Race for Success

[Taqwa]

Assalamu Alaikum Wr Wb

 

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

 

We live in a time where Somali Youth are in the race for Degree’s, Great Jobs, and worldly matters have become the number one agenda in their lives. You wake up in the morning and the first thing you do is yawn. Not knowing that Fajr has passed and not even recognizing its importance. You’ve just finished High School and you’re excited about entering Post Secondary. You’ve worked so hard to get into university and the last thing you want to do is ruin that chance. Some of you have left your parents in other countries and are paying international tuition to get the same chance to land that BIG JOB which will secure you and your family’s future.

 

Campus Life

 

You’re running from one lecture to the next trying to beat deadlines for Assignments. You’ve done so much work from the beginning of the year yet you’re not confident you will succeed in the upcoming Exam. They say Professor Smith is tough and his exams are something to prepare for ahead of time. You’re not socializing due to the fact that Exam-Week is a few weeks ahead and you lock yourself in your room/library. You put in countless hours and the only thing that drives you is seeing success at the end of the tunnel. Thinking of getting that degree and what it would mean for your parents is another factor that drives you. Knowing that you put in 4 long years and you’ve succeeded will boost that ego of yours. Others do it to better their chances to live a happy life that doesn’t involve extravagance or arrogance.

 

When exams are over we tend to socialize with other Somali students and sitting in a school coffee shop we gossip. For the sisters it’s a few minutes of school talki involving assignments and then it’s the latest Farah & Halimo seen dating, at the movies. For the brothers a few sport talks here and there. Afterwards one of the brothers boost off about dating Sarah from Chemistry class and how she was all over him.

 

Life @ Home

 

You come home to a beautiful family, cooked food, and siblings that annoy you but greet you with a smile. You watch the TV with them, chat on your mobiles, and even do a few readings before sleep. For others it is going to the movies, and hanging out with your buddies. You don’t’ bother to remember Asr or Makhriib. Your thoughts centers on what you will accomplish tomorrow and when you will attend that lecture. How many shifts your working the next week and when you will see that Girlfriend/ Boyfriend of yours. You certainly know your not living an Islamic life but you ignore it.

 

Life Out Side of Home/ School

 

Ah there’s that par-time job that involves countless hours and you hate your Boss. The past few shifts where disgusting and your behind in your school work. But you have to work to get that latest Bag or that sports car to impress those few sisters you’re planning to date. Everything is great, job is fine, girlfriend is loyal, and your school seems to be going pretty well. Your family is happy with you and your countless friends seem to admire you.

 

Islam and You

 

You love your religion without hesitation and you stay away from drinking or eating pork. You don’t bother with drugs nor do you try to upset Allah by not doing what he commands. Some of us despair and say that since we are living a hypocrite life why I should try to pray. Others don’t’ even both thinking that they will only stop in a few days. We have friends around us that will think differently if they see that we are praying, knowing that you where just like them. You wan to practice but there is something that doesn’t allow you. Of course shaytan has something to do with it but there is also that human will. You go to sleep at night thinking I should be a better Muslim and knowing that you could. Your desire for the latest outfits, best grades, and to fulfill your personal lust is greater. You don’t’ conceive the end of this Dunya and when you do, your thoughts of it are only for a few seconds.

 

 

In conclusion, if this resembles you in any way then I suggest you take a few moments to rethink your life and where it is going.

 

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**When one wakes-up rather then yawning, the Sunnah is to say "Lailaha 'illa 'allahu wahdahu la shareeka lahu lahul mulku wa lahul hamdu wa huwa'ala kulli shay'in qadeerun"