Cutney & Plain Pratha's

An old fav of mine mums mint & corriander cutney, you will need, a bunch of corriander, about 5 sprigs of mint, onions, fresh garlic to taste,salt, tamrind and fresh chillis to taste,
Blitz it all in the blender and serve with chapati or paratha's, I had it with samosas yesterday, i have ofen used it with fried fish too, or just as a side dip for any dish.

Flapjack

I have been wanting to make this since i saw it on http://katescrafts.wordpress.com/2008/06/22/i-was-overcome/ kate's blog, noone seems to be in apprehaition of my cooking these days, I am cooking but noone is eating, Allah Al Must'aan.




i must say at first i though i had gone wrong somewhere but once they cool , mashaAllah a very chewy delight, I added pecan nuts and cinnamon too mine otherwise followed Kate to the T.

cauliflower & carrots in a corriander & cheese sauce

A bit like cauliflower cheese but with an Asian twist,cumin. I fried some onion in a pan with a little oil as this began to cook added a teaspoon of whole cumin seeds, salt, pepper and powdered garlic. I added a small cauliflower and some sliced carrots, leveled it with boiling water and covered it and let it cook latter removing the lid to allow the juices to evaporate.

In the meantime i made a coriander sauce , just a roux with finely chopped coriander(as opposed to a parsley sauce)poured this over the cauliflower and carrots, then grated some cheese and popped it into the grill.


Serve with a green salad.

When sisterhood hurts

At the charity bazzar a sister approached me , who i met 7 years ago when she first arrived to the UK as a new bride , alone, confused and lonely. For the sake of allah i really went out of my way to befriend this sister and offer her sisterhood for the sake of Allah. Such a kind and special sister mashaAllah. She asked me at the bazzar why we were not intouch , i told her if you looked for me , you would have found me. I made every effort to ensure sisters had my contact details, so thoses that bother would have found me! The sister didn't like to hear this, i told her i was totally disamayed with the sisterhood i shared once i made hijrah. When i was in need of my sisters i found not one and this hurt me. MashaAllah the sister appoligied and asked me to forgive her. The sister wants sisterhood and we exchanged numbers. Sometimes you have to take a stance, ok as muslimahs we are encouraged to do good , forgive, and forget but Allah does not tell me lay onthe floor and let sisters trample over me, even i have standards. So i plan to be more assertie and make my feeling heard. Some may think i am wrong but i am sick of turning the other cheek and letting others mess with my emotions, when all i want is love for the sake of Allah.

A Day AT A Time

Since my return to the UK i decided , I was here to benifit my deen and use the wealth of resources the UK has for Muslims mashaAllah, namely get on top of my Quran recitation and morisation inshaAllah.. This is one of the few blessings i can still apprechaite in the UK. I decided not to fall into my old ways, benifit my family more and spend my time with them more. Not to out do my health by getting involved in a hectic socail life (as in the past). To keep it real, to take it a day at a time. Work through/towards one issue and then tackle the next. To take in hand the here and now and lay the ground for whats to come. HEALTH for all the family is on the ajenda.

forgot to mention....

Why the cooking spout ? my DS had his op today , just a day case but i was so worried for him i ended up doing a cooking frenzy in a few hours alhamduilah helped to take my mind of things a little and treat loved ones mashaAllah. the chicken soup was for him especially. He is OK being pampered by 3 women of the house, who would complain to that. He has been sleeping most of the day and eating chocolate.

Rais (rais tunis)

You will need coarse semolina,soften butter, stoned dates and small amount of chopped nuts of your choice, I used walnuts. This is a north African recipe for Rais.


500 gramm (2 cups) of semolina not the flour one
500 gramms of date paste needs to be sticky when mixed in with other ingredents so it will bind, if the dates are dry just steam them in a couscousier type steamer.
150 gramms of butter (I take 200)

Fry semolina on pan without oil untill it is golden. Make butter soft (I use microwave). Put everything together and here you go And then the most creative part - making different shapes out it

mange tout et les carrots

I used a little olive oil and sauteed some minced garlic & ginger, salt , pepper and a little sprinkle of canyne pepper. Stir fried this all with the carrots that i had previously steamed and chopped and the mange tout, a delightful side dish.


