Poems and Aphorisms 5

People

People are like books

Don’t judge a book by its cover

Want to know someone?

Talk to them

Conversation is like reading.

Australian anthem

O Anglo-Saxon

Questioning from where my parents hail

Your ancestors too from some land did sail

Stolen generation

Refugee detention

Aborigines then Asians now Muslims – same old White Nation

Aussie made we are!

(except for Chinese imports and American government manipulation)

True blue we stand united!

(except for the browns, blacks, and yellows that can’t be liquid-paper whitened)

Today we’re strangers, tomorrow we’ll be neighbours

Say G’day, lend a hand,

Do each other favours—

Celebrate the blessings

That the colourless God gave us

Roundabout

Round and round

Grinding circles of fate

Not sure how to exit

This roundabout

Round and round

Magnetic wheel of hate

Don’t know where to exit

This roundabout

Never learn from past experiences

Signs pointing which way to take

Missed many exits

In this roundabout

What it took was a crash

For me to exit

This roundabout

Travelling

I'm writing this from a hotel in Cairo. I arrived last Saturday. After a month in Egypt I'll be flying to Jordan where I'll be for six months - God willing. What that means for this blog is that I might be using the internet less than usual. Thus, instead of being weekly affairs the posts on this blog may come fortnightly, or less. 

I want to say to the visitors to this blog thank you for visiting. Bear with me while I'm abroad. I hope to capture my experiences in the bustling cities of Cairo and Amman on paper. 

Traveling can be immense - it can make you or break you. I hope this trip makes me a better person.

That's all for now. Take care. Please pray for me.

Regards
Rizwan

All Welcome

One of the great things about my parents is that they have many non-Indian friends. Growing up, I had a Peggy Nani (grandma), Bill Nana (grand dad), Maria Aunty, Coral Aunty,  Snow Uncle, Frank Uncle, and Patrick Uncle. Bringing these people into my life is one of the best things my parents did. I remember the holidays, birthday parties, presents, and laughs. It's been a while, but every so often I look through our photo album (remember those) to see these people's smiling faces with me on their laps. 

It's a blessing to have had these people in my life because it's given me a broader perspective on the human race. It's made it easier for me to connect with people who don't look like me or talk like me. Moreover, I don't believe only people who look like me or sound like me are going to Heaven. I believe that non-Muslims as well as Muslims will have access to God in the Afterlife (by access I mean His love and forgiveness). It's not that one must have non-Muslim friends to have compassion for non-Muslims, but it sure helps. 

The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of God be upon him) is reported to have said: “None of you truly believes until he loves for his brother what he loves for himself” (Bukhârî, Muslim). Muslim Scholars are in agreement that "brother" here means all humans. If we love that we are guided by God to Islam then we should want all people to be guided by God to Islam. God is big enough for all the people on the planet. Instead of putting limits on who can come to God, we should be inviting everyone. The Persian Muslim poet Rumi had an open door policy, as captured in the following words:

           Come, come, whoever you are. Wanderer, worshipper, lover of leaving. It doesn't matter. 
                    Ours is not a caravan of despair. Come, even if you have broken your vows a
                                            thousand times. Come, yet again, come, come.  

Poems and Aphorisms 4

Change

Don't try to change the mirror

Try to change yourself

Word Games 2

Reading for a couple of hours a day

Keeps stress at bay

Keeps the doctor away

Means you don't have to pay

In the long run

Won't be needing a gun

Possible to have fun

Alone

Carving initials in stone

On a deserted island with no phone

Wish you could clone

Yourself

Waiting Game

Wait

Day and Night

Never escape

Playing the waiting game

Wait

In good fortune or bad

Always awake

Playing the waiting game

Wait

When happy or sad

Never hate

Playing the waiting game

Wait

When sober or mad

Don't judge fate

Play the waiting game