This is a post which has been sitting in my drafts for a couple of months… I had an idea… events over the last couple of days have given it meaning and content. It is also only after I read another Seth Godin post, that I have been motivated to actually post this.
For most people, birthdays are a time of celebration; it is a joyous occasion – sometimes marking a milestone in life, and other times just enjoying the “getting older”, being “more mature” thing. With me… I am a kill joy at times like these… I choose to switch off from the real world and wander off into my own little place.
Thinking about your actions, your past, your behaviors and experiences is not something which should be reserved for one day only – it is something which should always be at the back of your mind. However, from time to time, you need landmark days to realize your improvements, to track your progress – I guess to actually see those baby steps towards a better way of living life. July 7th is THAT day for me.
It has been a very weird situation that for the past 5-7 years or so, I have had very very negative experiences in the days prior to my birthday. There has always been an attempt on my part to create a buffer during the couple of days or so prior to the 7th, so that there are no or very few mental activities which skew away my thought process. However, every year there is some incident, occurrence, event which sends me into thinking overdrive. This year didn’t disappoint either…. one of my favorite uncles, N, passed away on Monday the 6th of July; it’s amazing how an amazingly fit and healthy person, a generous, kind and loving person just collapses and passes on without any sign.
If only life was predictable.
Celebration by definition means to commemorate something – an event, an occurrence, good times. Thinking back over the last year, I see myself surrounded by people who want, want, want; atleast they talk that way. There are very few people who express their desire to give; to earn blessings instead of gifts, to earn a smile while fulfilling someone else’s needs. Thinking back to my uncle N, he gave a lot to everyone during his lifetime. When he visited us two years ago, he gave us 6 weeks of pure joy – our shock of his passing on is the credit to his nature. He tirelessly worked for his family – his family now hold a reputation in community to be rivaled for. He adopted his niece when she was abandoned as a baby because she was born a girl. This man gave her the love, respect and life which any child deserves from a parent; words cannot describe the amazing woman that she has become – it was all his giving which has made them the people they have become. More than anything else, he never asked for anything in return… from anyone… he unselfishly gave to earn his respect and standing within the community and society.
If I needed to have a celebration of any sort to commemorate the turning over of another year, I would want to do it by giving. Giving to those who are less fortunate than I am. Giving to those who have ability but no direction, giving to those with a cause to fight for. We turn up in this life looking to learn and take away lessons and experiences… wouldn’t it be something amazing if we preached some of what we learnt as part of our life experience to our kids or youth? Wouldn’t it be great to contribute not just for one day, but for a life time towards the education of a child? Wouldn’t it be great to help those in a small remote village in Africa (or wherever) with the facilities and infrastructure which will enable them to come to par with life like how we in the western world lived 50 or 60 years ago?
Giving is not for one day… it is for EVERY day in this life…
It is never too late to start giving… the size of your contribution doesn’t matter either… but remember, your generosity is not dependent on how much you give – but moreover the length of time that your contribution actually lasts.
Life is too short… Give something… Today!
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{ 7 comments }
Your uncle sounds lovely, masha’Allah. It’s a good sign that you remember him so fondly. May his good deeds be company for him in the grave, and a source of immense reward in the Hereafter, ameen.
Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi rajiun.
To Allah we belong, and to Him is the return.
speechless.
i really wanna be all wordy about it and asure you and myself that things in the long run will be better brighter but guess what i m yawnnnnnnnnnnning away.
very few people touch my life the way i would want it to be touched.
i thank you for touching it again and again …
with words that equal a lot of action prior to it!
bless you!
beautifully written…
May Alla have mercy on his soul. He sounds like he was a great man, and through his deeds in-sha-Alla his remembrance will last with every prayer of his family, friends, & loved ones.
Life IS too short, and sometimes seems to be hectic and full to have time to give. However, it is the definition of Giving the may stray us from the action.
“Give somthing.. Today!” can be as easy as a phone call, a smile to poor man sitting on a sidewalk, a 5 min talk to the doorman, change of money that’ll feed the worker for 2 days.
Consistancy to build a habit of Giving..
“Giving is not for one day… it is for EVERY day in this life…”
My condolences for your lost .It sounds like he was a great man.
Nice blog post,I really enjoyed reading this.
I try to do something small each day to hep others, small steps which may lead to bigger things. Your Uncle is an insperational man even after his passing he continues to affect you and now us, your readers. Thanks for sharing this beautifully written memory.
I’m not going to say that I give a lot or I try to, because the truth of it is, I don’t.
In your actions however, I’ve always found inspiration and in the back of my head there’s a little beep going off which reads, ‘MAYBE NOW YOU’LL GET TO WORK YOU LAZY SLOB.’
I wasn’t aware of who or what your phuppa was, and MashAllah he sounds like the best. But we know now that he IS in a better place.
And, on the topic of birthdays:
Mark my words, ONE day, I will throw you one helluva birthday party. The sorts that’ll make you tell your kids, “Uncle Mali is the best uncle you’ll ever have! There was this one party that your Uncle Mali thre… No wait. Never mind. I shouldn’t tell you that. Yeah. He’s cool. Take my word for it.”
Inna Lillahi Wa Inna Ilaihi Rajioon.
See you soon InshAllah.
M
I could talk and say things but they would never sound or touch the heart as good as the words that were spoken by Elizabeth Bibesco:
“Blessed are those who can give without remembering, and take without forgetting.”
And as the great late man said:”So it goes.” to your late and great uncle!What I take from that quote, I always use that when a person dies, which was written by Kurt Vonnegut, is that people will always be alive if not in the future or right now they are still alive in the past, and we will always remember the past it lives on in our memories!
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