Thank You More Please

I've just heard the story of someone so inspirational, so extraordinary it's bringing tears to my eyes. I recall a comment made by a very close friend of mine in response to my complaint of being over-worked; he responded by remarking that none of us deserves our positions yet we've been favoured over countless people. At that moment I felt like such a hypocrite. I had truly forgotten the roots of where I had come from. I was once living with a people that lived simple lives and had simple dreams like owning a cow or growing some rice and being able to feed and provide for their family. I remember the precious childhood memories where my Mum would work so hard just to survive, she always carried a sad smile about her. Her life was full of hard work and indeed she worked hard to raise me as best as she could. All the kids of my childhood in Bangladesh striving to strike a living, they were real, they're still real. I don't know exactly what I did but I was chosen to fulfil a destiny where my life had become so much easier (I was often  reminded by my family here in the UK that had I still been living in Bangladesh my destiny would have lay in ploughing the lands as the phrase goes). The truth of what my friend had said had resonated within the depth of my heart. Deep inside I knew that really I didn't deserve any of the luxuries and amenities that I had been given.

To start off, just taking a second to acknowledge my able physical body brought about a profound sense of gratitude. Adding to that, realising that my friends are my greatest assets, always ready to lift me up as I fall, knowing what to say and when to say the right things. They care about me and I find that most odd of all, because when I look at them I see greatness and when I look at myself I see a weak person. I remember when I was in year 11 (aged 15) I made a prayer for God to give me good friends, that was one thing I knew that I needed in my life. As I look back now, since year 11 the friends that I have made and kept are like the jewels of the world and the pearls of the sea - I wouldn't trade them for the worlds gold or silver!

I think about my counterpart in Bangladesh, he wakes up early in the morning goes about working, making just enough to buy bread, his sister works as a maid-servant for a wealthy family nearby. They both retire home to a shelter equivalent to the size of the smallest bedroom in my current home. If they had half-a-chance to live my life, what would they do? How would they respond to the 'challenges' of my day? How would they utilise the time and resources that I have? Asking these far-reaching questions gives me the strength to be better, stronger, harder; to realise my potential and work towards greatness. My good friend knows that if there is one thing that can move me, change me, affect me is working towards Justice in a world-ridden full of injustice and oppression. My counterpart is the victim of injustice, it's not his fault that the officials in his country are so corrupt, so greedy, so compassion-less. Working hard and becoming something of myself maybe I may be able to help him and others just like him. This is what drives me to Ihsan (excellence), emancipate myself from mediocrity and expect no more than greatness for myself.