Winter & Power-Walking

'In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer.'

Albert Camus (1913 - 1960) (He was apparently an author and philosopher who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1957.)

This winter (is it winter yet?) I have rediscovered Power-Walking! (It's just a fancy name for walking fast for exercise.) Umm Tasneem (The speaker Dawud Adib's wife) first introduced it to me when we were both in Egypt and she said it was the best exercise for Muslimaat. Autumn is beautiful in London. But I'm sure the coming of Winter affects me and though I don't suffer from SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder), if I don't get enough sunlight during the day, I really don't feel that good. So I've dug out the double push chair and coats and gloves and thermals for the kids and after dropping my eldest son to school, we're off!

I've been walking for 30 minutes to an hour a day. What I do is walk half an hour in one direction and then walk back so that it adds up to an hour. It's got to be fast and continuous, so that you are out of breath somewhat but can carry on walking for an extended period of time. And I feel GREAT! Ma sha Allah it's amazing how regular exercise and fresh air can really wake you up and energise you. It is a bit of an effort, lugging the kids around, but once we're home, they go to sleep and I have a shower. And then I feel really energized. I would really recommend it to everyone...men and women. Another benefit is that it gives me time to think and to make dhikr while I walk: Subhan Allahi wa bi hamdihee Subhan Allahil 'adheem. So, loads of benefits.

On weekends my husband looks after the kids while I go out for a fast walk (and he can't resist doing his rendition of 'Eye of the Tiger' from 'Rocky III' when he sees me getting my trainers on!).

A Simple Chocolate Cake

I know it's frivolous, but I love the smell of baking, wafting through my house.

This is a basic but brilliant chocolate cake recipe and a good one to start with if you're new to baking, it's an adapted version of a cake recipe from Nigella Lawson's book: How To Be A Domestic Goddess. (Yes I know the title is a bit silly but it is a brilliant baking book.)

You need a 2lb loaf tin, you know the type you can get in Supermarkets these days. What makes it look presentable as a gift as well as making it easy to get out of the tin, is a loaf tin liner (which is like baking parchment made to fit the loaf tin. It goes into the tin and the mixture goes into it). You can get loaf tin liners from John Lewis (they're not expensive) and they make the whole thing easier. The beauty of this recipe is that it is quick, because you can melt the chocolate and butter and prepare the whole mixture in one saucepan - less to wash up.

So here goes:

125g butter
100g best dark/plain chocolate, broken into pieces.
75g ground almonds
a handful of stoneless dates chopped finely
1 tablespoon of orange juice
150g caster sugar
2 large eggs
150g self-raising flour
(icing sugar for dusting on top)

(2lb loaf tin and liner as mentioned above)

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C/gas mark 4 (if you've got a fan oven the temperature should be about 160 degrees C)

Put the butter in a largish heavy-bottomed pan and put it over the lowest heat to melt. When melted add the chocolate pieces and stir with a wooden spoon. Leave for a moment to begin softening, then take the pan off the heat and continue stirring until chocolate and butter are smooth and melted.

Now add the other ingredients one by one, stirring well after adding each one: sugar, ground almonds, date pieces, eggs, juice, self-raising flour and when it is all well amalgamated pour into the loaf tin with the liner in it and pop into the oven on the middle rack for 50 minutes. Test it's done by putting a skewer through the middle and pulling it out. If it comes out clean (no mixture attached to it), it is done. (If it isn't done you can leave it in the oven for another 5 minutes at 150 degrees C)

Cool in the tin on a rack for 10 minutes before turning out. Then you can dust it with icing sugar put through a tea strainer. A slice can be served by itself or as my husband likes it: with Haagen Dazs Vanilla ice-cream.

And the bit I like? The nice smell lingering throughout the house.

Variations:

You can replace the almonds, dates and juice with 300g of thin-cut marmalade (for a chocolate orange cake) or 300g of any other jam really. Another variation is to soak a handful of prunes over night and then put them in a pan with water and simmer until the prunes are soft and mushy and mash with a fork and add to the cake mixture instead of the almonds, dates and juice. I like to add some mashed fruit or ground nuts to make it a little more nutritious for the kids.

