Reflections

Ancient Egyptians believed that upon death
they would be asked two questions
and their answers would determine
whether they could continue their journey in the afterlife.
The first question was, "Did you bring joy?"
The second was, "Did you find joy?"
Leo Buscaglia

When you were born, you cried and the world rejoiced.
Live your life in a manner
so that when you die the world cries and you rejoice.
-Native American Proverb

I took a pause these last few days to reflect on death. Three of my friends who are not related lost their dads recently, unexpected deaths, empty holes left to be filled.... We've all heard these stories, they are the stories of our neighbors who've been fatally attacked on their way home, they are the stories of the mailman who delivered his last package and succumbed to a heart attack, the stories of a coworker who never came back from her routine liposuction procedure....Common deaths,uncommon departures, different days, different people, but it all comes down to one ugly truth: we are all going to die.


I have to admit that sometimes, I fantasize about my death, if there is such a thing as fantasizing about one's departure. I think about what day of the week it will be.... Will it be a Monday or a Saturday, a Wednesday or a Friday, though I'd rather not it be on a Monday coz everyone hates monday enough as it is, so I don't wanna add my death to the plate, not that it will make a difference anyways..... Will it be in January or in September? Winter or Summer time? The first or the end of the month? Will I be at home, outside or at the hospital.....Will I die from sickness or accident, expected or unexpected death.. Will I die young or old..So many questions that torture my mind, questions without answers!

So, what if? What if I were to die today? What would I leave to the world? How would my friends remember me? How would my family remember me? What if? What if I died tomorrow, will you think of me? What would be the first thing that comes to your mind when you remember me? Would my life be enough to define me as a person, an individual, a citizen of the world? I questioned myself again and again. I think we should all ask to ourselves one question: Am I ready to die today? What if my hour was now, would I be ready to leave this world? What would my legacy be? Do I have some unfinished business? When was the last time I called my friends? family? When was the last time I remembered my purpose in this world....What's my purpose?



What are the things I'm going to miss? What's preventing me from enjoying those things or doing them now? Am I too busy? If you think you are too busy to do the things you are supposed to do, if you think you are too busy to take the time to reflect on your life, please take a minute off your busy schedule and think. Reflect on the people who are dying every day. They are old and young, teenagers and babies, they think they have some time left. They think the future belongs to them. Today, they are gone forever, the only thing that will be remembered is how they spent their life!


People will forget things you said, they will forget things you did, but they will never forget how you once made them feel. What’s your impact on the world? As human beings, people, citizens of a nation, we all have a duty towards our fellow human beings be they our neighbors, friends, family or just strangers.... We have a duty to make sure that we are the best people we can be. Like someone said before,a smile can make a difference in someone’s day, a helping hand shows to someone that you care, a phone call tells to someone that they are remembered, a kiss proves to someone they are loved....

So, my advice to you, to me, is everyday, ask yourself, what Impact did I have on the world today? How did I make someone feel better ? What difference did I make in someone’s day? life? If I were to die today, what would people say about my life? Will they remember me for the right reasons or will I just be gone like the wind, forgotten and never to be remembered...... Right now, at this very moment, somewhere,a woman, a man, a baby is dying. They just took their last breath....Will they be remembered?

Unfortunately, you and I will read this, we might even be sad for a moment but we won't remember...We will go back to our perfect or not so perfect life and everything will be more of the same, till something or someone makes us remember again....

My Dash!!

Hello random visistors. You have landed in an unknown zone! Please sit back and relax. This is the journey of my life. It started on a cold morning on November 21st, at 3:33 a.m. I dont know when its going to end or how long I have left. But I once read somewhere that the beginning or the end were not important. When you die and the dates are put on your tombstone to remember you, what will really matter is the dash between your date of birth and your death because that ’s what people are going to remember. How do you wanna spend your dash? I dont know how I wanna spend my dash yet. I am still looking, searching for myself, and I will invite you to look and search with me. It took me 24 years of existence, experience and studying to finally realize that the corporate world was not for me. After finishing highschool, I went to a business school in Boston and graduated magna cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in Finance. I had dreams of tapping into the Investment Banking world. I was already seeing myself being one of those prominent bankers on Wall-Street who have an 80hour/week and I thought that would make me happy. I have always been very ambitious, you will give me that. At 6, I thought I would be the UN secretary when I grow up, but the business world and the thirst for money, the greed of getting bigger and richer would destroy that dream. I beleived in the corporate world, I beleived in jumping the corporate ladder, I beleived in being a shark and doing whatever was necessary to jump that ladder and be at the top. I beleived in business without friendship or emotions. Waoww! It took me 4 years of college and two years of Grad school to realize that I hated the corporate World.

Corporate world , a cold place! A so cold place that all your degrees, papers, homework and everything that you’ve accomplished in college could not keep you warm. Cold because it is a harsh world. Cold because you have a 9-5 where you make an entity known as a corporation richer, the top people being further at the top and the people at the bottom just keep going further down. And this is the world I beleived in, the world I wanted to conquer and that I was so proud of being part of. Yes, business school makes you that type of person. For 4 years, they program you to be the number one Bullcrapper in each and every situation! They kill every emotion you once felt and make you a corporate robot. One who would be programmed to deliver whatever Mister Corporation wanted. Mister Corporation is the one I’ve learned to revere and serve during my 4 years of undergrad. I learned that the most important thing, actually the only thing worthwile was to increase shareholder’s value and that was only doable by slaving more and more for Mister Corporation. Now, when Mr Corporation is happy, he will certainly give you bonuses, sometimes a bigger paycheck but at the end of the day, whose happiness is more important? Yours or Mr Corporation’s happiness?

I am far from being the girl I used to be. Today, I beleive in so may different things, I have so many hopes and dreams I never thought I’d ever have. Today, I am a woman, a wife and a hijabee. I want to be closer to Allah and that is my main goal. I started wearing the hijab not too long ago and I am still adjusting to my new life as a hijabee. At the same time, I couldn’t be happier to be closer to Allah and to keep on learning and improving on a daily basis. I don’t wanna spend my dash to be the best business woman I can be. I have different priorities now. I want to spend my dash to strive for Jannah. I want to be a better wife, a better muslimah, a better person to this world. There are so many things I need to be working on. There are so many new things I aspire to do. This is just the beginning…..So sit back and relax! The journey just began!