Amazing Bloggers! "Towards an Orderly Muslim Household"

Masha'Allah this is part of my 2009 goals to start featuring each month an awesome Blogger I find that is doing A LOT of work online to help their sisters or has a very interesting blog.


Our January Amazing Blogger is:

Towards an Orderly Muslim Household This is one of many blogs for blogger Talibiddeen Jr. In this blog she focuses in how to oraganize your household into running smoothly and better islamically. She has dozens if not a hundred printables of organizations charts and links. Some links are still under construction so I hope she continues to update the site.


About her site she says:
"This site is aimed at providing tips, "projects", printables, and motivation especially for the Muslimah homemaker (but there's lots that may be helpful even if you are not Muslim).
The Muslimah homemaker has many roles: slave of Allah, wife, woman, mother, teacher, housekeeper, cook.
My ultimate goal is to provide resources that help the Muslimah carry out all these important roles more efficiently for the sake of Allah."
Click here for more information about this site and the blogger behind it.

I was amazed at the time and energy that she puts into her blogs and still manages to keep her house and many kids organized... wow did she say 8! Masha'Allah! I can't wait to see what else she will add! So for you dear Umm Ibrahim (Talibiddeen Jr.) I dub you this month's Amazing Blogger! You're a rare jewel and we all hope you keep shining.

Say "ALLAH"

When I was an atheist teenager the thought of saying the word God made me cringe. I'd walk by a nun and shudder. Churches gave me the creeps. I viewed those with faith as people blinded.

Now not a moment goes by that I don't say something that is related to God.

Sneeze: Alhamdulillah, Yarhamukallah..., Praise be to Allah, (roughly like: May Allah Bless You)

Eat: Bismillah, In the name of Allah

Go Potty: A'udu billahi minaShaytanir Rajiim, I seek refuge in Allah from the rejected Satan.

How are you?": "Alhamdulillah, Praise be to Allah.

"Can you? What do you think?": "Insha'Allah, by Allah's Will or Allah Willing...

Sometimes I even feel just breathing you feel yourself saying it in your head

IN : Subhan-

OUT: -ALLAH

IN: ALLAHU-

OUT: AKBAR

IN: Alhamdu-

OUT: -lillah

For me talking all day about God is not enough. Not even if I said Allah with every breath would it be good enough to thank Him for all He does for us. There are blessings we have WE DONT EVEN KNOW OF! SubhanAllah!

My favorite du'a is : I praise Allah by the number of His Creation and His pleasure, by the weight of His throne, and the ink of His words.

That means for every grain of sand, every ant, every drop of water, every molecule and every atom created I praise Him by. Still this is not good enough. Allah is deserving of more.

May Allah make it easy for us to Praise Him in the manner most befiting Him that pleases Him.

I know it's hard for people that used to know me to imagine me always saying things about God but this is Islamic life always focusing our lives upon worshiping and drawing closer to Allah. With every act we do even something tedious as washing dishes, you say bismillah In the name of God. While you scrub away mindlessly you have time to reflect more about Allah. You have time as you rinse to say Tasbih, praising Allah. As you put them away you have time to thank Allah.

I enjoy my time meeting with sisters in Islam more than non-Muslims because they understand fully my passion for speaking about God and faith and aren't uncomfortable about anything I might say. I certainly don't have to watch my tongue for "preachyness" like I do with non-Muslims. I feel sometimes even talking to my parents I can't say God too much or they feel uncomfortable. I must reign in my tongue and my heart and deny myself what comes naturally when talking to non-Muslims. Sometimes if I feel they can take it though I don't bother to reign it in but mostly I have to. It's been a big blessing Alhamdulliah to live here in the Middle East where you can talk more freely. Even the Christian Taxi Drivers in Lebanon understood the phrases I used all the time. "Go Downtown?" "Yes, insha'Allah." "Here you are!" "Alhamdulillah, thanks!"

Sometimes I wonder if I go back to America will I always have to be translating what I say? Will a Alhamdulliah slip out and someone looks at me funny and I go "Oh, it means Praise be to God." and they give that uncomfortable pause...

Though I think it's strange that no one comments on the sterotypical Black Elderly woman loudly commenting "Praise the Lord, God Almighty" yet if I were to say the same in the same way I'd get some funny looks. In fact once when my Grandmother was in the Hospital next to her was a very frail elderly black woman who just laid there in her bed looking at death's door and mumbling Praises to God. I felt more closer to her than my own grandmother at the time. I even went over and held her hand and made du'a that her suffering would be eased in this life. She had a clear strong faith and wasn't afraid to show it. She didn't care I was Muslim at all. She smiled warmly and gripped my hand as we both Praised God. I want to be like that when I'm nearing death should I live to be so old.

