Friday, September 05, 2008

role reversal.

assalamu alaikum :o)

bismillah.

"Most people will lose two things: good health and free time." Such were the words of Muhammad SAW.

Following jumah prayers today an uncle asked me for a ride home. This particular uncle suffered a stroke a few years ago, rendering him weak and unable to walk without assitance. Another effect of the stroke was the development of a speech impediment and some loss of memory. As I drove, he constantly kept instructing me on which route to take. With each gesture of his hand and order of his tongue, I had to calmly remind him that we lived in the same neighborhood, and that I knew where he lived.

As we got to talking, I told him of how I remembered running through the prayer hall with his children as a kid. After the rakat was over he would get up and yell, shouting "this is Allah's house to pray, not to play!" Forced to play outside, we would return back into the masjid and continue where we left off. After telling a few of these old stories from my childhood and his days of good health, the car felt silent. Uncle seemed to be in quiet a pensive mood, remembering happier days of ease and mobility, where he could run after us kids and worship his Lord without hardship. Now it was impossible for him to stand in prayer or even go into sujood. Yet, he didnt offer any excuses for himself, and continued to pray.

Here was a man who once looked after and disciplined us as kids. And here I was now, quite a number of years later, assisting him in walking to the car, sitting inside, exiting, and then getting situated into his own home. Man can be reduced to so little, so fast.

Countless are the bounties of Allah. Among them, is the blessing of good health. Remain cognizant of this and dont take it for granted.

Your brother in islam.

7 Comments:

Blogger Naima said...

This comment has been removed by the author.

7:46 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

this reminded me with the saying "life is too short" tho people use this in the sense that we should enjoy our lives now, but i think this is a prime example of how our lives can change over night.. subhan Allah..

finally this post reminded me with hadith the prophet salla Allahu alayhi wa salam when he said, take advantage of five before five:
#1: Your Youth Before Your Old Age
#2: Your Health, Before You Fall Sick
#3: Your Richness Before Poverty
#4: Your Free Time Before You Become Busy
#5: Your Life Before Your Death

7:58 PM  
Blogger Unknown said...

awesome reminder

-ofoshoukno

11:13 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Alhumdulillah..very inspiring!Thats nice of you to help him. It makes me so sad to think that we could be in a similar situation (whether it be a health issue or just getting old.) May Allah guide us all! AMEEN!

1:38 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

please please please post more often! i remember reading your posts ever since you started blogging years ago and i just loved them!

:)

3:54 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Salaam,

Finally a decent post from Hajji Saab

4:01 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

" Man can be reduced to so little, so fast. " especially upon the hearing of the trumpets, when
"the earth and the mountains are borne away and crushed with one crash".... (69:14)

:: The fall of small and great men in the day of doom.

Sub7anaAllah.

2:53 PM  

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