Warm Salad

New potatoes, boiled eggs, red onions, sprig of mint and some parsley, black olives dress with any dressing of your choice.

Can be eaten cold but i like mine slightly warm.


Quick Chicken Soup with homemade croutons
1 onion, carrots plenty of fresh coriander, generous cut of butter,1 small potato,1 veg stock cube.
Put it all in a pan and add boiling water and then add previously steamed boneless chicken.
Once veg is done blend it with the hand blender.
Toast some bread on a high setting in the toaster.
Remove from toaster and cut in to small squares.

Charity Bazzar

After swiming we went to see an old friend who had invited me to gain some reward for my own hereafter by part taking in sadaqah jarriyah (on going charity), well we arrived on time and i ended up helping, serving the food. Was a lovely day and nice to meet up with the sisters again mashaAllah a lovely set of sisters , may allah grant them hightest paridse ameen. i didn't buy much apart from the food, yum buriyani and spanish pasta salad. I did find this rather nice plate for 50p, i was going to use it as a tea bag plate but decided to hand it instead.


The event was held in the sisters home, her noble effort is so inspiring mashaAllah.

Swiming for Muslim Women& Girls

I took the girls swiming , as they need to learn and need sports in their lives. it was a one hour session cost £3 , its in a pool in a school hired out on a sunday to the muslims who run sessions for sisters and brothers on sunday mornings. I didn't swim but had a look and may go next week depending on how i feel as i need to learn too. They have a female life guard on hand and she is great to help you out to learn to swim. i met a sister there who was also sitting out the session and she said if i came next week with a float she will teach me to swim, so i can't complain now can I? The women wear leggins and long tee shirts, best adviced to wear a coustume under the teeshirt so that it won't cling when wet.



here are some items belonging to my dd 6yrs old, we decided to get her a ring to so that way noone needs to watch her all the time, she loves it, dd 14yrs old loved it but said it would be more fun if you can swim , she needs to get learning.

Coming back but feeling different

Yesterday I went to a community bazaar and caught up with a lot of the old circle of sisters, mash Allah lovely sisters. I did note that life has remained the same.

I was speaking to sister S about my own spiritual development after hijrah I realized soon after being in Algeria alone for so long and only depending upon my lord for my daily nourishment of faith and battling shatan every step of the way, my faith entered another level Alhamdulillah, a new spiritual high that can only be attained after hardship and dependence upon Allah. I feel looking back on my life in the UK it is a life of dependence upon society and materialism, before you all start, I am talking about my own experience and things the way I felt them. We have this net work of sisters and weekly halaqh's, events we are involved in, things that’s are good, of course they are but soon we take on more and more, the DH is out of the home almost 24/7, kids are in bed before he gets in and sometimes gone off for the day before he gets up, having to make appointments to see his own kids. The sisterhood is great in the UK mash Allah very diverse but as I came to learn a very superficial one, not all some as there are so many wonderful sisters out there and who really do care. We live in this self created Islamic bubble we create for ourselves in the UK, the choices, materialism and access hinders our real relationship with our lord, we are missing tranquility, our hearts are diseases with love for comfort. I often remind myself ''if I don't have hardships, how will I come closer to Allah?'

I was talking to a sister and she was telling me she was so stressed, with the daily grind and life. I asked her if she had food on her table, she said yes, did her roof leak water. She said no, is her health in tack? She said yes. I them told her so what is the stress that is making you so ill? She told me her job, her routine and her wealth, so basically her blessings subhan Allah. I advised her is an illusion of the word stress, put the same energy into your salat and dikr, reaffirm your faith and correct you salat and wudu. I don't know if you can relate to what I am saying but we are all caught up in this in gratitude, when was the last time we thanked our lord , do we do it as often as we moan? We need to self look within ourselves and return to the basics to have faith cost nothing, to have emaan cost nothing to maintain it cost scarifies. Allah guide us all ameen.

