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I love a good sale. \u00a0When I had my second daughter I started what has become a close and personal relationship with online shopping. \u00a0I was able to try things on in the privacy of my own home and when things didn\u2019t work out I simply returned them. \u00a0But most of all the deals were great. \u00a0I reassured my husband on more than one occasion that I was saving money, not spending it.<\/p>\n
But I\u2019ve stopped online shopping now. \u00a0I\u2019ve given up online sales for an even better sale: Ramadan. \u00a0Siraj Wahhaj once said in regards to blessings, that being a Muslim is like having a sale every day, and Ramadan is like getting everything for free! \u00a0Yet some of us let this wonderful opportunity slip by.<\/p>\n
In other areas of life, when we see something for free we may become suspicious. \u00a0There must be something wrong with it or perhaps the person selling is overstating the value. \u00a0In the back of our minds we may unknowingly believe that good quality should come at a steep price or else it\u2019s \u2018too good to be true\u2019.<\/p>\n
Case in point, a few years ago a famous violin player performed incognito at a train station in Washington D.C. \u00a0He played 6 Bach pieces for 45 minutes on his violin which was said to be worth 3.5 million dollars. \u00a0He was mostly ignored and certainly underappreciated; a far cry from his sold-out performance 2 days earlier. \u00a0Of course a lot can be said about why this happened, but it begs the question, how to we define and measure value in our lives?<\/p>\n
Ramadan is challenging but it\u2019s a great teacher if you are willing to be a good student. \u00a0By taking a deep look at our practices we can\u2019t help but see what has been truly important to us during the year. \u00a0Zone in on where you spent your time and you will find where your heart is.<\/p>\n
There is a story of Muadh ibn Jabal, a beloved companion of the Prophet, peace be upon him, speaking on how he performed tahajjud prayer. \u00a0He explained his practice and then said, \u201cI expect to be rewarded for my sleep just as much as I expect to be rewarded for my tahajjud.\u201d \u00a0Expect? \u00a0Just as much? \u00a0This reinforces the point that if we live in a state of remembrance, no action goes unrewarded.<\/p>\n
The prophets, companions and mothers of the believers continue to inspire us yet we may brush off the hope of being as good as them because we tell ourselves \u2018I\u2019m no Aisha\u2019. But they too loved, lost, made mistakes, married, had kids \u2013 they were human. \u00a0Extraordinary humans yes, but humans none-the-less and we do a great disservice to ourselves when we say we can\u2019t be like them because they lived to show us that we can be great.<\/p>\n
Ramadan gives us presence of heart, mind and body. \u00a0We are all tired, thirsty and hungry but who will we be when this month ends? \u00a0There is a quote by Mohammed Ali, \u201cThe man who sees the world at 50, the same way he did at 30, has wasted 20 years of his life.\u201d \u00a0Let\u2019s not waste this wonderful opportunity. \u00a0Let us be the Muslims that see the world differently at the end of these 30 days. \u00a0Let\u2019s have hope again and spread that hope to everyone around us.<\/p>\n
Lena Hassan\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Lena Hassan lives in Ottawa, Ontario and is a loving mother to two girls.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I love a good sale. \u00a0When I had my second daughter I started what has become a close and personal relationship with online shopping. \u00a0I was able to try things on in the privacy of my own home and when things didn\u2019t work out I simply returned them. \u00a0But most of all the deals were […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1573,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,1],"tags":[141,249,1029,1447,1446],"class_list":["post-5952","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-spirituality","category-uncategorized","tag-blessings","tag-connecting-with-allah","tag-ramadan","tag-siraj-wahhaj","tag-too-good-to-be-true"],"yoast_head":"\n