Let me know if you make it.

What I like about Muslim Schools

Ofsted Inspectors were at my son's school recently and we just got the report. They wrote a letter to all of the parents with the report saying that the school is a ‘good school'. Alhamdulillah. They particularly commented on the good behaviour of pupils at school and the respect they show to teachers and how they paid attention in class. Things have improved since the last inspection and the school rated: 'good' in most areas.

May Allah reward Brother Yusuf Islam for his efforts in building Muslim Schools in the UK. He used his own resources to set up the first Muslim school here and through years of hard work managed to get government funding for Muslim schools on the agenda.

So I was thinking about what I really liked about Muslim Schools or at least my son’s school, and some of the aspects of school I like, are as follows:

Children have good adult role models: believing men and women who work hard and care about them and who are professionals who have been successful in this country.

The sense of Community: The teachers are my sisters, the parents and I have a common goal. One parent who is in the business, recently had wood-flooring fitted into the classrooms as a gift to the school.

The school has a Masjid and an Imam, where all of the prayers are prayed including Jumu'ah: Children can grow up regularly going to Masjid and therefore being attached to the Masjid in their youth as the hadeeth about the 7 under Allah's shade mentions, one of the seven is a youth who grows up attached to the Masjid.

What is at school is supported by what is at home: The teachers will often talk about Allah, refer things back to Allah, so the children will develop taqwa insha Allah. They will be told about respect for parents and elders, taqwa, and the correct manners of a Muslim.

It is multi-cultural: The caretaker is a white brother and the security brother is an Afro-Caribbean brother. The teachers and support staff are black, white and brown. There are children of converts from black and white families and mixed race families, Arabs, Asians, Malaysians.

Children are openly and confidently Muslim: they can say Alhamdulillah and Subhan Allah and Assalamu 'Alaikum without feeling embarassed. In these formative years, they will insha Allah develop a strong identity, not - as most of our generation grew up - with a dual identity or personality: one person at school and one person at home.

Staff take parent's advice on board: Teachers take our views and ideas on board and value them.

Qur’an memorisation and other Islamically praiseworthy achievements are valued and encouraged.

These are just a few things I've noticed. Obviously a child's home environment is as important as the school environment and will affect how much they benefit from the school environment. May Allah bless our children and guide them and prepare them for the world in the best way, whilst preserving their fitrah and innocence. Aameen. He is the Best Murabbi so may He give our children their Tarbiyah and make them of the Saaliheen. Aameen.

I have always known Allah

I do not remember a time when I did not know or speak to Allah.

I mean, from the time of my earliest memories my mother talked about Allah. She made du'a to Allah with us so we could all hear, and lived a life which was very conscious of Allah. When something bad happened, my parents made Istighfaar; they sought Allah's forgiveness for any mistakes they may have made. If they were hoping for something good to happen, they gave sadaqah immediately. We were reminded that we mustn't leave the tap on longer than necessary because Allah would ask us about it and He doesn't like us to waste. When we were going to be evicted from a flat we were living in, my father printed a du'a in Arabic on the computer for us and hung it in the kitchen and we would read it whenever we saw it. It was the Prophet's du'a:

اللهمّ اغْفِرْ لي ذَنبي و وَسّع لي في داري و بارِكْ لي في رِزْقي

Allaahumma ghfir lee dhambee wa wassi'lee fee daari, wa baarik lee fee rizqee

'Oh Allah, Forgive me my sin, and Make my home spacious for me and bless my provision for me.'

I remember the next house we moved to was a beautifully decorated four bedroom house with a front and back garden owned by a rich Greek singer.

Once while on 'Umrah, when my little sister got lost in the Haram in Makkah, we all sat and my mother made du'a and then we found her. When a lady saw us sitting with my mother making du'a with such emotion, she came up to us and said she wanted to give us children a gift and gave us some Riyaals each! We saw the power of Du'a in action because my parents drew our attention to it.