Destiny & choices

Therefore, the Prophet (PBUH) used to tell his Companions: "Renew your faith." He was asked, "O Messenger of Allah, how do we renew our faith?" He said, "By frequently repeating la ilaha ill-Allah."

It's been a while since I have been able to blog peacefully due to moving and PC and not to mention the kids hogging the PC, I can't even hear myself think let alone type a meaning full post. Today up early and hopefully shall be able to knock my thoughts out to share. Now going and the build up to coming didn’t want to return to the UK despite all the home sickness, the only think that influenced my decision was the fact that my DH is here so I came Alhamdulillah. Now this has been the hardest transitions back to the UK, I just hate coming here and reclaiming my old life, maybe that's the problem? I have a new life now, a new home, a new social network, a new way of living, yes it was hard at first but I got used to it now and made a life for us Alhamdulillah, mash Allah, TabbarakAllah.

Being together has been a key factor in my return, to be honest I don't want to be alone anymore and the kids without a father and the DH without a wife. So that's a common factor, I know any future decisions I make now will be about being together as a family Insha’Allah.

Thing is we plan but Allah has already planned ahead of us for He is the best of planners. Dreams, aspirations, visions and hopes we have can materialize but we need to work towards them. Living this life as a mum of 3 kids one a teen mash Allah Alhamdulillah I can tell you life does not get easier , mothering does not get easier subhan Allah how I worry about the kids and grey in the process more than when they was babies. Mothering at this stage is harder you have to exercise the mind and reasoning more subhanAllah, not like when there young, feed and clean and rock to sleep, although at the time we moaning but really theses are blissful years. I am not complaining not by far just sharing and reminding. all my life plans are now shaped around the future of my kids, so there are directions I want to go in but can not and maybe will never due to their well being. Being a mother is all about sacrifices, for her kids, her DH and family women in Islam gain lot of reward by simply being a mother.

Strawberies & Orange Blossom Water

A new way to enjoy strawberries, a little suger and a little orange blossom water mix well cool in fridge and enjoy. A pleasant refreshing treat!

Walnut Biscuits

6 1/2 oz of softened butter
1/2 cup of sugar
2 table spoons of Orange blossom water
2 cups of plain flour
Walnut filling

1/2 cup of walnuts chopped
1/4 cup of sugar
1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
Set oven to gas mark 3 , brush a flat tray with butter. Beat sugar and butter until light and creamy. add orange water and flour, combined well. Press with your hands until the mixture comes together and them roll into small golf balls, press centres down with thumb and put into the pressed area some walnut filling and bake for 15-20mins, allow to cool before removing from tray.

Snails& Snacks

In between two rounds of shopping trips i prepared some snacks to keep the family going. first one is called 'snails' i am sure this is due to the shape, just mix up a plain flour, brown flour equal amounts, yeast, salt, sugar and warm water to mix. Leave to rise. i has some left over minced beef and spinach curry fom the previous evening. i rolled out the dough into a rectangles shape , spread it with the curry , grated some cheese rolled it all up like a Swiss roll and baked it at gas mark 5 for about 20Min's and this is what i had

I can't belive this happened to me!

I forgot it was Friday yesterday and therefore missed out on all the blessing of yaum al jummah. It dawned on me about 11pm and that was only coz i switched to the Islam Chanel and saw surah al kaf being recited, i felt grieved, felt robbed, how did this happen, how did i let this happen? My 8Th day in the UK and this, i feel gutted. I know i was pre occupied with other stuff but to let yaum al jummah slip by?

Feeling aloof

Wish i could say my mood was like this but its a much more but i am going to put it right just ajusting, re-organising myself and my life for the better inshaAllah. To be honest i am missing Algeria and my life there , can't win can I , problem is we want it all , but can't have it!

Delightful Tagine Find

I found this great tagine pot in Algeria and its way better than my Moroccan one mashaAllah and just for 1900da well after a haggle!

