Thursday, January 26, 2006
Blog Quake Day.
Today is Blog Quake Day, well technically it was yesterday, but I have yet to sleep. I found out about BQD from Rambling Monologues, whose blog is one of the best blogs linked to your right, and who has written heart felt, informative and very useful posts about the earthquake, and how one can help the victims of the earthquake.
I do not know where to begin…that feeling of helplessness and uselessness, which first descended on me when I saw the pictures of that massive devastation for the first time, pervades my days and nights here as I, and pretty much everyone around me, otherwise go about our lives as usual. For the first time in my life, I share my parents’ unbounded disappointment at my not having got into a medical school; perhaps I could have been of more use, had I been a doctor. For the first time in my life, I am disgusted with myself for living the life of that anecdotal cricket who saved nothing for tomorrow; perhaps if I had been saving something in my bank, I could have put it into good use at this hour. Not for the first time in my life, I feel a total failure. I am wrong of course; I am what I was destined to be, and prior today I have always believed that saving is for middle aged people - if at all; my needs and wants have always been taken care of by Allah, and will be taken care of by Him always. I have never had ambitions to build a mansion, buy acres, or stock up on the yellow metal. I know I am not a failure when I look at the wonderful people, and whose love, Allah Almighty has blessed me with, family and friends alike. Yet, I cannot help but feel that way. that has been the effect this earthquake and its aftermath have had on most of us - they have jolted the very premise of our philosophies.
I am invaded by a feeling of guilt each time I spend a dirham towards items not essential to my survival, as it rears up images of those devastated, cold, hungry, and desparate people who would kill for each of these dirhams right now.
I shudder at the thought of being in their predicament…and beseech Allah to ease their suffering, and spare all His creations, including my family, any such suffering. I pray and pray and pray…
Yet, there is no denying the fact that those five million people affected by this catastrophe went to bed after Suhoor on the morning of eighth, with not the slightest hint in their minds that their lives, if at all spared, would be turned upside down in the next few hours. There is no knowing what lies in store for us, and it just underlines the importance of making the most of this time we have to carry out our mission on earth, and our mission on earth is to follow Allah’s commands, and He commands us to refrain from shirk, worship Him, and spend on and for the betterment of our brothers ans sisters in need, out of the bounty He has given us.
Donate, donate and donate, because this is the only way of loaning out to Allah, and Allah promises to be the best repayer of all loans. www.pakrelief.org lists the various channels through which donations can be funnelled into the affected areas, take your pick, but remember to donate as much as you can, and then some.
In the aftermath of the earthquake, we have all seen and heard uplifting stories of sacrifice and devotion from all segments of the Pakistani Society and from multiple sections of the world society. It is unfortunate to note that it took such a collossal tragedy to bring out this compassion and sincerity in us. Yet, there is a dire need to keep this spirit alive until the victims of this earthquake have been rehabiliated, until the women widowed by this earthquake are freed of concerns about how to go about the rest of their lives, and until the children orphaned by this earthquake are all provided the compassion, love and security that we all want for our own children. The Abdalians, alumni of the Hassan Abdal College, have shown this spirit and have adopted two villages and its people, vowing to cater to the needs of the people of these two villages, until those villages find their own feet. It is not possible to put a time frame to the life of this spirit, but it is easy to see that this spirit calls for more than just digging deep into pockets today - it requires for all of us to make a long term commitment; a commitment to continue to open our hearts and pockets for our people until these people, especially the old, the widows and the children are self sufficient. It could take years, and if it must, we must be ready to come through for those years.
Lastly, we must remember that this is not the last earthquake to jolt us humans, but it should be the last one that comes to jolt us into humanity.
Perhaps, then, there will be fewer earthquakes; perhaps then they will strike in unpopulated areas; and perhaps then, we will have completed our mission.