Sometimes we don't realize the idle time we have that we can be using more efficiently to praise Allah, the one Who Created Time. Insha'Allah we become better at it.

People search and search for the meaning of life but we in Islam have already found it and try our best to impliment it. WORSHIPING GOD is the only meaning to our lives. We should do all we can to facilitate this task.

Insha'Allah we will be Judged as Worthy to behold Allah in Jannah.

The Joke's on YOU

I received many e-mails from people I used to know in USA and all over the world and sometimes even Muslims send me these jokes they THINK are funny. But after reading them I'm disgusted. I delete them immediately despite the dire warnings I may loose 15 friends if I don't forward it in 15 minutes to 15 people. These jokes are not funny. They are gross errors on the part of lowly humans who attempt to Humanize our beloved Noble God. Who is free from all things they attribute to Him not befitting His station as our Creator.

The following jokes are NOT funny, do not laugh at them. I'm posting them highlighted with the terrible parts to educate those who may find nothing wrong with such words. Liking and laughing at these is a great sin and some even consider it to be Blasphemy which takes you out of Islam.


An Engineer in Hell
An engineer died and reported to the pearly gates. An intern angel, filling in for St. Peter, checked his dossier and grimly said, "Ah, you're an engineer; you're in the wrong place."
So the engineer was cast down to the gates of hell and was let in. Pretty soon, the engineer became gravely dissatisfied with the level of comfort in hell, and began designing and building improvements. After a while, the underworld had air conditioning, flush toilets, and escalators, and the engineer was becoming a pretty popular guy among the demons.
One day, God called Satan up on the telephone and asked with a sneer, "So, how's it going down there in hell?"
Satan laughed and replied, "Hey, things are going great. We've got air conditioning and flush toilets and escalators, and there's no telling what this engineer is going to come up with next."
God's face clouded over and he exploded, "What? You've got an engineer? That's a mistake; he should never have gotten down there; send him up here."
Satan shook his head, "No way. I like having an engineer on the staff, and I'm keeping him."
God was as mad as he had ever been, "This is not the way things are supposed to work and you know it. Send him back up here or I'll sue."
Satan laughed uproariously, "Yeah, right. And just where are YOU going to get a lawyer?"

This "joke" First of all Quotes God as saying something that was not authenticatedly know to be true. This is sooo wrong.
Second God does not NEED a telephone.
3rd Facial expressions are not befitting God especially base ones like sneering and face clouding over with anger.
4th God makes NO MISTAKES. If someone will go to Hell it is their proper place not a mistake. God is free from all ERROR.
5th Satan has no powers to send people to Hell or Heaven. Only God has the Al-Mighty Power to Judge between Men.
6th God has access to all of HIS creation. And it is Easy for Him.
7th No one in Hell will have a chance to improve it. They will be too busy being tortured repeatedly for perhaps eternity (depending on their religious status). But jokes like this involving Hell and Satan showing it to be a place of fun and enjoyment are wrong and let people think sinning is ok because Hell is not a bad place to wind up. WRONG!


God is watching
The children were lined up in the cafeteria of a Catholic elementary school for lunch. At the head of the table was a large pile of apples. The nun made a note, and posted on the apple tray, "Take only one. God is watching."
Moving further along the lunch line, at the other end of the table was a large pile of chocolate chip cookies. One child whispered to another, "Take all you want. God is watching the apples."

Now this one is not as obvious. You have to look deeper and harder. Since God IS always Watching there is no problem with this reference about taking one apple. But the punchline is an uncertainty since it encourages people to think that God is not capable of watching two things which is wrong. Yet the fact that it comes from the mouth of a child makes it not an obvious bad thing because children are not knowledgeable about the attributes of God in a clear way. So this joke can be somewhat enjoyable but I still wouldn't forward it because I don't know who might get the wrong message and think God is not capable of watching two things.


He who is without sin
Jesus saw a crowd chasing down a woman to stone her and approached them. "What's going on here, anyway?" he asked.
"This woman was found committing adultery, and the law says we should stone her!" one of the crowd responded.
"Wait," yelled Jesus. "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone."
Suddenly, a stone was thrown from out of the sky, and knocked the woman on the side of her head.
"Aw, c'mon, Dad..." Jesus cried, "I'm trying to make a point here!"

