Greet me
My moments are like flashes of gold, shining for a brief instant before passing by. Do not anchor me to that long, winding path of dreams; spare my hopes from turning into mirages! I wake at dawn to a whisper urging me: “Do not gaze too long at the ceiling; you must rise.” For the golden flash will not wait for me to illuminate me. All that is dreamy within me will not manifest in my days except through striving, and more striving. “Has there not come upon man a period of time when he was not even mentioned?” From nothingness, my Lord granted me a legacy. My memory will not be polished unless touched by the fire of will, so that I may usher in the day and that long swim within it. So what have we inscribed upon its sun? And for what purpose have we used its light? The sun teaches me that its blazing intensity heralds a new day, a new experience, a new opportunity. This burning, warm sun—does it seek from me a clear reason to be pleased with its sunrise in my world? O gentle sun, I confess to you the reasons for my existence there: a compassionate mother, whom I long to kiss for her gifts bestowed upon me. There, minds await my rays to ignite. There, ambitions wait for someone to revive them. There, hands await a gentle pat. There, a nation awaits my courage. There, somber faces await someone to lift their gloom with a tender smile. Perhaps I am the one who will do that, O sun—will I then be worthy of your light? During this day, there are solitary moments that gaze at your ambition, hoping it will be their father and home. Why not entrust them to you, so they may shine? The day is a long swim; those precious minutes within it are well worth embracing. Have you not been gifted them by God? Is anyone wronged except through idleness and good health? The minutes of your day seem to cry out: “Revive me!” I will not accept being empty, like fleeting moments that have passed away in what should not have been spent, in what is unworthy of your vicegerency. Excel in your stewardship. Fulfill your mission on earth. Read a book. Brush the dust off your Quran. Recite, so that the cosmos may learn from you with reverence. Reconnect with a severed kinship. Keep the company of the righteous, and you will find a higher meaning in life and contentment. Or perhaps destiny will reconcile with you. Help a stranger, then forget it, so that facilitation and success may embrace you. Speak gently to a child; I assure you, they will never forget you until their hair turns gray. In your presence, they will be engrossed in remembrance. Feed a bird or water a plant, and you will see a pure world shaking your hand. All this will bear witness for you when you are asked about that long swim.
