for them for certain reasons, but their ways cannot fit into your ways! And
sometimes it causes more trouble to explain things rather than just say them!
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You mean that, if I tell her the truth, she might hate me?
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No, I am not talking about that, my Su. See, Muslims do not do things to be
appreciated by people. We do things first because it is Allah’s command. But you
have to understand also why Allah forbids us to do such or such things. If we put
people before Allah, we would feel enslaved or dependent on these people. Muslims
are independent; they do not need to justify what they believe in all the time! We
pray by ourselves; we decide to fast or to give charity by ourselves. We do not need
people to approve; we do not because it is what Allah expects from us, and we do it
easily because we know it is good and it makes us feel in peace and we get a reward
from Allah for it too. See, Allah has purchased our lives; in exchange He gives us
Paradise. Now, Muslims respect others, but we do not live for others.
Imagine you ask one of your friends to give you $1 to take the bus home. Next time
this person asks you anything, you will not be able to say no. Am I right?
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Hum! I think you are right mom.
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In that case, you would not be free anymore. Now, imagine your friend is a good
person. It is ok to ask her because you know that everything will be fine between
you. But if this person is not very good at heart, that might be the beginning of
problems between this person and you!
The same thing with your teacher. You do not bet on the fact she is nice or not, she
likes you or not, she will judge you badly or not. No, you just state your beliefs and
that is all.
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But why sometimes you ask people eggs when the shops are closed, Mom?
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Because they are Muslims, and I trust them in case of need and I know they will not
judge me. Actually Muslims do things only for Allah. It is true that when I borrow
eggs from them, I bake cakes for them too. This way, I make them happy I borrowed
eggs from them! And I know I repaid them already. But I do not need to. Actually
Muslims never expect anything in return when they give or do things for people.
When people borrow money from us, we should act like we do not expect this person
to return the money. That way, we do not make people feel indebted to us and we do
not feel superior to them or angry with them if they cannot return it to us or if they
forgot about us. Whatever we give is anyway returned ten times to us by the
Benediction of Allah. What you do to others return to you in good or bad, depending
on your intention and if your act upon this intention.
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I was thinking about that the other day, Mom. Is this like love, mom?
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What do you mean, Su?
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You know, when we give gifts to others out of love, we do not expect any gift in
return. When we love, we do not expect to be loved in return?
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Yes, Su, this is true love and it is also true respect for yourself. The more you train
yourself to give that way, the more you will love yourself and love Allah too because
to love Allah begins by knowing your self first, and your limits.
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Some Christians give gifts to Jesus during Christmas, Mom. They pray Jesus instead
of Allah and they give big parties too, and many many gifts to each other.
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Do you know what Christmas is, Su?
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