your feet. That'salright. What matters is that you get back up.
You don't have to have the answers. You don't have to besuperman or
superwoman. When the thundercloud opens up, who among us can stop the
rain? When the hurricane blows, who can stayon his feet? No one.
When the storm passes, stand up. Dust yourself off, take stock, and
move forward in the name of Allah. If the storm has disoriented you
andyou don't see the way forward, look to the Quran. "And if there
should come to you guidance from Me – then whoever follows My guidance
will neither go astray [in the world] nor suffer [in the Hereafter]."
(Quran, Surat TaHa, 20:123). The Quran is a mighty book. Never
underestimate it. If youcannot speak Arabic and find the English
translations unwieldy, get one of the modern translations that are
easier to read, like those by Umm Muhammad, or Thomas Cleary.
When you get knocked down and then stand up tall, with strength,
others see it, and it rallies them. Your spouse seesit, your children
see it, your friends see it, and of course Allah sees it. Don't think
of it as showing off. Not at all. Think of it as brotherhood
andsisterhood, all of us helping each other, giving each other
strength, being good shepherds to our flocks.
Superman is no hero, he's impervious to bullets! Real heroes get hurt,
they get down on themselves sometimes, they're imperfect,they struggle
to pay the bills and raise their children, they struggle to be become
stronger in their faith, but they struggle! They don't giveup.
That's inspiring, and it's contagious, and maybe sometimes it will be
someoneelse inspiring you, and maybesometimes it will be you, getting
up after the hurricane,showing us all how it's done.
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