My mother would gather us around her in the living room as small children and would make du'a, aloud, with all of us listening and raising our hands. She would start in Arabic, with du'as from the Qur'an and Sunnah, then in Urdu, she would pour her heart out to the Creator. She would admit that we as human beings sin, and would beg for his forgiveness for all of our sins, large and small. She would ask Allah to be pleased with us and make us the way he wanted His true worshippers to be. She would cry, with tears...a sincere du'a, that made me cry every time- at least inside. She would make du'a for each of us individually, for our father, then each of us, our relatives, the Muslim Ummah. I felt as though she left nothing out. In doing this simple act of making du'a aloud, she taught us the adab, the way, the manners of calling on our Lord. It also taught us about the Infinite Ability and Majesty of the One who we were calling upon. I will always be thankful to her for that because I remember from my earliest memories, having a relationship with Allah.

As a child, I would make du'a before I went to sleep. I was always aware that Allah was watching me and would feel tremendous guilt if I did something which I knew I shouldn't have and would make a note in my mind that I must clear it with Allah. I remember I had an irrational fear of insects as a child (which my time living with Egyptian cockroaches temporarily solved!) and I would fear them going into my ears, especially moths! So I would make du'a as comprehensively as I could that "no insects would come within a mile of me all night"! From a young age I used to have dreams in which I saw Allah...obviously not as He truly is, Subhanahu Wa Ta'aala, but it shows you that I thought about Him a great deal, because my mother did.

My mother would always tell us that only Allah is our True Friend and so in my darkest moments, when I was very lonely in Egypt, I would cry and make du'a to Allah to show me the way, to fix my shortcomings and I remember the way I made du'a was so much like my mother did. She taught me the most important thing we could ever teach our children...to have a relationship with our Creator and to make Him our Confidante. In doing that she gave me a gift that I will carry with me wherever I may be, if I am alone, or in a crowd, if I am poor, or rich, in sickness or in health, or whatever....Allah is there and I can always call on him with confidence.

So I've started doing this with my children. I want to teach them about Allah through directly calling on Allah. And you know what? It has been the single most effective way of conveying to them who Allah is when I mention Him throughout the day. They love it when I make du'a and when I make du'a for Yusuf - my eldest, Yahya reminds me I have to make du'a for him too and then they both remind me to make du'a for the youngest Sulayman. Oh and I musn't miss out Daadi and Daada (their Grandparents). Now, they have started to ask Allah for things when they feel the need.

إذا سألك عبادي عنّي فإنّي قَريب أجيبُ دَعْوَةَ الدّاع إذا دعان فليَسْتَجيبوا لي وليُؤمِنوا بي لَعَلّهُم يَرْشُدون

"And if my servant asks you concerning me, then tell him that I am indeed near.
I answer the call of the suppliant when he calls on Me. So let him answer My Call, and let him Believe in Me, so that he may be guided."

(Surah Baqarah(2), Aayah 186)

I wonder if you, dear reader, remember how you as a child came to know about Allah and what drew you closer to Him? How do you bring consciousness of Allah into your children's lives?Please share your thoughts...

Alexander Litvinenko's Janazah

Brother Abdur Raheem Green (from the Da'wah department at London Central Mosque) has confirmed that he prayed in Alexander Litvinenko's Janazah prayer today at London Central Mosque (Regent's Park Mosque). May Allah make him of the Muslims and accept his Islam and his Janazah. Aameen.

Alexander Litvinenko's father arrives at Central Mosque where his Janazah took place today.







Here is an article about the burial:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6216202.stm

Our Chechnyan Brothers & Brother Alexander Litvinenko?

