that you will learn and benefit from it. Let me begin by
saying"Bismillah".
When I first started University I had met another Muslim brother. We
had become good friends, but this friendshipwas not like any other
ordinary friendship, I would have done anything for him, he was like
my real brother.
During our last year of University, this brother of mine announced
that he was engaged and that he was to be married after he graduates
this year and finds himself a job. I was glad for him and so was he.
He talked non stop about getting married, I was sort of getting
jealous of him because the brother had it made for him, finishing
school, getting married, and especially coming from a wealthy family.
One day this brother was to meet me at the coffee shop. He showed up,
but astonishingly he wasn't smiling and wasn't talkingabout his
fiancee. I asked him what was wrong, he asked if we could talk
somewhere privately and we did. Finally I knew why he was upset.
He had told me that he found out that he had a brain tumor which was
malignant, which meant ithad become cancerous. When he told me the
news his voice was quivering and tears were streaming down his cheeks.
I had never seen him like this before. I tried keepingin my tears and
I tried notto show that I was hurt also. I was burning up inside and
things were racing through my mind. Ikept thinking how could have this
happened? A man who had everything made and had everything perfect. I
kept it inside because I did not want him to see me upset.
I saw this brother slowly go down. He had to drop out of school at his
last year because he began to loose his memory and he started to
repeat himself over again. He did not have a chance at school without
his memory. This brother was intelligent, but after he became lost.
He had told his fiancee and her family and her parents did not want
theirdaughter to marry him, because he had no job and basically no
future.
This was hard for him, I remember he would cry to me about her and how
he cared for her and how hopeless he felt.
Later the brother had problems writing and his right eyesight was
fading.The tumor was on the leftside of his brain so it affected
everything on hisright. Because of his memory loss the brother soon
forgot suras and he even forgot how to pray. A year later his right
arm was paralyzed and his eyesight was taken away from him.
It was the hardest thing for me to see. The brotherI loved so much was
going through so much. I began coming over everyday helping him recite
suras.
When I was reciting sura Fatiha to him and he was slowly repeating
after me.I looked at him and I thought, This was the same brother who
was sointelligent and was to finish school, this was the same brother
who came from such a wealthy family, this was the same brother who
talked for days about getting married and raising a family, this was
the same brother who had everything. But now he can barely remember
what I said to him ten minutes a ago, he can't get married, and now he
is struggling to read Qur'an, he was not much of a practicing Muslim
so it was harder for him to recite the Qur'an.
This man was now turning towards Allah, he dropped EVERYTHING and
turned towards Allah. Allah gave him everythingand he could take
everything away just as easily.
A month ago, I had gottena call saying that the brother passed away
and that his janaza is today. I washed his body with a couple of other
brothers and I saw his lifeless body. He was buried and after I
returned home. Thenext day I sat down wondering to myself about the
power of Allah. My brother's death made me realize that we forget what
our purpose of being here is for: To serve Allah. You could have
everything, but do you have anything that is important? I spent six
years knowing this brother, and caring for him. I never once shed a
tear when he was alive and not even when he passed away. But the day
after his death I did cry because I thought about the power of Allah.
I thought about my brother. We always say that we will return to
Allah, but we never really believe it. If we did then we would
struggle to read Qur'an and pray to Allah like my brother did. My
brother had his eyesight taken away fromhim, his arm was paralyzed and
his memory was lost but he still got up every morningand he insisted,
and I repeat insisted on recitingthe Qur'an. But we are able, but we
still do not struggle to read the Qur'an. We do not really believe
that we will return to Allah or else we would struggle for Allah.
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