Reunited Again

I am back alhamduilah back again again back, after much debating and not wanting to initially return alhamduillah i am glad i did , mainly to be a family and be amongst family and loved ones. I got back Friday evening a lil early than planned but again less than 24hrs and i wanted to return to sunny Algeria hummm. Weather here is chilly but the sun is out , we have been ajusting to the drop in temperature last few days. I went food shop yesterday subhan Allah inflation has hit hard and prices are certainly up in the UK all around. I went out this morning for a drive in the Essex countryside I certainly missed all these lovely shades of greenery, due to the balance of climate in the UK mashaAllah the land is able to put out shades of green and nature of warmer climes don't have. Just taking it slow organising my home and life for the next 3 months or so inshaAllah.

Off Line For A While

I will be offically going off line for the next 10days or so as i disconect from my Algerian dial up connection server LACOM alhamduilah. I am due to travel inshaAllah to the UK in about 7 days. so will catch up with you once there. Takecare all.

Crying For A Loved One Close To Your Heart

Then read this and thank Allah subhanAlla we think we got it bad , also there are others who's dh's are behind bars, in other lands to their own, not knowing their fate, Allah Al Must'aan.

This one is a woman so close to my own heart and situation but i can never compare but i just feel so INSPIRED by her story , her tears and her reward subhanAllah,

Umm Salamah! What an eventful life she had! Her real name was
Hind. She was the daughter of one of the notables in the Makhzum
clan nicknamed "Zad ar-Rakib" because he was well known for his
generosity partlcularly to travellers. Umm Salamah's husband was
Abdullah ibn Abdulasad and they both were among the first
persons to accept Islam. Only Abu Bakr and a few others, who
could be counted on the fingers of one hand, became Muslims
before them.

As soon as the news of their becoming Muslims spread, the
Quraysh reacted with frenzied anger. They began hounding and
persecuting Umm Salamah and her husband. But the couple did not
waver or despair and remained steadfast in their new faith.

The persecution became more and more intense. Life in Makkah
became unbearable for many of the new Muslims. The Prophet,
peace be upon him, then gave permission for them to emigrate to
Abyssinia. Umm Salamah and her husband were in the forefront of
these muhajirun, seekers of refuge in a strange land. For Umm
Salamah it meant abandoning her spacious home and giving up the
traditional ties of lineage and honour for something newhope in
the pleasure and reward of Allah.

Despite the protection Umm Salamah and her companions received
from the Abyssinian ruler, the desire to return to Makkah, to be
near the Prophet and the source of relevation and guidance
persisted.

News eventually reached the muhajErun that the number of Muslims
in Makkah had increased. Among them were Hamzah ibn
Abdulmuttalib and Umar ibn al-Khattab. Their faith had greatly
strengthened the community and the Quraysh they heard, had eased
the persecution somewhat. Thus a group of the muhajErun, urged
on by a deep longing in their hearts, decided to return to
Makkah.

The easing of the persecution was but brief as the returnees
soon found out. The dramatic increase in the number of Muslims
following the acceptance of Islam by Hamzah and Umar only
infuriated the Quraysh even more. They intensified their
persecution and torture to a pitch and intensity not known
before. So the Prophet gave permission to his companions to
emigrate to Madinah. Umm Salamah and her husband were among the
first to leave.

The hijrah of Umm Salamah and her husband though was not as easy
as they had imagined. In fact, it was a bitter and painful
experience and a particularly harrowing one for her.

Let us leave the story now for Umm Salamah herself to tell . .
.

When Abu Salamah (my husband) decided to leave for Madinah, he
prepared a camel for me, hoisted me on it and placed our son
Salamah on my lap. My husband then took the lead and went on
without stopping or waiting for anything. Before we were out of
Makkah however some men from my clan stopped us and said to my
husband:

"Though you are free to do what you like with yourself, you have
no power over your wife. She is our daughter. Do you expect us
to allow you to take her away from us?"

They then pounced on him and snatched me away from him. My
husband's clan, Banu Abdulasad, saw them taking both me and my
child. They became hot with rage.