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9 Responses to 'Blog Quake Day'
1DesiPundit » Blog Quake DayOctober 27th, 2005 at 4:17 am
[…] Blog Quake Day Posts: Zack, Patrix, Ash, Navin, Raphael, Al Muhajabah, Rjputro, Pinstripe, Neha, Anthony, Balaji, Devious Diva, Charu, Gawker, Brad Miner, Sujatha, Pickled Politics, Daily Rhino, Cadmus, Pablo Halkyard, Sunil, Aisha, Anjum, Vikram, Rashmi Bansal, Rosie, Aswin, Nagu, Sohnii, Abinandanan, Basil, Rezwan, Lores Rizkalla, Kaushik-Bidisha, Indigo Jo, Sume, Monologist, Shirazi, Neha V, Mayank, Kush Tandon, Nicecafe, Daniel, KM, Michelle, Baraka, Robert Sharp, Joy D. Sepoy, David T, Yasmine, Gratisgab, eM, Uma, Chamique, Greatbong, Veena, Knicq, Islamoyankee, Aun, One more reason, Aparna, Mumbaigirl, aNTi, Peregrina, lawhawk, Anand, Elizabeth, Angelo Embuldeniya(Strav), Madhu, Shabina, Kaashyapeya, Oodles, Tobias, KAWyle, Jemgal, Zigzackly, Shenaz, Maria, Chai, DeGrouchy Owl, Shaheen, Nafiza […]
2newbieOctober 28th, 2005 at 5:42 pm
there is a update about the situation here
http://islamiblog.blogspot.com/2005/10/what-i-will-aim-to-do-in-this-post-is.html#comments
3SaadieOctober 31st, 2005 at 1:26 pm
you have wrote about everything I was thinking about, amazing post.
4AbezNovember 1st, 2005 at 1:39 pm
JazakAllahuKheiran and many many thanks for yesterday. Please convey that too Wifey, too.
5knicqNovember 1st, 2005 at 2:57 pm
Newbie: I have been reading many posts from ground zero, but none was as detailed, and as objective as yours. May Allah bless you for your efforts, and may He help you with malaik. Ameen.
Saadie: Thanks bro.:)
Little Baji: You are welcome Little Baji. May Al Shaafi shower His blessings on you. Ameen.
6BaptizedLuciferNovember 4th, 2005 at 2:31 am
holy moly batman! no eid post? this is blasphemy
7SaadatNovember 4th, 2005 at 5:37 am
Eid Mubarak, Bhaijan!
8SaeedNovember 5th, 2005 at 10:45 am
EID MUBARAK!!!
9knicqNovember 8th, 2005 at 7:28 pm
Lucifer: Whoever said there isn’t an eid post - its just late….
Saadat: You gotta teach your enetation thingy some manners bro…its been acting like a pretty secretary…there is an MBA term for it…”Gate Keeper”. Won’t let my comments in…
Saeed: …and a very happy Eid Mubarak to you too! ¶ 1/26/2006 02:23:00 AM
I do not know where to begin…that feeling of helplessness and uselessness, which first descended on me when I saw the pictures of that massive devastation for the first time, pervades my days and nights here as I, and pretty much everyone around me, otherwise go about our lives as usual. For the first time in my life, I share my parents’ unbounded disappointment at my not having got into a medical school; perhaps I could have been of more use, had I been a doctor. For the first time in my life, I am disgusted with myself for living the life of that anecdotal cricket who saved nothing for tomorrow; perhaps if I had been saving something in my bank, I could have put it into good use at this hour. Not for the first time in my life, I feel a total failure. I am wrong of course; I am what I was destined to be, and prior today I have always believed that saving is for middle aged people - if at all; my needs and wants have always been taken care of by Allah, and will be taken care of by Him always. I have never had ambitions to build a mansion, buy acres, or stock up on the yellow metal. I know I am not a failure when I look at the wonderful people, and whose love, Allah Almighty has blessed me with, family and friends alike. Yet, I cannot help but feel that way. that has been the effect this earthquake and its aftermath have had on most of us - they have jolted the very premise of our philosophies.
I am invaded by a feeling of guilt each time I spend a dirham towards items not essential to my survival, as it rears up images of those devastated, cold, hungry, and desparate people who would kill for each of these dirhams right now.
I shudder at the thought of being in their predicament…and beseech Allah to ease their suffering, and spare all His creations, including my family, any such suffering. I pray and pray and pray…
Yet, there is no denying the fact that those five million people affected by this catastrophe went to bed after Suhoor on the morning of eighth, with not the slightest hint in their minds that their lives, if at all spared, would be turned upside down in the next few hours. There is no knowing what lies in store for us, and it just underlines the importance of making the most of this time we have to carry out our mission on earth, and our mission on earth is to follow Allah’s commands, and He commands us to refrain from shirk, worship Him, and spend on and for the betterment of our brothers ans sisters in need, out of the bounty He has given us.
