Madina Archives

Madinat al-Muslimeen Islamic Message Board

"Go out and unfold your own story with beauty"
ahmer
10/03/01 at 10:29:33
This is the letter my daughter Eman Tai wrote to some of her freinds. I thought I would share this with you to uplift the spirit of all of us.Please remember her and all of us muslims in your prayers. Jazakallahu Khairun Khalid Tai Assalamu'alaikum, Insha'allah this message reaches everyone in a state of increasing Eman, Taqwa and Afia. I feel as though my feelings know no bounds or stability this week.  I've run the gambit of emotions; from anger and fear to sadness and profound awe at the kindness and humanity such tragedy can bring.  It is difficult to find the words to express all that needs to be expressed. In surah Rahman Allah asks us, "which of the favors of your Lord will you deny?"  I thought that I took the time each day to count my blessings...to cherish each human interaction that I encounter...to discover its meaning and the message Allah sends with it. I have learned that I have been blessed with more than I am aware of.  Suddenly I feel greatly undeserving. Allah asks us to ponder and reflect...it seems that often when I ponder and reflect it is on the Majesty and Beauty of Allah's creation...now I realize that the greatest inspiration comes in the form of the human spirit.  In the uplifted, enlightened human spirit you find the glimpse of the breath of Allah that all humanity is created with and it is with this inspiration that I share these glimpses with you. On Wednesday night I received a phone call from a friend of mine from school.  Katie did not have my new apartment number or my new cell phone number, because in my flippant distrust, I dismissed my friendship with her as limited to those one or two hours of the day that I spend between classes at school.  I have since learned my folly. She had been trying to get in touch with me for two days, since I did not go to school on 11th and 12th(Tuesday & Wednesday). Katie spoke with my other classmates and friends and they too did not have my new contact information. Then she called my Professor and though he had my number he couldn't release it...then she called school and they too would not release my home numbers...finally after her repeated efforts someone searched for her and found her a number I had left with them that I allowed them to release.  When she finally got in touch with me after two days she was relieved.  She told me she was worried...worried about me... worried that I would become the scapegoat for someone's ignorance, frustration and misplaced anger. She said that she didn't want me taking the train into school.  She lives in the dorms right next door to the school I attend in San Francisco.  She offered to drive from the city, through hours of traffic, into Berkeley and pick me up for school in the morning so that I wouldn't have to take the train into school and so my life would not be put in danger. Though I didn't need her help in this regard because I could drive myself into school, her concern was overwhelming and much appreciated. The next day, after I drove myself to school, she was there waiting for me.  She greeted me with a smile and hug.  Throughout the morning people came up to me and asked me how I was and told me that if I needed anything...even just a friend to talk to they were willing to listen.  After our first two classes I received a tear filled call from my mother about the shooting of a girl in hijab in San Francisco.   This threw me off balance and shook my nerves. I decided to leave SF and go across the bay...home to Berkeley.   Katie was with me when I received this call.  She insisted on riding with me all the way to Berkeley because she didn't want me to take the risk of traveling alone. Her kindness and graceful spirit leaves me astounded...and wondering at my own capacity for such kindness. Alhamdulillah, when I arrived in Berkeley I discovered that the shooting reports were unfounded.  Walking the streets of Berkeley I saw signs proclaiming, "Arabs and Muslims are people too" and found out that the members of MECHA and LA RAZA had, after overhearing disparaging remarks made about muslims around campus, offered to escort muslim sisters anywhere they needed to go. I also heard that the Student Union president at Berkeley called the MSU, Afghan Student Union, and Students for Justice in Palestine into his office and told them he would provide them with extra security and to let them know that they had the support of the student government. I also learned that a non-muslim friend of mine spoke at the vigil on Tuesday night and said that the muslm women with scarves on their heads were the ones who showed true courage.  Those women who continue to wear a symbol of their faith even in the face of the violence and hatred; they are the ones with courage. I am proud to call him my friend, and I am left to wonder if I deserve his admiration. The next day in the morning I go to Berkeley High to teach my high school Civics class about the International Declaration of Human Rights and the Constitution.  They focused in instead on freedom of speech and freedom of the press.  They then told me that they believe that we should all understand that the acts of a few do not destroy the goodness of an entire people and that the media should focus on that.  Their grace and intelligence increases their esteem in my eyes by leaps and bounds. I experience the old adage that a teacher learns far more from her students than they ever do from her.  From them I learned to trust in people's humanity...their true fitra. That afternoon I proceeded to the campus-wide jummah held on the Cal campus. There were between 400-500 non-Muslims in attendance to hear the khutbah by Sidi Hatem, not to mention the Muslims in attendance for prayer.  The Chancellor addressed the crowd and called for prayer for the death of all innocent people everywhere not just NY and Washington. That night after returning home, I received a call from a non-Muslim friend of mine from my undergraduate years that I hadn't spoken to in about 6 months. She said she had been searching for my number for three days...that she was worrying about me. How was my family? Did I remind my brother to be careful? (Since he wears kufi all the time). How's my mom? Has anyone given her trouble? In the middle of this barrage of questions her husband called. He too was relieved to hear that I was all right.  She begged me to consider not wearing my scarf. They didn't want to hear that anything bad had happened to me. That call meant more than she could imagine and in a way...though I doubt this is what she intended...strengthened my resolve to stand by all that I am. Hijab and all...at least while people like her still fill the world. Then...on Saturday I went to the city for a teaching seminar. My Professor was leaving for India in a couple weeks on a humanitarian mission.  When we asked him more specifically why he was going, he told us it was to document the story of Tibetan children in India at the Dalai Lama's schools. He told us that the Tibetan people suffer under the oppression of the Chinese Government. They are discriminated against for their religious and ethnic heritage and are often fatally prevented from practicing their religion.  In order for their children not to suffer this way, some parents send their children across the Chinese/Indian border, through the treacherous terrain of the Himalayan Mountain. He told us the story of a girl - 11 years old. The little girl gathered with all the other children whose parents were sending them to India.  There was one little boy there who was 9 years old and small and frail and slightly bow legged.  His father gave him his boots, telling his son "you will need these boots more than I will." So this group of young children proceeded across the highest, coldest mountains in the world.  At the top of the mountain it gets to 20 degrees below zero and if you don't keep moving you die. Many of the kids lose body parts...feet, hands, fingers, ears.  The little boy was climbing the mountain, but his boots...because they were his father's and too large for him...filled with snow and his feet froze...they collapsed and he could walk no more.  Rather than leave her new friend up in the mountain, this little girl put him on her back and attempted to carry him down the mountain.  After two days...the little boy died as he clung to her back. She buried him in the snow up on the mountain. She said that though she only knew him for a few weeks, she would never forget him. As my tears flowed, I thought about their courage.  They were unwilling to give up their faith and way of life even in the face of such tyranny.  They climbed mountains and lost limbs.  I pray that Allah gives me the courage to show such character and nobility. These were a few glimpses into the breath of Allah that all people are created with.  These people's spirits enliven my own. I pray that they do the same for all of you. My favorite saying of Rumi seems to capture the moment. "Don't simply listen to poems. Stories of how things have gone with others. Go out and unfold your own story with beauty and remark ability, in plain verse so all may understand." your sister in Islam, Eman Tai September 17, 2001