"No! By Allah," they shouted, "we shall not abandon the boy. He
is our son and we have a first claim over him."

They took him by the hand and pulled him away from me. Suddenly
in the space of a few moments, I found myself alone and lonely.
My husband headed for Madinah by himself and his clan had
snatched my son away from me. My own clan, Banu Makhzum,
overpowered me and forced me to stay with them.

From the day when my husband and my son were separated from me,
I went out at
noon every day to that valley and sat at the spot where this
tragedy occurred. I would recall those terrible moments and
weep until night fell on me.

I continued like this for a year or so until one day a man from
the Banu Umayyah passed by and saw my condition. He went back to
my clan and said:

"Why don't you free this poor woman? You have caused her husband
and her son to be taken away from her."

He went on trying to soften their hearts and play on their
emotions. At last they said to me, "Go and join your husband if
you wish."

But how could I join my husband in Madinah and leave my son, a
piece of my own flesh and blood, in Makkah among the Banu
Abdulasad? How could I be free from anguish and my eyes be free
from tears were I to reach the place of hijrah not knowing
anything of my little son left behind in Makkah?

Some realised what I was going through and their hearts went out
to me. They petitioned the Banu Abdulasad on my behalf and moved
them to return my son.

I did not now even want to linger in Makkah till I found someone
to travel with me and I was afraid that something might happen
that would delay or prevent me from reaching my husband. So I
promptly got my camel ready, placed my son on my lap and left in
the direction of Madinah.

I had just about reached Tan'im (about three miles from Makkah)
when I met Uthman ibn Talhah. (He was a keeper of the Ka'bah in
preIslamic times and was not yet a Muslim.)

"Where are you going, Bint Zad ar-Rakib?" he asked.

"I am going to my husband in Madinah."

"And there isn't anyone with you?"

"No, by Allah. Except Allah and my little boy here."

"By Allah, I shall never abandon you until you reach Madinah,"
he vowed.

He then took the reins of my camel and led us on. I have, by
Allah, never met an Arab more generous and noble than he. When
we reached a resting place, he would make my camel kneel down,
wait until I dismounted, lead the camel to a tree and tether it.
He would then go to the shade of another tree. When we had
rested he would get the camel ready and lead us on.

This he did every day until we reached Madinah. When we got to a
village near Quba (about two miles from Madinah) belonging to
Banu Amr ibn Awf, he said, "Your husband is in this village.
Enter it with the blessings of God. "

He turned back and headed for Makkah.

Their roads finally met after the long separation. Umm Salamah
was overjoyed to see her husband and he was delighted to see his
wife and son.

Great and momentous events followed one after the other. There
was the battle of Badr in which Abu Salamah fought. The Muslims
returned victorious and strengthened. Then there was the battle
of Uhud in which the Muslims were sorely tested. Abu Salamah
came out of this wounded very badly. He appeared at first to
respond well to treatment, but his wounds never healed
completely and he remained bedridden.

Once while Umm Salamah was nursing him, he said to her:

"I heard the Messenger of God saying. Whenever a calamity
afflicts anyone he should say, "Surely from Allah we are and to
Him we shall certainly return." And he would pray, 'O Lord, give
me in return something good from it which only You, Exalted and
Mig hty, can give.'"

Abu Salamah remained sick in bed for several days. One morning
the Prophet came to see him. The visit was longer than usual.
While the Prophet was still at his bedside Abu Salamah passed
away. With his blessed hands, the Prophet closed the eyes of his
dead companion. He then raised these hands to the heavens and
prayed:

"O Lord, grant forgiveness to Abu Salamah. Elevate him among
those who are near to You. Take charge of his family at all
times. Forgive us and him, O Lord of the Worlds. Widen his grave
and make it light for him."

Umm Salamah remembered the prayer her husband had quoted on his
deathbed from the Prophet and began repeating it, "O Lord, with
you I leave this my plight for consideration . . ." But she
could not bring herself to continue . . . "O Lord give me
something good from it", because she kept asking herself, "Who
could be better than Abu Salamah?" But it did not take long
before she completed the supplication.

