Sumi is almost four months old now. She is cute and cuddly with smiling half moon eyes. I try to take in the moment, knowing that these days are precious and she is already growing up so fast. My father told me that the one thing he regretted was the fact that he didn\u2019t get to enjoy us while we were children. He was too worried about work, buying a house, providing us with an education. Alhamdulillah, we came out alright thanks to his emphasis on hard work. He would always tell us that \"Practice doesn\u2019t make perfect, it makes improvement,\" and, \u201cSuccess is beautiful.\u201d He usually said that after Pete Sampras won a Wimbledon or U.S. Open.<\/p>\n
\tNow that I\u2019m on the other side of the fence, I try to think of what would make the biggest impact on my child. I can overwhelm myself with thoughts of responsibility, how I have the potential to provide her with a great start or seriously dampen her chances, or I can concentrate on myself and my own improvement.<\/p>\n
\tWe all know the adage, \u201cDo as I say, don\u2019t do as I do.\u201d We know that that\u2019s never the case with children. I want Sumi to do as I do, but that means:<\/p>\n
\ta) I need to always be mindful of what I\u2019m doing. Am I raising my voice because the bathroom sink is filled with remnants of shaven beard hair? <\/p>\n
\tb) I actually need to do, setting projects for my own self development. Alhamdulillah, with the encouragement of good sisters and my husband, I started running and getting back into shape. I hate running. I would much rather play volleyball, but it feels good not to always succumb to what I want. I had gained 63 pounds during my pregnancy and thus far have lost 60, alhamdulillah.<\/p>\n
\tc) Prioritize what\u2019s important. Am I instilling values and principles as opposed to pushing her to accomplish milestones and essentially creating an award based environment?<\/p>\n
\td) I need to surround her with people that also do. This is a huge worry for me. Not so much now, but when she is older. Will there be a good Muslim community for her to thrive in, where she doesn\u2019t feel self conscious about being herself, and yet is motivated and inspired by the characters of others?<\/p>\n
\te) I need to trust in Allah. Trust so much in Allah that it is contagious in our household.<\/p>\n
\tAllah has given me the immeasurable blessing of nurturing one of His servants. It\u2019s time for me to buckle down, work on myself, and, here it comes\u2026stay consistent. For if I can do that, then I am assured that Allah will help me with the rest.<\/p>\n
\t\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Marwa Aly<\/p>\n
\tMarwa Aly is a mother, wife, and sister who serves as the Muslim Chaplain at Trinity College and Wesleyan University<\/em><\/p>\n \t\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Sumi is almost four months old now. She is cute and cuddly with smiling half moon eyes. I try to take in the moment, knowing that these days are precious and she is already growing up so fast. My father told me that the one thing he regretted was the fact that he didn\u2019t get […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1573,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1006","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-motherhood"],"yoast_head":"\n