بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
📝 3 Quick lessons learned to share for Allah's sake from some recent outings here in Davao city Philippines:
1✨ When planning group outings usually not all of the members of a group of friends are able to meet up eventually either because some of them are extremely busy with numerous tasks while others are spending their vacation in a different village or city. Lots of patience, forgiveness and understanding are required if you want any friendship and connection for Allah's sake to last longer or forever
Inn-sha-Allah in both worlds.
I was looking forward to having a meaningful conversation face to face with a sister in Islam before she'd travel with her daughters to Singapore but we arrived so late at the playground in Coastal Road due to the traffic jam in the afternoon during rush hour and because the driver needed to change his route when he reached the wrong destination probably due to miscommunication. So we only had around one hour to join the sisters for the picnic before the playground at Coastal Road closes at around 8 PM or 8:30 PM. Alhamdulillah, at least I was able to charge my cellphone with the taxi driver's charger during the lengthy ride from Wisdom Islamic School to Coastal Road.
✅ Lesson to share: If your destination is very far, it is much better if you book a GrabCar with a fixed price instead of going there with a regular taxi that would charge you according to each meter covered and duration of the journey. It is also possible for some GrabCar drivers, not all taxi drivers, to let you use their chargers to charge your cellphone if you politely request them to allow you to charge your gadget for free. Be willing to pay extra cash if they ask for a small amount since strangers have every right to charge you for using their personal belongings which aren't intended for charity or public use unless they're that helpful and humanitarian.
2✨ Alhamdulillah, after our swift get-together at the play area in Coastal Road, Allah the Most Wise destined that I would reconnect with some childhood friends whom I haven't seen in a very long time. They're childhood friends who grew up with my brothers and I in eastern Saudi Arabia (Dammam and Al-Khobar) and were visiting from Cotabato. We enjoyed some memorable moments Alhamdulillah together and went to Poblacion Market Central after visiting the National Museum of the Philippines at People's Park (opening hours from 9 AM to 5 PM and currently free admission).
One of my older cousins gave me two items for free from their souvenirs shop even though I tried my best to insist that I give her the payment to support her store for Allah's sake (her souvenirs store is located at the first floor of Poblacion Market Central and from the souvenirs being sold there include fans, handbags, wallets and other accessories ideal as gifts for those who haven't traveled to the Philippines yet).
May Allah the Almighty always bless all the halal businesses of atti Umaira Abangon and keep her contented and happy always in this world and the afterlife in Jannatul Ferdaus with Allah's Mercy. Ameen.
✅ Lesson to share: I was actually thinking of abruptly cancelling the meet-up with the sisters at Coastal Road, like a Pakistani sister in Islam had to cancel meeting up with us as she had plenty of other responsibilities, when I saw the price of the GrabCar was around 500 pesos but I decided to fulfill my promise for Allah's sake despite the large fare, specially since I need to budget nowadays if I intend to purchase several gifts for some graduating loved ones, while believing that Allah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala can substitute that amount of money spent with something much better in the future. Alhamdulillah I believe that the amount of money spent was compensated for with the delicious meals kindly given by the wife of the Turkish chef from Turkish Kebab House, from the childhood friends who let me have a sleepover with them Alhamdulillah and one of my dear older cousins who really insisted that I take those two items from her souvenirs store without needing to give any payment.
Very often you must sacrifice or surrender some things which you think are so essential in order to achieve certain things that Allah the All-Knowing knows could benefit you more somehow, and if you have a heart that's eager to be generous towards others for Allah's sake whenever you can, Allah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala eventually rewards you in both worlds or if not in this world sooner then
Inn-sha-Allah in the hereafter later.
3✨ If you're serious about meeting up with someone, don't simply send them a text message but also do your best in attempting to reach out to them by contacting as many mutual friends as you can who can notify them of your messages. I have a strong feeling that some users occasionally mute their notifications with me if they can't put up with my verbose messages which may emotionally drain those who generally prefer communication that's concise. So what I did was send messages to other users who are hopefully okay with reading essays and long messages and Alhamdulillah we were able to meet up after so many months and for one of them several years of not having seen each other.
✅ Lesson to share: Sometimes Allah the Most Loving may want some people to realize that you're still on good terms with them and for them to feel that you're not deliberately ignoring them at least permanently, Allah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala decrees that you go through certain challenges or situations just so you can put effort in reaching out to those Muslims and being humble enough to inquire from them. If we truly despise a person, we wouldn't want anything to do with them nor would we exert energy to generate questions because enemies typically mistrust each other and mutually regard each other as "incompetent" or "insignificant". Going out of your way to ask a Muslim some questions in general shows you perceive them as reliable enough to help you or follow your instructions. If some are not always capable of helping you out since no human is absolutely flawless or available 24/7, then for Allah's sake strive to maintain patience with contentment.
