بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
📝 7 Lessons learned Alhamdulillah from deciding to attend the wedding of one of our male faculty / asaatidh teachers at Wisdom Islamic School instead of cancelling going there due to waking up quite late in the morning and oversleeping (I'm usually not in a pleasant mood when I oversleep at times):
1✅ From the qualities of real friends and potential good friends is when you attempt to cancel going out to spend some time with them, they first ask if you're fully certain about your decision or try to insist that you don't cancel the outing. There is a difference between being told "Fine. Your loss.", "You're not going? Whatever. Bye!", or "You're such a liar. You said you'd be ready. Now you're flaking again." AND "But we're already preparing! We can wait for you.", "You're joking, right? It's a prank? Whether you like it or not we're still going even if we must carry you!" and "Are you sure you don't want to come? What changed your mind? You don't have enough money? It's okay! I can pay for you. My treat!" when you're about to cancel an agreement to meet up with some Muslim loved ones and acquaintances whom you're genuinely interested in befriending for Allah's sake.
2✅ When you have some idea that Inn-sha-Allah a wedding will most likely be held outdoors for instance at a park or wide open field etc. it is recommended to bring hand fans, prayer mat and umbrella.
3✅ Three likely reasons why some Muslims did not invite you directly to their wedding despite mentioning it to you via chat or face to face:
1) Maybe there were a limited number of seats reserved especially for those who are prioritized among the immediate family, relatives, classmates, colleagues and close neighbors of both the bride and groom.
2) They were probably so busy and preoccupied with the wedding preparations that they innocently forgot to include you, and you're not that memorable (no offense) to them because, let's face it, you very seldom interact with each other. And that's okay. If you were a host of an event, you'd rather invite someone whom you converse with almost everyday than to unwillingly send an invitation to somebody who chats with you once every four months or so while you're not that familiar yet with them for them to be regarded as an actual friend.
3) They assumed you were "unreachable" (perhaps you changed your contact number or social media account etc.), fasting and/or on duty that time, or they speculated you'd simply decline their invitation again just as you rejected, evidently ignored or said no to their multiple invites in the past online and offline.
"While I acknowledge the fact I don't have any grudge against so-and-so, I won't invite them to this event because there's a huge probability that Inn-sha-Allah they may only say no." more so if the place where they're currently residing in is incredibly far away from the wedding venue.
4✅ There's a special kind of joy when you attempt to be generous and helpful sincerely for the sake of Allah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala, particularly when you're aware of the truth that Inn-sha-Allah Allah Al-Kareem will surely multiply the barakah blessings in your life and increase you in wisdom and contentment.
5✅ If there's an important event or big gathering the next day, for instance Salat Al-'Eid or a wedding, either you sleep early so
Inn-sha-Allah you can wake up earlier with or without alarm, push yourself for Allah's sake to stay awake, or ask at least two trusted Muslims to wake you up early in case you oversleep.
6✅ Know when to ask questions to learn more about others and a variety of information worth discovering, and know when to refrain from asking potentially offensive queries to prevent misunderstandings.
7✅ One of the signs that Allah the Most Merciful loves you is guiding you and enlightening you to treat a number of Muslims well so that those individuals can regularly include you in their loving prayers/Du'a/supplications.
May Allah the Almighty immensely reward dear Umm Khawla and her husband Abu Yaminah for their admirable generosity, for accompanying us and giving us a very informative tour around various parts in Tagum city, and May Allah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala protect them and their loved ones at all times and grant them all the means which they require to succeed in both worlds with Allah's Mercy. Ameen.
