Beautiful Things

Today I am sick, and I was sick yesterday, but this has served to make me hyper-sensitive to things one wouldnt usually notice. Being unable to eat properly for two days, I was feeling quite low. My head was throbbing and swirling, and dizzy, and if I tried to get out of bed it would spin (not literally, you understand, but the fluid in the balance-centre was out of control).

I had been lying half in and out of sleep, trying to decide if I had it in me to make some soup, which would have involved at least 40 mins for the potatoes and lentils to be properly cooked - and at the same time I wasn't sure if I'd be able to stomach it. My other option was to make some hot lemon and add ginger, but I thought this wasnt solid enough.

The time came for the dawn prayer, and I was quite unable to get out from under the covers, but eventually I controlled my self, and denyed Satan, and made my way to the sink to make ablutions.

Then I prayed (very weakly) but in that state it seems easier to concentrate and make the prayer count and get close to Allah.

However, after the prayer I was wiped out but still had some energy, and thought it best to at least eat something. Then I remembered I had bought oranges, and decided to risk it.

Oh the sweet goodness that flowed through me! Such thirst-quenching satisfaction. It wasnt hard to eat, and it wasnt too much, or too little - just right. Perfection.

When I got back into bed, and as the warmth of the blankets gradually crept over me, I could still feel the power of that wonderful orange. I gift from God. I thought it was like eating a tropical village, and the cool breeze, and all the fantastical imaginings of someone half-starved and feverish.

Then I thought about this blog, and how I should write about the beautiful things in our lives. All the blessings that come from Allah, that we so easily ignore. And the pleasure we feel in this life is incomparable to that of what comes after.

How great is Allah as a provider?