Reflections...

Alhamdhulilah...

In a snapshot...my 2015 probably has been like this coloured picture.

As cliche` it sounds, well yes, time really seems to fly. We are at the start of 2016 in a few hours, In-Shaa-Allah.

Several moments that sprung up in December have proved to be very few reflective for me in the last few weeks of December.

Thinking about this post, I thought this page from a colouring book for adults that I purchased last month, would nicely sum up my year.

I say so because of these reasons - may be trivia but so meaningful in its entirety to me.

~ I bought this book that is supposed to help serve as a form of therapy, during one of my lunchtime strolls along the malls. Probably answering an internal call to find some 'me-time' to relax, and unwind.

~ Got onto this 'a book a month' momentum. I readily liked the idea of buying books online, instead of bringing home books from the library and hogging them for months. Buying the book means I can make notes in them, share them, and most of all, read and re-read at my own time and pace.

~ Learning to let go. And leaving it all to HIM. I started on Tahajjud just on two nights in the year and stopped! I pray for strength to re-start this and make this a part of me, In-Shaa-Allah. Because there is going to be no point of time in my life that I am not going to have to ask Allah for anything. I want to keep asking, and so if I want it badly, then I better make this part of my lifestyle. Never too late, In-Shaa-Allah.

~ Treasuring Family. And the simple joys in life. And Family. The pages from the colouring book above are the first two. It makes me smile everytime I recall that so many hands and hearts from my family have some together to colour these pages, sitting alongside with me on our living room's sofa. My Brother, AZ... and even Mum. She has said she will bring out her specs (not used in a long time) to colour within the drawings the next time we sit down together to colour as my parents catch up on news and as AZ makes time for his aviation books. The colouring book is just one lil example. I am glad I have made time to make time for them increasingly by the day. Alhamdhulilah.

~ Journals. My Gratitude Journal. My Islamic Learning Journals. My Mothers' Recipe Journals. Masha-Allah, so happy that I got into documenting things that mean a lot to me in pen and paper.

I had set some goals for myself (as always!) and have actually started working on them (doesn't happen all the time) this year.

Of coz, I haven't achieved them all, have not been very steadfast in my duas on them too, I am very sure.

This brings me to a coaching session that I sat in at work. The trainer was very competent and set me on a deep reflection mode actually.

One of the many exercises she introduced was on this - Journalling down these.
-- What do I want to STOP. START. and CONTINUE - in my life?

For me, this paced the momentum for 2016.

I have penned down on these three aspects. I have more than one thing on this list. Ambitious much, but a good starting point nevertheless.

I hope we all get started somewhere, or find inspiration to restart from where we are. In-Shaa-Allah.

The Little Things That Matter...

There are so many things happening around us... around me.... that has kept me fidgety these days.

I pray for all humanity around us - every life is precious. Be it a life from Syria, Palestine, Lebanon or Paris.

Amidst all these hatred going around the world. And some hurt that we may experience in our lives, I so believe it is important to find gratitude within our own lives. Among things that Allah (S.W.T) has given us. Everybody has a different battle, and everybody's battle has its own challenges.

Among the things that I love doing to take a breather from the hectic routine from life, I look towards two things - reading and cooking or/and baking for the family. These days, I have 'looted' these books from the library as usual.  A good friend also recommended an online store that delivers books purchased right to our doorsteps. Sounds like a great monthly investment to make, In-Shaa-allah. You can check out their website here at this link. If you find this useful, do make duas for the sister who shared this with me, and keep me in your duas too, In-Shaa-Allah.

One of the earlier books that I completed. Struggles of a British Muslim who has roots in Pakistan. Was worth the read.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book titled "Gotong Royong", written by a local author. It brought on vivid images of the fondly-remembered kampong days that Mum and Dad so often reminisce about. Their togetherness, the warmth among people of all races, their waking up at very early hours to queue for the common shower areas, their outings with neighbourly aunties to gather herbs from very thick vegetation (amidst battling fear of snakes). Although the author didn't mention these experiences, her own narration of her childhood within the decade she wrote about made me recount my own parents' memories.

I had also picked up two books in Tamil - on our beloved Mothers in Islam, Kadhijah (Radhiallahu Anha) and Fatimah (Radiallahu Anha). These are steps to making conscious efforts to keep reading in my Mother Tongue, In-Shaa-Allah.

Along these days, I also have tried a few dishes, some for the first time. The above is the result of one of those bakes that came upon on my impulse baking moods. It felt like a bake day, but there wasn't any butter at home, so had to google a few sites and combined a few recipes to get this - based on the availability of ingredients in my baking basket and refrigerator at home.

Rich and moist vanilla cake, without butter.

Alhamdhulilah, the cake turned out great. Soft, moist and tasty.

What went in...
1 cup of sugar
1 cup of self-raising flour
2 eggs
1 tsp of vanilla essence
1 tsp of baking powder
a pinch of salt
3/4 cup of cooking oil
1/2 cup of milk

Mix the eggs and sugar together first and put everything else in. Preparation time took less than 10 minutes and cake was baked by half an hour. Do give it a try, In-Shaa-Allah.

 A neat dish, I always thought so.

I also gave this dish - spicy mutton chukka - that I have tried from this website , another go this weekend. It turned well too, Alhamdhulilah, as with other times I have tried it. I have started varying the ingredients' portions to suit our family's tastebuds.

Mum had made mutton dhalcha that day too, and I made ghee rice to accompany that. And everyone in the family enjoyed it.

Alhmadhulilah.

Thank you, Ya Rabb...

So much to be thankful for, and yet do I realise it all the times?

A family to bicker with, to love and be loved,

a job that keeps us comfortable, and gives me flexibility to take some days off for myself (like at this moment!),

Good friends who add warmth to our lives,

and a faith that keeps me grounded of this life and has me thinking constantly of the Hereafter.

SubhanAllah.

And all the senses that enable me to appreciate the raindrops falling right now.

Allahuma Soyyiban Nafi'an.

Have I thanked HIM enough?

New Beginnings...1437H

Salaam Maal Hijrah, to my Ummah.

Muslims have just embarked on our new Islamic Year - the year 1437H in the Islamic calendar.

The time of the year we take some time to renew our intentions and make new ones. This is how I have been looking forward to this day.

I pray and I hope that Allah (S.W.T) gives me the strength to do things increasingly - To Forgive and To Give.

Forgiving does not only mean that I have to forgive others. I think I have not forgiven myself for all the wrongdoings that I may have caused others - some purely unintentionally, some intentionally (in moments of anger, disappointment,etc).

There are some family relationship that can be mended, some can be made sweeter, and there can be more peace within our hearts, if only we make the intention and take the first step.
In-Shaa-Allah.

I make duas that my Rabb forgives me for these . Astaghfirullah. I want to consciously make lots of dzikir. 

I want to be able to give - to make others lives easier (or at least that's what we think). In actual fact, there is a hadith that says when we give others and make their lives a lil better in this life, the Dunya, they are actually helping us to fix our Akhirah. SubhanAllah.

And yes, I can do so much better in learning to be more grateful. Why is my race always more challenging? Why do I feel like I am tested more? All I have to do is to look at all the other things that HE has given me because of these harder races and tests - a closer family, thicker friends, a stronger me. SubhanAllah.

Have you made your New Year resolutions yet?

Source: Internet