Donate, donate and donate, because this is the only way of loaning out to Allah, and Allah promises to be the best repayer of all loans. www.pakrelief.org lists the various channels through which donations can be funnelled into the affected areas, take your pick, but remember to donate as much as you can, and then some.
In the aftermath of the earthquake, we have all seen and heard uplifting stories of sacrifice and devotion from all segments of the Pakistani Society and from multiple sections of the world society. It is unfortunate to note that it took such a collossal tragedy to bring out this compassion and sincerity in us. Yet, there is a dire need to keep this spirit alive until the victims of this earthquake have been rehabiliated, until the women widowed by this earthquake are freed of concerns about how to go about the rest of their lives, and until the children orphaned by this earthquake are all provided the compassion, love and security that we all want for our own children. The Abdalians, alumni of the Hassan Abdal College, have shown this spirit and have adopted two villages and its people, vowing to cater to the needs of the people of these two villages, until those villages find their own feet. It is not possible to put a time frame to the life of this spirit, but it is easy to see that this spirit calls for more than just digging deep into pockets today - it requires for all of us to make a long term commitment; a commitment to continue to open our hearts and pockets for our people until these people, especially the old, the widows and the children are self sufficient. It could take years, and if it must, we must be ready to come through for those years.
Lastly, we must remember that this is not the last earthquake to jolt us humans, but it should be the last one that comes to jolt us into humanity.
Perhaps, then, there will be fewer earthquakes; perhaps then they will strike in unpopulated areas; and perhaps then, we will have completed our mission.
-->
9 Responses to 'Blog Quake Day'
1DesiPundit » Blog Quake DayOctober 27th, 2005 at 4:17 am
[…] Blog Quake Day Posts: Zack, Patrix, Ash, Navin, Raphael, Al Muhajabah, Rjputro, Pinstripe, Neha, Anthony, Balaji, Devious Diva, Charu, Gawker, Brad Miner, Sujatha, Pickled Politics, Daily Rhino, Cadmus, Pablo Halkyard, Sunil, Aisha, Anjum, Vikram, Rashmi Bansal, Rosie, Aswin, Nagu, Sohnii, Abinandanan, Basil, Rezwan, Lores Rizkalla, Kaushik-Bidisha, Indigo Jo, Sume, Monologist, Shirazi, Neha V, Mayank, Kush Tandon, Nicecafe, Daniel, KM, Michelle, Baraka, Robert Sharp, Joy D. Sepoy, David T, Yasmine, Gratisgab, eM, Uma, Chamique, Greatbong, Veena, Knicq, Islamoyankee, Aun, One more reason, Aparna, Mumbaigirl, aNTi, Peregrina, lawhawk, Anand, Elizabeth, Angelo Embuldeniya(Strav), Madhu, Shabina, Kaashyapeya, Oodles, Tobias, KAWyle, Jemgal, Zigzackly, Shenaz, Maria, Chai, DeGrouchy Owl, Shaheen, Nafiza […]
2newbieOctober 28th, 2005 at 5:42 pm
there is a update about the situation here
http://islamiblog.blogspot.com/2005/10/what-i-will-aim-to-do-in-this-post-is.html#comments
3SaadieOctober 31st, 2005 at 1:26 pm
you have wrote about everything I was thinking about, amazing post.
4AbezNovember 1st, 2005 at 1:39 pm
JazakAllahuKheiran and many many thanks for yesterday. Please convey that too Wifey, too.
5knicqNovember 1st, 2005 at 2:57 pm
Newbie: I have been reading many posts from ground zero, but none was as detailed, and as objective as yours. May Allah bless you for your efforts, and may He help you with malaik. Ameen.
Saadie: Thanks bro.:)
Little Baji: You are welcome Little Baji. May Al Shaafi shower His blessings on you. Ameen.
6BaptizedLuciferNovember 4th, 2005 at 2:31 am
holy moly batman! no eid post? this is blasphemy
7SaadatNovember 4th, 2005 at 5:37 am
Eid Mubarak, Bhaijan!
8SaeedNovember 5th, 2005 at 10:45 am
EID MUBARAK!!!
9knicqNovember 8th, 2005 at 7:28 pm
Lucifer: Whoever said there isn’t an eid post - its just late….
Saadat: You gotta teach your enetation thingy some manners bro…its been acting like a pretty secretary…there is an MBA term for it…”Gate Keeper”. Won’t let my comments in…
Saeed: …and a very happy Eid Mubarak to you too! ¶ 1/26/2006 02:23:00 AM
