, though!
Peace,Vivian
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Post by SoulOfTheRose on Nov 7, 2003 13:16:06 GMT -5
That was a nice article...
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Post by kareema113 on Nov 9, 2003 23:51:59 GMT -5
Salaam alaykom,
Two things touched me most about this article.
First is the author's statement that Br Yusuf had experienced 5 years of intense study as a Muslim when he wrote that 1981 letter..."including Arabic lessons". He had changed his lifestyle perhaps completely and in addition had married and become a father. Not everyone chooses the name of his new way of life as his own last name. Perhaps it is Br Y's way of remembering his commitment to Allah swt. It seems to me to be a lot to live up to.
Br Aslam reminded me that we 'passport Muslims' do indeed have a daunting task before us when we revert. We must change ingrained thinking to accommodate the Path we feel is the Way we are to go. Perhaps we must let go of our careers, our spouses, our suddenly hostile or bewildered relatives. We must raise the bar on our commitment to God... it is a huge leap to go from prayer once a week to 5 times per day. We must pray in a language that we do not understand and learn to recite at least initially by rote. In the case of women in particular, we find that we now 'wear' our commitment to Allah swt whenever we are in public. Perhaps we must learn for the first time what discrimination feels like.
It is not easy to admit that, as a newer revert, sometimes I feel that I just don't 'get it'. The excitement of Shahada has long since given way to the daily challenges of living up to my commitment. As the time went by, I had forgotten what a dramatic life choice I had made, one that truly requires 'intense study' as Br Aslam puts it. If I always focus on much there still is to know, I fail to recognize how much I have already learned.
In other words more aptly expressed,
"I listen to the wind come howl, telling me I have to hurry.
I listen to the robin's song, saying not to worry.
So on and on I go, the seconds tick the time out.
So much left to know and I'm on the Road to Find Out."
The second thing is a reflection of the first. Br Y wrote that letter in pencil... a medium that allows mistakes and revisions to be made without requiring the writer to start completely over again and a reminder to me that my life is not etched in immutable stone. Alhamdulillah.
Wa'salaam,
kareema
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Post by SoulOfTheRose on Nov 10, 2003 20:56:00 GMT -5
*Beautiful* post Kareema....You've just said exactly how I've been feeling.
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Post by Turan on Nov 10, 2003 21:51:35 GMT -5
Well thought out and nicely put post, Kareema. Thanks.
Turan
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Post by Vivian on Nov 10, 2003 22:52:32 GMT -5
BEAUTIFUL!
Peace,Vivian
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