If you're reading this during a Covid-19 lockdown, wherever you may be (sounds so dramatic and movie like!), you probably understand why this would be a convenient time for introspection and a subsequent blog post! Particularly for someone who can't actually work from home (dentist here).
Over the last few weeks, many of us have probably experienced a range of emotions and thoughts- stress, panic, helplessness, and then maybe, eventually...hope, submission, and dare I say...patience. I don't know about you, but this pandemic has been a bit of a reflection of most issues we face in our lives- just an accelerated cycle of emotions compared to the usual.
Usually, most of us when faced with a genuine problem in life will start off with the initial emotions I mentioned. We will panic, digest just how bad the issue is, go through potential solutions and discard them for whatever reason they're not suitable, and often we will just keep repeating this cycle. It's exhausting and can drain someone of any positivity at all! But this is what we do, because we as humans have a false sense of invincibility- I should be able to solve MY problems.
During this pandemic however, I think a lot of us have been pushed onto the next stage of the cycle, which in other situations we might not even get to- the calm after the initial storm of worry- acceptance, forbearance, reliance on God, perhaps even gratitude. Essentially- patience. This time, there is nothing we can do...literally nothing, to protect the material things we value the most. The economy is a mess, most of our incomes are in jeopardy, and thus rent or mortgage payments, our health, that of our families...the list goes on and on. Sometimes I think this is a reminder from Allah that we aren't in control- we never have been! And it is only when we accept this, that we can get past the worry stage and be in touch with our better, higher selves.
A lot of us might have been worried about our finances, our jobs, our health...and perhaps we now feel calmer because none of these outcomes were up to us anyway. I know my initial worries seem to have fizzled away over the last week or so and I am so grateful for this. The same way Allah has brought a temporary cloud of uncertainty over us, He is capable of bringing protection, stability, health and calm to us all as well.
Parenthetically, this time has also made me reflect on the power and sincerity of supplication, particularly when I read the ones specifically recommended for the month of Rajab. I was listening to a speaker at the start of the month who mentioned something that I know I seem to forget- nothing diminishes in Allah's dominion when He chooses to grant us something we ask for. For Him it's effortless, lossless, and this is something I try to remember when I supplicate now.
May Allah keep us all safe, healthy, and most importantly patient, in these turbulent times.