The Muslims were greatly saddened by the plight of Umm Salamah.
She became known as "Ayyin al-Arab" the one who had lost her
husband. She had no one in Madinah of her own except her small
children, like a hen without feathers.

Both the Muhajirun and Ansar felt they had a duty to Umm
Salamah. When she had completed the Iddah (three months and ten
days), Abu Bakr proposed marriage to her but she refused. Then
Umar asked to marry her but she also declined the proposal. The
Prophe t then approached her and she replied:

"O Messenger of Allah, I have three characteristics. I am a
woman who is extremely jealous and I am afraid that you will see
in me something that will anger you and cause Allah to punish
me. I am a woman who is already advanced in age and I am a woman
wh o has a young family."

The Prophet replied:

"Regarding the jealousy you mentioned, I pray to Allah the
Almighty to let it go away from you. Regarding the question of
age you have mentioned. I am afflicted with the same problem as
you. Regarding the dependent family you have mentioned, your
family is my family."

They were married and so it was that Allah answered the prayer
of Umm Salamah and gave her better than Abu Salamah. From that
day on Hind al Makhzumiyah was no longer the mother of Salamah
alone but became the mother of all believers, Umm al-Mu'mineen.

Alger la Blanche

Yesterday I went to up town Algers (Oxford St of Algeria i call it!), I made my way by bus and taxi and the weather was just lovely mashaAllah. The views amazing and i really enjoyed Algeria in all its glory yesterday mashaAllah dispite all my hardships and pain I feel I am really blessed to be given the chance to make hijrah for the sake of my Lord alone. Alhamduilah Algeria has benifited me , I used to say its the dh and the kids who are benifiting but not me but this is so wrong it is beniffitng me and changing me mashaAllah. For the better i hope, Algeria is very vibrant in so many ways and the total pits in others. Now I am faced with the option to return to the UK I don't want to subhanAllah. Allah test us in different ways and for different reasons alhamduillah. I just want to shout out alhamduilah for everything you have tested me with Allah otherwise how else would I be greatful!

Algeria really has been feeling like home these last few weeks, Algeria firstly is much better in the sun for sure, I have been getting out to the beach and ports, it made me realise as I had only cabin fever (four walls) to contend with for 3yrs due to certain circumstances but given the freedoms and ability life is what I imagned it to be these last weeks, before I came to Algeria to live I had a dream and I imagned life 'how it would be and how I wanted it to be' it took 3yrs but Allah showed me mashaAllah. I had a really nice last fews days in my dream life in Algeria and now I don't want to go back to the UK next week for the summer vacation subhanAllah can't win can I lol, all I know is I am grateful to Allah, for He hears my call when I call unto Him and he blesses us mashaAlllah.
Here are some cards i picked up yesterday
this my fav, as it really catches the mood of the Algeria i dreamed about subhanAllah, Rue D'Isly. I visisted these places yesterday.
I went for a Halal chesse burger at the QUICK which is located here.
The Port its amazing with all the ships and ferry's so vast and the sea a sheet of blue bliss.
The interior of the Mosque in the STATUE HADA area i am sure i spelt that wrong.
I went to the Port of 'La madrack' earlier in the week we had icecream , hagen daz eat your heart out! We went over to the docking area by some rocks and saw little tiny black crabs crawl up onto them, we saw horses along the sea front in thier full gallop, earlier the same day i went to 'sidi frej' we sat right by the sea front on deck chairs, it was very quiet and calm and i could hear the waves lapping and smell the sea air it was an amazing moment mashaAllah. My kids played with the waves, my DS played footie with someone on the beach, we had a flask of tea and cakes. A very relaxing eveing as we set off at 4pm and returned home before magrib mashaAllah.

