A Morning Person...

My husband and I slept over at our son's house the other night as there was no water in some parts of Petaling Jaya. I was up early and after finishing my morning a-do I sat at his patio enjoying the bountiful fresh air in the morning.

A beautiful sunrise in a residential area like Puchong is a rare experience. Puchong's development has been haphazard and a quiet morning alone is blissful. Usually my husband would return home late after his morning activity in a nearby mosque and not having someone to talk to, I walked around the little garden talking to the plants and flowers my son planted with the help of his house maid and a part time gardener. 

Indeed refreshing.....

I am a morning person and always encourage my children never to continue with sleep after the Subuh prayer. In the Quran we are expected to be out there as It says:

And when the Prayer is finished, then may ye disperse through the land, and seek of the Bounty of Allah. and celebrate the Praises of Allah often (and without stint): that ye may prosper.( Al Jumu'ah 10)

Morning is the best time to do things especially things that require a lot of deep thinking. I missed the Tahajjud prayer in my younger days, (May Allah have mercy on me) and now in earnest I asked my children to do their level best never to miss it. With Tahajjud, time in the morning seems to last a little longer and there is a feeling of that extra energy !.....

.......Or just mesmerizing a sense of gratitude. Alhamdulilah. All praises be to Allah.

I am told early in my working life that the best time our brain and physic is active is from about 8 in the morning to about 12 noon. And I keep reminding my children to take this seriously. Although not knowing this fact, my late mother is a great disciplinarian and drummed into our hearts and mind that getting up late is a taboo, both socially and religiously. 

So I grew up a morning person and remain so until now, with the grace of Allah our Creator and Sustainer.

A friend once said that the for some people they can think and work better late at night. They will stay up to 1 am or may be 2 am and may be even later to finish whatever they need to do.This is a choice in life but as I remind my children, make sure they do not miss the Tahajjud prayer. I have been struggling and struggling to keep my pace in this and I keep hoping Allah will bestow upon my children the strength and the will to be so disciplined as to achieve one's goal in this life and the hereafter.

That was a quiet morning of soul searching and reminiscence ....... 

Then I inched my way from the back to the front of  the house. 

A little corner of lush green soothes the eye and this isolated bush of greenish yellow plant adds color to a cool and delightful morning. I hope my son will have time to "stand and stare" at the beautiful little garden he has at his house. (Remember the great poem by Williams Wordsworth ?: 'What is this life if full of care - We have no time to stand and stare. No time to stand beneath the boughs - and stare as long as sheep or cows.' ....and more).

Of course as a Muslim our lives must be full of care. But a little leisure in the morning will do a lot of good to stretch the mind and the soul. I remember a little story on Hitler when I was working before. I was told that he never called for a meeting in the morning, in fact never during the day. He would have his meeting at night, sometimes late at night. Why ?  Because he did not want to be asked questions. And at that graveyard hour every one, almost every one,  would be too tired to think and will just agree with him. That way they could go home and sleep, and Hitler will just implement his decisions soonest. That was his strategy.

I do not know how far that was true. But we may want to think and ponder on the consequences of working when our physical conditions have reached the limit.

So....be a morning person.
I do hope I'm making sense.
May Allah bless us all. Ameen....

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