The Only Thing Constant In The World...Is Change.

Okay, I'm in super India Arie mode (she is SO legit), hence there are a lot of allusions to her lyrics in this post. The question at hand is one that transverses all generations: Will a woman ever be more than what she wears? It seems that we are constantly focused on a woman's outer appearance and fail to recognize deeper, more important aspects of situations. For example, during the earthquakes in Pakistan, I read an article on the front page of a newspaper saying that this tragedy befell on Pakistan because the women were wearing sleeveless clothes. Ummmm okay...what?! Wouldn't you think that there are more important things that deserve to be the focal point during this stage? Anyways, I think that it is very important for us to focus on our inner workings before we start agonizing over our outward showings.

If we try to change ourselves on the inside first, the rest will follow. “Verily, Allah does not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves” (al-Qur’an, 13:11) Seriously, I remember at one point in my life I was on a super religious high (alhamdulillah) and as my iman got stronger on the inside, it became apparent on the outside. I began to find pleasure in dressing and acting modestly...and I don't quite have the words to describe what an amazing time that was for me, but basically, Allah (swt) is ready to help us out, we just need to take that first step.

“I am as My servant thinks I am. I am with him when he makes mention of Me. If he makes mention of Me to himself, I make mention of him to Myself; and if he makes mention of Me in an assembly, I make mention of him in an assembly even better than that. And if he takes one step towards me, I take ten steps towards him. And if he comes walking to Me , I go running towards him. ” (Hadith Qudsi)

This being my first year in college, I'm beginning to realize certain things. First off, this is a LITERAL fresh page; I can be whoever I want to be here without the awkward "what?! that's so unlike you" situation. What an excellent chance to be a better person, a better Muslim. Like what India Arie says in "I Choose:"

my past doesn't dictate who i am.
every day we're making a decision.
on what to do and who to be.
it's constantly changing.

Due to this constant changing, one cannot let labels turn into self-fulfilling prophecies. We cannot get stuck on one thing we've done and let it prescribe the rest of our lives for us.

"Life is a process of becoming, a combination of states we have to go through. Where people fail is that they wish to elect a state and remain in it. This is a kind of death." - Anais Nin

To ensure that we're changing for the better, sometimes it's helpful to tell myself: "Hey, every facet of your life should be all or nothing." So if I'm trying to be Islamic in certain aspects, but not in others...then why bother? That's like studying really hard for a test but then not reading any of the questions when the actual test comes around and just blindly guessing. Of course, we will never be PERFECT - but that's the point right? The struggle? So Allah can be like "Hey man, you tried hard" and i'A grant us His mercy and entrance into Heaven, because I sure know I wouldn't get in only based on my deeds.

So yeah, that was a bit all over the place, but essentially just a reminder to not let other people's perspectives of you (outer appearance) create who you are as a person. Keep striving to better yourself, holla!

"Life isn't about finding yourself, its about creating who you are." - George Bernard Shaw





Does the way I wear my hair make me a better person?

Does the way I wear my hair make me a better friend?

Does the way I wear my hair determine my integrity?



Peace.