Re: "Go out and unfold your own story with beauty"
Haseeba
10/03/01 at 16:33:40
that was so beautiful and inspiring jazakallah khair for sharing that was salam alikum Haseeba

Re: "Go out and unfold your own story with beauty"
bhaloo
10/03/01 at 21:23:52
slm Yes, alhumdullilah nice story, and you have a very nice quote in your signature from Ibn Qayyim, I haven't seen it before, where did you hear/read it from?

Re: "Go out and unfold your own story with beauty"
ahmer
10/04/01 at 07:51:13
i chunked this out from a terrific article on Maqam-Al-Khawf (Station of Khawf) it's on www.islamworld.net I liked this article so much that i also put it in the "Assalaamu Alaikum" publication here. Imam Jawzeah i think is one of the most intelligent Muslim scholars of the past. I read one of his book, "Minhajul Qasideen" abridged by a palestinian scholar, Allama Muqaddasi. Wow the abridged version itself is so cool. The arguments are so logical, balanced and powerful, it's really amazing!! Imam Jawzeah is simply amazing!! alhumdolillah slms ahmer

Re: "Go out and unfold your own story with beauty"
bhaloo
10/04/01 at 14:30:23
slm I haven't heard of this book before, but I'm going to have to go out and buy it now. :)  The things he has written are so incredibly beautiful.  One brother on the board translated some excerpts from one of his books Jawab Al-Kafi, and it was very impressive.  I've been waiting for someone to translate that book. I'm guessing I can find the book on amazon or barnesandnoble?  Preferably I'd like to buy it from an Islamic bookstore.
Individual posts do not necessarily reflect the views of Jannah.org, Islam, or all Muslims. All trademarks and copyrights on this page are owned by their respective owners. Comments are owned by the poster and may not be used without consent of the author. The rest © Jannah.Org