Last month has hasnt been a honeymoon at all for me.It is while trying to sooth myself in the midst the trials, I realised, why frown when you can smile.Frowning doesnt help-neither does feeling sorry for oneself. I know too well that smiling doesnt help solve the issues, but you put less excess stress upon yourself.

    Its really not that hard to smile at adversities when you really look at life from a different point of view.
 

    If we come to terms with the fact that like it or not, as servants of God, we will have to face these challenges in life. Often, these challenges are interpreted as blessings from God. It is due to these hardships that we will be able to prove our devoted love to our Creator. And from this devotion, will we gain entrance to the Blissful Garden.

    God sends us trials, for He loves and cares for us.He's giving us the opportunity to prove our love, and hence gain the reward of Paradise.

    If we learn to look at adversities through this point of view, surely we can smile again. Afterall, as its said, life is so short.Currently the average lifespan of human is about 70 yrs...compare 70yrs to eternity... and you will realise that the 70yrs is less then a grain of sand on the vast beach.

    Trials- we receive them in so many forms...money problems,loss of loved ones,failure in business or exam,family problems,health problems...list goes on and on.

    Speaking of money problems- think of this... remember when we were very young, the time when we first know that money can buy things- yet unaware of the meaning of the 'value of money'? 
    Can you remember the BIG HUGE smile on your face when your mom give you 1 dinar/dollar/pound...etc. How you felt you're the richest person in the world with that money?  and how you treasure it so much and make innocent boastings to your friends of how rich you are now?

    If only we can retain that feeling or rather, character, in ourselves.To be satisfied and content with even a smallest thing. As we grow, as we see more things, as we learn the value of money...we get more and more materialistic and greedy. We want more and more and more and never know when to stop.(I'm not saying i'm immune from this disease)

    OK, now I might be sounding like a Sufi...but, if only we try to teach ourselves...to stop getting everything we want, to restraint ourselves from unnecessary leisures. This way. we're not only restrainting from leisures we can afford...but also leisures we cant afford.Hence there will be less or no heartache when we cant afford to have an Audi S8 series.
    After reading the stories of the Sahabas(Noble Companions), at the Masjeed that day, a brother adiviced,'Before you buy anything at the shop, ask yourself- Can i survive without this?Is it really important that i have this item?"
    However, we should  have access to the facilities in relation to standard lifestyle of this age.

    Well, while the Sahabas went to great length in depriving their body of  excess leisure...we, mankind of the 21th century, are not advised to take such measures.This is mainly because we are WAY much WEAKER then the people back then. Imam Hanbali, the founder of the Hanbali Madhab, was reported to have prayed 150 raka'at of Nafl (voluntary) prayers every night while he was 80 yrs old.This is the reduction from 300 raka'at he used to practise during his younger days, before he was imprisoned for refusing to accept the royal decree(which was very blasphemous).

    That was...an 80-yrs old man...and we...even the youths, or should I say-especially the youths, today dread to perform the 20 raka'at taraweeh prayers. Thats how weak we are...both physically and spiritually (I fear).

    Perhaps, when we finally learn that we can still survive without excess wealth,without too much leisure...hence without too much stress....we will also learn  the secret of this life (which we've gradually lost over the years since the time of the Prophet (saw))...the secret...of smiling at adversities.