I believe I’ve mentioned before that there is a very polite Jehovah’s Witness who rides AbuS and my bus. While I am totally not up for proselytizing or being proselytize to, AbuS has been more than happy to chat with her about the Bible.
AbuS rode the bus home with her yesterday and someone the subject of my conversion came up. AbuS talked about how the character of the beloved Prophet Muhammad (saws) was a large part of what drew me to Islam.
I’ve attempted to give her a copy of the Qur’an in the past, which she has always refused. I’ve found that a little off putting, since we’ve accepted free bibles and watchtower magazines from her. But now, a small breakthrough.
She has agreed to possibly reading a biography of the Prophet (saws)! Alhamdulilah! I plan on giving her Tariq Ramadan’s In the Footsteps of the Prophet and Submission, Faith and Beauty.
She is very much into the book of Revelations and the end times. Are there any good books out there on the end times in Islam? It’s never been something I have concerned myself much with, as I figure it will happen when it happens and what I really need to worry about is preparing for my own death. However, she consistently sees signs of the end of times in the news. I know I’ve mentioned a few of the signs from the hadith to her, but maybe a good book on the matter will also open her heart.
Please make dua to Allah (swt) open her heart to Islam through the beauty of our beloved Prophet Muhammad’s (saws) character.
Zomgosh, hyperventilating here! This + Ramadan excitement is almost too much to bear!
- A unique program (never offered before) designed to follow the Sunnah of the prophet throughout the Hajj journey.
- A guided tour uniquely designed to follow on the foot step of our beloved the prophet (SAW) and his pious companions.
- This program is recommended for seasoned travelers, and Individuals who are willing to forsake the comfort of AC transportation, fancy hotel rooms and other services to gain the ultimate rewards.
- The distance between Makkah and Mina is approximately 8 kilometers (~5 miles) while the distance between Mina and Arafat is approximately 14.4 kilometers (~9 miles).
Since becoming muslim, I’ve always wanted to make hajj walking. Being stuck on buses in traffic for hours on end just doesn’t scream *spiritual awakening* to me. Of course, walking around all those buses probably doesn’t either, but maybe, just maybe, this program has found a way to make it happen.
Make dua that I can convince AbuS that this is the way to go. And make dua that we will be able to go in the next few years, before the hajj creeps into the summer months. There is so much to save up for - a house, a new car, the hajj - and I really thank Allah (swt) that we can even consider doing these things. It is only through His Mercy and Grace that we have the provisions to seek these goals.
The walking hajj would also force us to get back into shape. I was going to the gym pretty consistently last year, until I adopted the Squeakster. Then, I didn’t want to go to the gym after work - I wanted to go home to love up my kitty. Not that I don’t want to love up my kitty anymore, but I’m sure she’ll be fine for that extra hour it takes me to go to the gym. Plus, she’d probably be happy if her mommy doesn’t die of a heart attack before the age of 30.
For now, gotta push myself to at least start, by doing some (secular) yoga and pilates DVDs at home, and then after Ramadan inshaAllah, get back to the gym.
Ten Good Manners for Hajj by Imam al Ghazali
Fifthly, one should perform as much of the Hajj as possible on foot. On his deathbed, Ibn Abbas told his sons: ‘My sons, you should make Hajj on foot, for the walking pilgrim receives seven hundred blessings from the Sacred Sanctuary with every step he takes.’ One should take particular care to walk during the important rituals, such as the movement from Makka to Arafat and to Mina. Some ulema, however, have held that riding is better, because this allows one better to assist others, is safer, and keeps one away from situations which may provoke anger and resentment in one’s heart. In reality, this view is not in conflict with the former opinion: one should simply use one’s discernment, so that one walks if one finds walking easy, but rides if one is weak or fears that walking will worsen one’s behaviour and damage the quality of one’s actions. When performing the rites of Umra, it is best to walk, and to spend the money thus saved in good works.
Practical Tips in Preparation for Ramadan (from soundvision with added links by moi)
Ramadan is an event that occurs in the life of the faithful, as individuals and as an Ummah, once a year. It is intended by Allah to help us to recharge our spiritual batteries and thus prepare us for the great mission of realizing His will on earth. Therefore, in order to benefit from Ramadan, we may do well to prepare for it by opening our hearts and minds to embrace it. Let me offer a few tips:
1. We should empower ourselves by learning as much as we can about the precise laws as well as the benefits of fasting. Fiqh of Fasting Hanafi, Basics of Fasting - Shafi’i, Maliki book on Fasting, Fiqh us Sunnah on Fasting, general
2. We should ensure that we gain true benefits from our fasting, let us make sure to realize the spirit of fasting: this can only be done by abstaining, not only from food, drink, and sex, but also by strictly restraining our minds, hearts as well as our eyes, ears, hands, tongue, and so on. Inner Dimensions of Fasting by Imam al Ghazali
3.We must embrace the spirit of fasting as stressed in Hadith: to be charitable and compassionate as much as we can. The Concept of Charity in Islam, Muslim Character by Muhammad Ghazali
4. We should strengthen our relationship with the Qur’an; for Ramadan is the month of the Qur’an. Way to the Qur’an, Ulum al Qur’an
5. We should engage in dhikr and condition ourselves to make it second nature. My page of dhikr resources
6. Last but not least, we should build up our community through acts of charity and compassion and extending help to those in need as much as we can. Agenda to Change our Condition
Let us pray that we come out of Ramadan with our faith recharged, gaining strength in our faith and commitment and relationship with Allah.