Firstly Jokes also about Messengers and Prophets are not to be taken lightly even if it isn't our direct prophet Muhammad. We respect and love Prophets Jesus and Moses just as much and more so than the "followers of them". (Though they were both on the Path of Islam.)
Second this is not an authenticated thing that happened.
3rd although presumably there can be a miracle where a stone does fall from the sky by Allah's will normally this would not happen. So this part of it is more mixed.
4th The last of course is terrible. Calling our great God "Dad" is demeaning. I understand the Christians love of the use of the word "Father" and though I disagree with why they use it to further reduce it to Dad is degrading. Also it makes Prophet Jesus sound like a whiny child which is demeaning because he was not.

So you can see from these few examples we must be wary of what we deem as funny. Though here are examples of good humor to use:

Doctor, Doctor Can I have second opinion?
Of course, come back tomorrow!

Doctor, Doctor you have to help me out!
Certainly, which way did you come in?

What happened when the lion ate the comedian?
He felt funny!

What's striped and bouncy?
A tiger on a pogo stick!

What's worse than raining cats and dogs?
Hailing taxi cabs!

There once was a teacher who passed out cookies to all the students.
"Only eat these where no one can see you. Whoever has any cookies left over bring it to class tomorrow." All the kids took their cookies home.
The next day only one child showed up holding his cookies. "So where did you all eat them at?" the teacher asked.
"In my bedroom, under my bed" said a small boy.
"In my closet," said a small girl.
"Up a tree." said another small girl.
"And you? Why didn't you eat your cookies?" The teacher asked smiling.
"Well," replied the small boy, "I looked in all those places and I took all day looking for a place but everywhere I went I knew Allah (God) could see me."
"Correct! None of you should have eaten your cookies. Allah saw all of you eating them."


There are times for humor and times to be serious and things to be humorous about and things that are ok to joke about. Sarcasm though widely used as humor these days is not allowed. Not allowed is making fun of someone in a degrading way. We must strive to better ourselves even in these small ways. We don't want the Joke to be on us later.

The New Holocaust

America declared Never again would we turn a blind eye to injustice and massacre.

Ha! Looks like hypocrisy has again reared its ugly head.

These pictures I received through e-mail forwarding must been seen worldwide.

The images speak for themselves but in case anyone is confused:

The Jews being persecute by Nazis are on the left and on the right those who were persecuted have now become the Nazis towards the Palestinians. Sad and pathetic how history has indeed repeated itself. Why America fought against the Nazis yet refused to acknowledge Israeli's Nazi attitude toward the Palestinians? Only time will tell if the world really cares about injustice.

Scary huh? Let me also add, I have been to D.C. and saw the Holocaust Memorial Center there. My heart ached for those people that needlessly died. I saw the furnaces that burned bodies of people like you and me. I saw their abandoned shoes, no longer needed. I saw the experiments done to these poor people. I have personally spoke to Holocaust survivors over the years. I used to visit weekly this Polish Woman who would tell me her fear as a child for the Nazi soldiers. How they took away her family. She hid up a tree while soldiers passed below with a few other people. How she lost her beloved sister. Now again I'm seeing on the news the same images but a whole new Holocaust. Bombs that send out burning material that is illegal from the world agreement that eats through flesh until it hits bone. Houses demolished with a push of a button. Children murdered and orphaned. Abandoned toys and shoes, no longer needed. Experimental warfare lighting up the skies of Palestine. Families literally torn apart, half if not all gone.

Who will stand up for justice and defeat these Nazis this time?

Anyone?

Hello... anyone?

The Candy Pirate

A well known company...hmm I dare say a company that has it's name on nearly all our blogs is PLOTTING! Google, ah yes, good old google with it's fabulous pictures and search engines is really undermining the worlds copyrights. He's like a pirate out to steal as much candy and not get caught....ah but some one has caught him and is suing his criminal bum. Further more a dear Muslimah sister of ours has taken months of painful research to go through the legalese to make it known to us what exactly is going on under the Google Table.

For those who dread the thought of reading legal stuff and going thought the mind-dulling blah blah, Sister Linda D. Delgado has made a fun and informative story called The Candy Pirate. And yes it's FREE. Here is the website to get it. I have read through it and found it informative. We all should be outraged at Google trying to pull the wool over our eyes.

"I'm soo busy I have no time to read a whole story to figure out what's going on." I hear you say, honestly I said that too at first. But after I've thought more and more about it the more I realize how important this is for all of us not just writers.

There are clear instructions on how to Opt Out of Google's Piracy on the website (near the bottom). Sure it may seem like a lot of envelope licking at first but just think. Haven't you wanted to make a difference for a lot of people. How do you know your letter wont be the one that tips the scale in the Judge's decision to decide Google has been a naughty boy.

