Sister Asmaa Hussein wrote: My first Ramadan with Amr, we went - TopicsExpress



          

Sister Asmaa Hussein wrote: My first Ramadan with Amr, we went to taraweeh prayer at the largest congregation in Alexandria. Thousands of people gathered to pray in the open air by the sea. When the prayer was done, young men were collecting money for one of those most severe famines in Somalia. I got some of my money together, handed it to Amr, and he gave it to one of the men collecting donations. My last Ramadan with Amr, we prayed taraweeh at a local masjid in Alexandria. As we were heading home, he said to me “I still don’t think we give enough charity.” And upon that, we saw an elderly woman sitting on the side of the road asking for money. He took a bill out of his wallet, put it in my hand and asked me to go give it to her. I did, and she made dua for us. That is one of the last things we did together. Charity…from my hand, to his. From his hand, to mine. That’s how it was between us, and that’s how it is with love – at least when you don’t love selfishly, and when you understand that there is a greater purpose to love and to life – you give together, you pray together, you become better together. Both my first and last Ramadan with Amr are punctuated by these events, and they have stayed with me. The image of Amr emerging from the men’s side of the masjid with a wet beard has also stayed with me. He never told me why he cried in those final prayers, and I didnt ask. One of the many things Amr taught me was giving charity. Not just giving money to those in need, but giving of yourself to your family, friends and community. I mean the kind of charity that is to be a positive force on this earth, to radiate goodness and fairness wherever you go – and to give from what is most personally yours – your heart, your smile, your good words. I don’t think we really understand what charity means. It doesnt mean that the person giving is rich, or noble or exceptionally philanthropic. Rather, those who continuously give are actually those who see themselves as in need. They need Allah’s Mercy, His Forgiveness. They need to alleviate the distress of others so that Allah (swt) can alleviate a distress of theirs on the Day of Judgment. I think Amr realized how much we were in need of this, and so he endeavored to always give to me, our daughter, his friends, his community. He never stopped giving until the day he returned to Allah. He never stopped speaking the truth, he never stopped calling for justice, he never stopped being who he was out of fear of what others would say or do to him. He never stopped giving because he knew that he needed Allah to give him something greater. I pray that he has received something much greater than what he gave away.
Posted on: Sun, 10 Aug 2014 13:45:28 +0000

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