We finally have two senators and it’s about time! Now I have to dig out my picture with Al Franken 
Coleman concedes Senate race; Pawlenty to sign certificate
*busts out another happy dance complete with pot stirring*
In case anyone (besides me) actually enjoys reading legal opinions, the Supreme Court’s Opinion can be found here.
It never fails.
I get up to pray fajr around 5 and then attempt to sleep out on the couch for an hour or so before work. Squeaky the Hutt decides she MUST talk to me NOW, and will meow meow meow…until it’s time to get up for work. Then she sleeps.
Dur.
I can’t wait for shorter days and the return of a more normal sleep pattern. As much as it is teh awesome to finally get in the habit of praying all my prayers on time, isha starting at 11 and fajr ending around 5 leaves not a lot of time for much needed uninterrupted sleep.
Stalking the wrapping paper.
Made a few new recipes that turn out well this weekend:
Chocolate tapioca pudding with bananas - left out the whipped cream and chocolate cookies. I actually cut up a whole banana into a bowl, and then only put a few spoonfuls for the pudding on top, so it was more banana then pudding. Tasty and natural, unlike the package add milk and stir puddings from the grocery store.
Corn and Shrimp Chowder without Bacon - menos bacon obviously, so I skipped step 2, and at step 3, heated some olive oil in the pan to cook the scallions and potatos. I suppose I could have used turkey bacon, but with my goal of getting processed food out of my live, I figured turkey processed to heck and back to look like faux bacon would not fit the bill. Quite tasty, although I picked the shrimp out of my serving. I’m not a huge fan of shrimp, but AbuS is, so I figured I’d save them all for him
Lemonade with Watermelon-Strawberry ice cubes. A modified Martha Stewart recipe. Originally suppose to be watermelon-strawberry popsicles, but since I didn’t have any popsicle molds, I improvised and put the mix into ice cube trays. Then, throw 3 cubes in a glass, top with lemonade and wa’la
I know the food pictures aren’t the greatest. One of these days, I’m going to get a nice wooden plate and bowl, and a clear glass to take food pics for the blog. But until then, enjoy my vintage Micky D’s Disney glasses from my days as a McDonalds crew member.
I also went co-op shopping this weekend, and I swear this is not a staged pic. I was setting up my purchases to photograph, and the Squeakster decided to pose with the food for me.
Annie’s Mac n Cheese was on sale for $1.49 a box. I also stocked up on fruit leather, which is all natural, for lunch sweets. And, vanilla extract free chocolate chips.
Somali Mall Murder Case now with Jury
According to the charges, Abdillahi wanted revenge for the April 2008 shooting death in Minneapolis of his cousin, but because he believed the shooter had fled the country, he decided to kill that man’s friend instead.
If I knew I was going to have four sons (and that’s totally not in the plans, but Allah [swt] is the best of all planners), I would totally name them:
Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali or Numan, Malik, Muhammad and Ahmad.
And for girls:
Tasnim, Jinan, Firdaws and Jannah.
And if I get more cats, I’m naming them Squishy, Squeegy, Squiggly, and Squirmy ;)
Please excuse me for making this pop culture post. Growing up, we didn’t list to a lot of pop music. While other kids gushed about New Kids on the Block, I was still listening to Raffi and then Beethoven and musical soundtracks.
One bit of the mainstream did reach me however (aside from Walk Like an Egyptian, which was my favorite childhood song), the theme song from Free Willy, will you be there? I loved the movie and loved the theme song. My sixth grade class chose it as our class song to sing at our end of the year program. The lyrics were and are still beautiful.
I was never a huge Michael Jackson fan. I shook my head at his crazy antics and in recent years made dua that he would accept Islam through is contacts in the gulf.
As I’m writing this, I don’t know if he has passed or not. If he has, I hope that he found peace in recent years and had accepted Islam. If he has not, I hope he recovers, takes stock of his life and gets things in order.
People ask why we should care about the death of a celebrity. Is he any more important than anyone else in this world? No, he is not, but with his death and the death of other celebrities, we should be reminded of own impending death. Soon too, we will end up in the grave waiting for the day of judgment.
What should we feel about the death of the Pope (insert any famous person here)?
Use this as a wake up call to reflect on your own life and death. Use it to know Allah (swt) more and seek His pleasure inshaAllah.
When mankind enters Jannah, will you be there?
UmmSqueakster