Plate Of Art

My dd1 picked me up this as gifts from BAZETA, BEO. I thought it rather nice simple but effective and only for 50da

Driving Around

The morning started of with my son poking me to get out of bed, as i had made a mess of my tahjud and fajar salat, i think i were half asleep and misread the clock and ended up praying them both out of time slot subhanAllah. So I was alil worse for wear at 7am, in the end i crawled from the bed at 7.30am and we headed of to the school, once finished there myself and Prof K headed to the market to pick up a gift for the Aqiqah cermony we were invited to later that afternoon. After that we headed to the port and sea front of La Madrak, in Ain Benian as the car park was pretty empty i told prof K , move over i want to drive your left hand drive as i have never driven a left hand drive (in the UK we have right hand drives) , so for the first 2 gear changes my left hand was automacticilly headed towards the door and looking for the gear stick there after abit all was ok mashaAllah , alhamhuillah the pedals are the same. This was nice driving again after 2 1/2 years realising not all is forgotten and i am rusty on the reverse gear otherwise mashaAllah looks promising and it also made me determined to get a car inshaAllah a left hand drive soon Allah willing.

Lonely Hijrah (Evaluation Sofar)

I don’t think I ever got over the loneliness I encountered during the first 3 years as a muhajirah Allah Al Must’aan. Really this has been one of the downsides of my hijrah, the loneliness and lack of support. Mind you having said that year 3 has been the best in terms of seeing more people namely sisters ,making new friends too as I saw more this term than I did in the first two years . I also got out more this last year and felt more settled with the ability to shop and get food stuff. This last issue has to do with the mild winter and also a build up of new shopping facilities locally. Cooking has been more varied this year, is this due to becoming accustomed to the veg on offer and acquiring a taste for them? Or my oven being fixed? Offering me more variety of foods? This year seems to have zoomed by much faster than the other 2 subhanAllah but in my heart not fast enough. I am more settled than I ever was in Algeria and I have no intention to return to the UK to reclaim a life there and I ask Allah to aid my decision to say put. Having said that I ’ never say never ‘ rule one in my life, coz you never know when and where……if I was too return it would not be because I didn’t like it , it didn’t work for me , or I didn’t want to be here despite all my hardships. I know I made the right decision to come to Algeria in hindsight maybe would have most certainly preferred another country; I was more geared for the Middle East. Having lived here for 3 years now I don’t regret for a moment having come to Algeria. OK maybe not the place for you or me so it would seem but I have gained so much from this first emigration.
There is certain something that hijrah brings a blessing that I can’t explain because it’s spiritual. Just thinking had we gone else where just how hard it would have been without the local know how and support to help us establish a home ect. We have the know how here and its still very hard subhanAllah. Maybe I am getting old? 35 this year and I feel it, believe me, maybe I have reached a point in my life where being daring is beyond me now .no more young blood left lol. I’m just rambling now………………

sisters are doing it, right?

I took thi from a forum and felt it worthy to share here considering i am on the topic of families!


A young wife sat on a sofa on a hot humid day
drinking iced tea and visiting with her mother. As they talked about
life, about marriage, about the responsibilities of life and the
obligations of adulthood, the mother clinked the ice cubes in her glass
thoughtfully and turned a clear, sober glance upon her daughter. Don't
forget your Sisters" she advised, swirling the tea leaves to the bottom
of her glass. They'll be more important as you get older. No matter how
much you love your husband, no matter how much you love the children you
may have, you are still going to need Sisters. Remember to go places
with them now and then; do things with them. Remember that "Sisters"
means ALL the women...your girlfriends, your daughters, and all your
other women relatives too. You'll need other women. Women always do.

What a funny piece of advice the young woman thought. "Haven't I just
gotten married? Haven't I just joined the couple world? "I'm now a married
woman, for goodness sake! A grownup! Surely my husband and the family we
may start will be all I need to make my life worthwhile!" But she listened
to her mother. She kept in contact with her Sisters and made more women friends
each year. As the years tumbled by, one after another, she gradually came to
understand that her Mom really knew what she was talking about. As time
and nature work their changes and their mysteries upon woman, Sisters
are the mainstay of her life. After more than 50 years of living in this
world, here is what I've learned:
THIS SAYS IT ALL:
Time Passes. Life Happens. Distance Separates. Children Grow Up. Jobs
Come and Go. Love Waxes and Wanes. Men Don't Do What they're Supposed To Do. Hearts Break. Parents Die. Colleagues Forget Favors. Careers End.
BUT.... Sisters are there no matter how much time and how many miles
are between you. A girl friend is never farther away that needing her can
reach.

