Changes

Salam alaykum.

these are part of my collection too. jazakallah khayr :)

1) People can change when they are given the right knowledge & encouragement. It may take time but keep on caring & helping each other.

2) Once we make a serious effort & change or niyyah to improve ourselves for the sake of Allah SWT, insyaAllah, He will make it easier for us.

3)  Peer pressure, even fear of losing approval fro others may stop us from doing what we know is right, deep within our hearts.

4) Do not allow others to set the standards for us. We have the freedom to make our own choices.

5) Since we are not even anywhere near perfect, it is important to sincerely acknowledge His Wisdom & His Majesty.

Jazakallah khayr.

A little something

Salam alaykum.

i'd like to share this hadeeth with all of you. May Allah help us in our journey to seek knowledge and may He protect us from Shaytain.

Bismillahi rahmani rahim.

"Whoever gives up wearing elegant & expensive garments out of humility, when he has the means to do so, Allah will call him on the day of Judgment, and before all His creations, He will give him the choice to whichever of the clothes of faith he would like to wear".

(At-Tirmidhi)

Jazakallah khayr
Salam alaykum.

For My Dear Sisters

Salam alaykum.

today's post will be a collection of information from a book I've read. the title is "The Beauty of Covering Up" by Noorshin Ng. 

my best friend lent it to me after I first started wearing the hijab. she said that this book can be of good use to me and also as a source of inspiration as it also contains hadeeths and verses from the Qur'an with relations to women and 'modesty'. 

truth be told, she was right. I was so inspired by the content of this book that I began to have more positive views about wearing hijab. Noorshin Ng wrote in such a way that I could pretty much imagine her talking to me with such a gentle manner. anyway, without wasting more time, here are some of the useful contents:

1) You are beautiful and Allah, full of Wisdom & Mercy, has guided us to value ourselves & taught us how to live modestly, spiritually, emotionally, and physically.

2) Let the inner beauty shine through. Do not depend on make-up to feel & look good. Be genuine & confident. Love & accept ourselves as God's very special creations.

3) The beauty comes from within to radiate outside. The radiance from the face of someone who wants to cover for Allah's sake is what makes a believer beautiful.

4) Carry yourself confidently & be happy with your natural features gifted by Allah SWT.

5) Wonderful & beautiful creations of Allah are often concealed & protected naturally. 

6) There is a difference between simple grace & beauty compared to overly attractive attire that screams for attention.

7) Though women have to fulfill a lot of responsibilities at home, it is ibadah for them to make time to take care of their appearance especially when their husbands return home from a long stressful day at work. 

8) When a woman covers herself up appropriately, she sends a message that she is a Muslim & does not wish to be treated like women of Jahiliya. 

9) The inner peace that comes with wearing the hijab is much more rewarding than falling prey to pressure from those who do not understand. 

that's all for today. reminder: NONE of the above content is mine. 

Jazakallah khayr brothers & especially sisters. may this knowledge be beneficial to all of you, insyaAllah.

salam alaykum.

Something to share

Salam alaykum.

this is something I copied from a blog that my friends & I share ( http://pumpkinproject.blogspot.com/ ). my segment for that blog is mainly focused on fitness. however, I just posted my opinion on children with autism. 
hopefully this can be beneficial to all of you.

this video really made me cry. it's about a girl who's had autism since she was around 2. and usually kids with autism somehow will have to grow up with the existing stigma the society has against them. Kids with autism suffer delayed development in 3 areas; namely, Social Skills, Language Development, and Behavioral Repertoire. typically, symptoms appear before the age of three. but they are all different from each other.

A little background of me: I currently work as a therapist for children with autism. when I first started, I thought I wouldn't be able to do it. But I always wanted to keep trying and keep improving my skills. To be frank, I LOVE this job. It makes me happy everyday to go to work and anticipate what kind of sessions will I have with them. I haven't been working for so long (only 4 months so far) and honestly I've seen so much improvements in them. and every single time they are able to accomplish a task in any of the 3 areas, I couldn't help but say my prayers and feel gratitude for all the hard work and effort put forth for them.

if you realized, I don't refer to them as "autistic kids" because by doing so would be an act of 'labeling' them with such a disorder that already had stigma attached to it. these kids are special. and I mean 'special' in a sense that each of them are able to do something that most of us people with normal development cannot do.

I've seen a boy who can build the best train track that I've ever seen. one boy can build airplanes that could blow your mind away. and one can talk about the planets & the outer space with information that could leave you asking for science lessons from him. one possess great knowledge in sea animals, with every species of fish that he can name. and most of them communicate well, with good eye contacts established in conversations.

this video also serves as an eye opener and a reminder to all of us about how these kids are potential geniuses. everyday I go to work, my love for them increases. and often times I feel so motivated to do my very best thinking that my effort contributes to their development. when we come across them, try to not treat them as 'mentally retarded' or 'slow' kids or what not. just remind yourself that they are kids too. and kids are special, every one of them. and they are indeed different compared to one another.

p/s: should any of you wanna ask more about autism or the kind of work that I do, drop your comments :)

Jazakallah khayr

Salam.