Reflection by Sr. Khadija
I recently attended a halaqa in which our teacher said something along the lines of, “there is no amount of money equivalent to one laylat al-qadr or one Ramadan.”
We were learning about the blessing of time: something that easily rolls off the tongue but our actions? Do they really reflect the value of having that blessing and appreciating it?
Al-Hasan al-Basri (RH) stated, “O Son of Adam, you are nothing but a number of days. Whenever each day passes, then a part of you has gone.”
This is to say, with every single day that passes, a part of us has gone – died. You will never get back who you were and what you did yesterday, or the day before, or the week before, or even 15 years before!
Every day we wake up with a thousand blessings. What’s the first thing on our minds? It’s part of the Sunnah to begin your morning with adhkar – remembering Allah and asking Him for protection, forgiveness, blessings, etc. for the day ahead. What better way to start your day?
The time we have left is such a precious thing, but we need to treat it like this. Heedlessness is so scary, because what will you do when your time comes? What if it came right now, while you are reading this? After that, there’s no going back.
Every single day, we have the opportunity of a lifetime: to turn back to our Lord with genuine sincerity and the conviction that we will improve for His sake, because we want to return in a state that is pleasing to Him.
If we show true appreciation for these blessings, cherishing all of these seconds adding up to minutes adding up to hours and days of our lives – there will be a sweetness that fills each and every single moment. Ramadan is such a special time because of this – full of rewards and the chance to turn back to Allah SWT – but it only happens once each year, and who knows if and when we will see the next one, or if we will be in our graves?
So, my dear brothers and sisters, don’t let this time go to waste. If you are reading this and you have wasted your day, turn back to your Lord in repentance and keep working. If you have been making good use of your time, thank Allah for what He’s given you and keep pushing yourself. If it is Ramadan, don’t let a second of this precious month go to waste.
Take every second, every moment, every breath – as an opportunity.
