2018 Anxiety and Reflection

Bismillah & subhanallah.

It's truly amazing how time flies.

My last post was in 2014, and today it's already 2018 - That's 4 years apart!

"Maka nikmatNya yang manakah yang akan kau dustakan?"

All praises be to Allah for all the bounties that HE has lovingly and continuously bestowed upon us. Hopefully, we have improved ourselves & our relationship with Him as an 'abd [after years and years of self-practice, self- islah and mujahadah day in and day out, Ramadan after Ramadan, days after days] Ameen.

Anyways,

Among this year's biggest events are:

- The 2nd anniversary of Trump's victory in the US Presidential Election which has witnessed racism & bigotry magnified in scale 

- The opening of the US Embassy in Jerusalem (previously, it was in Tel Aviv)

- The "re-election" of President Abbas Al-Sisi in Egypt which is followed by the hike in goods and oil prices in the already over-stretched Egyptian people 

- Gratefully, kemenangan Pakatan Harapan untuk membentuk Malaysia Baru dalam GE14 dan the re-election of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Definitely something to cherish.

Having all those said, alhamdulillah, actually we Malaysians are better off in many aspects in comparison to many countries. Thus, we must gather our spirit and enthusiasm in order to push forward and create greater impact in our lives as an individual, as a nation, and what more as an Ummah. Remember, whatever we do is not for ourselves alone - We are actually leaving behind traces for the next generation for indeed, kita hanyalah salah satu dari sekian banyak mata rantai semenjak zaman Nabi Muhammad s.a.w. dan umat manusia sebelumnya lagi. Oleh itu, amatlah penting untuk kita berpegang dengan hadith yang indicate bahawa barangsiapa memperkenalkan suatu kebaikan/keburukan, akan beroleh pahala/dosa semisal dengan pelaku yang mengikutinya. It's scary to think of for sure, but nevertheless inspires us at the same time to keep on evaluating our actions and the qudwah that we portray to others. 

And as mentioned before, there are so many issues that we need to address as a muslim, and as a citizen of the world 'cuz if we refuse to care, we'll simply be the side-liners, those who are easily swiped off along with history (luput ditelan zaman tanpa mengambil bahagian). Thus, as ambassadors of this deen, certainly we will have to keep on reviewing and re-think our self-positioning: what role to play and which field to dive into in order to be part of the solution. But, sometimes we don't have enough time to do enough of such reflection. Thus, perhaps we may keep on pursuing whatever is in hand to the best that we can, while at the same time not depriving ourselves from trying different field, and keep ourselves open to new ideas, new perspective, new innovation and different mindset. Not to forget praying for Allah's tawfiq 'cuz the possibility of Allah's rizq & guidance is truly beyond us. 

Last but not least, try not to panic 'cuz nothing is meant to be instant. Even Al-Qur'an pun turun gradually - kita ditarbiah dan berubah bit by bit, slowly but surely, confidently & permanently insyaAllah. Release your anxiety just like the Palestinians who care not of the Israeli snipers & keep on coming again and again like The Great March is a hobby of their own. 

Dear self, untuk akhiratmu, stay strong!

And again, love yourself.

"your goal is to inspire you, not beat you up"