inthesand

[inthesand]

Tree Sparrows

by Robert E Fuller

[inthesand]

How do I explain

That flies on the hands of those kids reading

the Qur’an

And the cow in the same courtyard

The mosquito nets

The workers sweeping away the dust

The shoes neatly placed to the side of the

makeshift door

Brought peace to me

In a way that water from the cleanest river could

never

Pure in its purest form

How do I explain without contaminating the scene

With baseless words? And my colonised being?

[inthesand]

[inthesand]

[inthesand]

Is your soul okay?

[inthesand]

[inthesand]

[inthesand]

Afghanistan, 1975. Françoise Foliot

[inthesand]

[inthesand]

[inthesand]

[inthesand]

[inthesand]

[inthesand]

[inthesand]

‏"ومن تمام حُسْنِ الظَّنِّ باللهِ أنْ يستقرَّ في قلبِكَ أنَّه لا خيرَ لكَ في شيءٍ مُنِعْتَ عنه، وأنَّ رحمةَ اللهِ بالحِرمان لا تقِلُّ عن رحمته بالعطاء".

"Among the perfection of having a good opinion of Allah is to firmly believe in your heart that there is no good for you in anything you are deprived of, and that Allah's mercy in withholding is no less than His mercy in granting."

[inthesand]

[inthesand]

وَلَا تَايْـَٔسُوْا مِنْ رَّوْحِ اللّٰهِ ؕ اِنَّهٗ لَا يَايْـَٔسُ مِنْ رَّوْحِ اللّٰهِ اِلَّا الْقَوْمُ الْكٰفِرُوْنَ

"...and despair not of relief from Allāh. Indeed, no one despairs of relief from Allāh except the disbelieving people." [Surah Yusuf 12:87]