A Times article informs us that the former KGB spy, Alexander Litvinenko, who was poisoned recently apparently accepted Islam on his death bed and asked his father for a Muslim burial. Litvinenko spoke out about the plight of the Chechen Muslims who have been brutally slaughtered and persecuted by the Russian army of Putin. He must have had a Janazah! Or has he not been buried yet? Allahu a'lam. This is the end of the Times article:

"Litvinenko's father, Walter, said in an interview published today that his son - who was born an Orthodox Christian but had close links to Islamist rebels in Chechnya - had requested to be buried according to Muslim tradition after converting to Islam on his deathbed.
"He said ’I want to be buried according to Muslim tradition’," Mr Litvinenko told Moscow's Kommersant daily.
"I said, ’Well son, as you wish. We already have one Muslim in our family - my daughter is married to a Muslim. The important thing is to believe in the Almighty. God is one.’"

For the full article, read:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-2486268_2,00.html

To learn more about the plight of the Chechnyans, the most ignored crime of the Russians today, go to the following site:

www.savechechnya.org

The first thing a child learns about: Rahmah

When we think about our children learning it's easy just to think about letters and numbers and facts and figures. But ask any of us: if there was only one thing our children could learn in all their lives what would that be? We would say, 'to know Allah & love Him and worship Him alone without any partners.'

One of the things I've noticed in observing my children is that actually, what our children learn in the first years of life is the most important thing they will ever learn and it is precisely the thing that paves the way for them to understand who Allah is.

That thing is Rahmah. Feeling what Rahmah is. (Rahmah is the Arabic word for mercy and compassion, it comes from the same root as the word in Arabic for 'womb' (rahim))

At first he experiences the comfort and love of his mother or other primary carer, his cries are not in vain, somebody cares about him. So he is experiencing the Rahmah of another, the rahmah that exists in the world...the sensuous world around him can scare him as he is feeling hunger, fear, uncertainty, insecurity for the first time. But it is not a cruel world, because his mother comforts him and makes him comfortable. She responds to his cries, he is not alone. Then the eye contact a baby tries to make with you, the cuddles and closeness she craves. If she feels pain, someone cares and is with her. If she bumps her head, someone comforts her.

One of the things my 1 year old baby does is that if I am on the other side of the room busy doing something, he will suddenly look at me with the most sorrowful face he can muster up, eyes drooping, moaning slightly, trying to attract my sympathy, so that I will go over to him and pick him up. As soon as I pick him up, that look is gone and he's fine. He is seeking a means to my Rahmah. He knows that this person has Rahmah and cares about his feelings and his 'wants' and so he has already learnt about Rahmah.

This in turn makes him able to give Rahmah and feel Rahmah. And in time he will be able to understand about the Creator who has Rahmah for him.

What about those young people we hear about in the news every day who are able to kill and hurt people or mug old defenseless ladies and not feel remorse. Not even feel that they are doing anything wrong. They have no sense of empathy for the pain of others. Could that be because no one showed empathy to them? Could it be that they never felt Rahmah from those who cared for them? They have experienced a cruel world themselves so they expect the world to be cruel and see nothing wrong with being cruel. I heard a lady from an organisation which looks after young people with problems in Inner-City London. She said many of the young people she deals with have so much anger inside them. They have been beaten from their earliest days...with belts. Some of their mothers are drug-addicts who never looked after them. She found a family of girls who wore very shabby clothes to school which were totally inappropriate for the winter. When they visited their house they found a totally wrecked house with food on the floor and mess everywhere. Their mother was a single mother who had a mental illness and they had been fending for themselves...scratching around for food and making their own way to school. Social services hadn't noticed. Subhan Allah.
Another boy had a mother who was a single mother in real poverty. He was a shoplifter and he sold drugs. Why? Because he wanted to save up to buy his mum a washing machine because she couldn't cope with looking after her kids. He was a boy who was forced to think like a father for his siblings. The lady from the organisation was saying how well they responded to someone continuously caring for them and showing them love...it gave many of the young offenders a sense of empathy and conscience.
'Whoever doesn't show mercy will not be shown mercy'. The Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) said.