Authors, Publishers, and people who aren't afraid to stand up and say "That's Wrong!" have already been sending in their letters but it's not enough. You know how big Google is. You know how much Money they have. We need more people to stand strong against the tide of injustice. We need our letters to be physical sandbags in their floodwater.

If you're with me then proceed to : Opt Out Now (http://timetooptout.blogspot.com/)

May Allah reward you.

Tagged: 10 Things about myself

Since Aalia from Chasing Jannah and I both like Pirates I had to smuggle the tag from her since I wasn't properly tagged by anyone. ARGGGG!!!!!!


10 Thing About Me

1. I love to Opera sing. I used to be in Choir in High School and had a range of 4 Octaves. Now sadly from lack of extensive use my octaves have dwindled to like about 3. I can't be sure because I haven't been near a piano in ages but those higher notes are getting harder to hit without a warm-up. I'm sure my neighbors can hear through the flimsy walls but it doesn't bother me much. I put up with their noises they can put up with mine. In Lebanon I used to keep my balcony doors open and be Opera singing at the top of my massive lungs. Then one day I heard the neighbors kids mocking me. I admit I felt embarrassed but then later when I knew them better they liked me and I only Sang when their father and brothers were out of the house.
2. In conjunction to #1: I AM LOUD. Really. Not only am I used to Opera singing but if someone is across the room and I NEED to get their attention and there is no way to run up to them I just go "HEY! MARYAM! SALAM!". Or if my kids are at the mall misbehaving by running further than they should in front of me I'm like "Girlie! You get back here!" Or i just bellow her name. Sure people look but sometimes I wonder if they are looking at the sound or they are surprised this American Accent is booming out of my hijab. Oddly enough in USA no one really notices there. Although I'm loud even for an American. One of the things Niqab teaches me is to lower my voice. Cause when I laugh Ohh man the room hears it! It was odd the first few times i was wearing Niqab in the streets and someone would tell me something funny and I'd crack up laughing and everyone turns and stares at me..... LMAO.....Whoops!
3. I'm F-L-E-X-I-B-L-E ..... I was in Gymnastics as a kid and always do my stretching exercises to maintain my flexy. Sadly when I had two herniated (bulging) disks in my back and I couldn't walk for a while I lost a lot of free movement and it sucked. But I've been slowly working on it and it's almost better. I guess I don't look like I'm so bendy but I've seen a surprised eyebrow or two in the gym lol. I hope I can still be so flexy when I'm an old lady.
4. I looooove DARK CHOCOLATE! Ohh man! The darker the better. If there is a selection of White choc, milky choc, and dark choc I'm all over the third. Ever need to get me a present?!?! Dark Chocolate Baby.
4. To-do lists run my life. I'd be soo lost without them. I'm always making them. usually on a white-board so I don't waste paper. I normally take more time to make my lists than i do to do whats on them...lol ok well not that much time but I do love to write them. I even make little check boxes.
5. I can Self-Defend: I can do basic sword fighting. When I was in a Renaissance group in Tucson I was taught the basics and have practiced at home a lot. Wish I could still do some real stuff but sadly I can't afford a real Rapier or sword. I used to have a Dagger...now where did I put that?
Also i can shoot a gun. Oh my Daddy taught me well. We used to take Barney target pictures and go shoot them. Lots of fun but I think in the future we'll use something different cause that might traumatise my kids....
6. I really wish I could build my own Masjid. I mean by this, I wish I can build a masjid for others to pray in and take care of it. Masha'Allah a simple yet beautiful one.
7. My favorite Juice is this new Pineapple Coconut Juice they have here in UAE. Ohhh man it's delicious. If you get it and invite me over I will be sooo happy. And I will sit there praising the fine selection of juice you made a dozen times as I sip it down. Hehehehe. I always loved the flavor of Pin'a~Colada.
8. I am an artist. I used to draw people but since Islam I've cut it down to just nature, which was always my best talent. I really love flowers and gardens the best. Each leaf is so unique that it never gets boring to draw leaf after leaf. SubhanAllah. I love designing new things like fountains and structures that combine elements of hard structure, moving structure like water or sand, and light play.
9. I collect mini tea sets the size of your Palm. I have many already and sometimes if I meet someone really special I will give them a tea set to remember me by. They are so cute and sooo small that you can collect many!

10. I can't resist checking out beautiful glassware. Anything to do with glass and crystals. If I'm at your house eagerly checking out your china cabinet don't be offended. I just can't resist! I find the sparklyness and cut entrancing and the shape and flow of the object amazing.


And that's me, few things widely un-known about me.