When you have to walk that lonesome valley and you have to walk it by
yourself, the women in your life will be on the valley's rim, cheering you on,
praying for you,pulling for you, intervening on your behalf, and waiting with open arms at the valley's end.

Sometimes, they will even break the rules and walk beside you...or
come in and carry you out.

Girlfriends, daughters, granddaughters, daughters-in-law, sisters,
sisters-in-law, mothers, grandmothers, aunts, nieces, cousins, and extended
family all bless our life.

The world wouldn't be the same without women and neither would I. When we began this adventure called womanhood, we had no idea of the incredible joys or sorrows that lay ahead. Nor did we know how much we would need each other.

Every day, we still need each other.

Family Ties

We all need family in one way or another…………the care, love and support of family members so vital to ones well being and existence. For someone who was raised in an extended family atmosphere in the West, who grew up knowing what the extended family meant. I spent most of my 6 weeks hols from my British school at various aunties’ homes, where in turn I learnt to cook, clean and baby-sit and all this from the age of 10yrs old. It also gave mum a break and we came back refreshed, that was the idea. As I got older and the work load and tasks became harder I began to see it more as a slave labour! You know what? Now I don’t knock it for a second as I learnt very important life skills that I apply today and this really was a very important aspect in my growing up! It is a common practice in the Asian culture and I see it here to in Algeria and it is something I like and value as a part of family life with the extended families.

Now soon after my conversion to Islam I lost all my family for 10yrs (i am talking about no contact at all, mum, sisters ,brothers, aunt’s, uncles the whole clan , inafact after 10yrs all I have contact with is my mum and sisters. The relationship is not so wonderful but alhamduillah its better than the lonely 10years of emptiness on that side of the very relationships that make you. This was and is a very painful period in my life , I feel sad for my kids as they don’t have cousins to hang out with , sleep overs, days out , again the very things that helped shape you during thoses tender years and early adulthood. The sleep overs were best, midnight feasting and shopping trips. One of the reasons for making hijrah to Algeria was to be with family so that my kids can have the cousins and aunts, uncles and family ties that I lost.

When we first arrived in Algeria for hijrah suddenly the family I knew on the holidays was no longer the same, maybe I was naïve , maybe I didn’t read between the lines, maybe it was mainly necsities on their part and I didn’t see the real deal? Anyhow whatever , I just want to remind myself we are all sinners and no one is perfect , we can strive to be better and do better , so in no way am I putting a family down that I care for despite and I loved and still love! A family that if I need them will come whatever the time of day or night, wherethier they do it because I am the wife of their brother or son Allah knows beast! I would prefer it if it was for the sake of Allah and because I am seen and taken as a daughter or sister by them inshaAllah. The last two years have been empty of family and this has had a tremendous effect on my mental wellbeing as well as my children but we got on with it , I mean at the end of the day I offer you family ties for the sake of Allah and because I love and care for you as a sister/daughter/aunt ect does but I can’t force you to return that very love back. I can’t force you to like me and love me back; I can only be at my best for you! Just recently I am going through some very hard hitting issues alhamduillah and I felt I was reaching the end of my ability to cope, almost giving up. I decided I can’t do this alone anymore and I need the support of the family and love, I am talking about genuine love! I presented myself upon them this weekend with the kids in tow. Alhamduilah they were very welcoming and very kind mash Allah just like the family of the holidays before I made hijrah. This meant a lot to me and my children and upon arriving at the head of the households home , many members of the extended family were there , having the exact sleep overs I talked about and supporting one another and learning and sharing task most of all caring and loving because they want to. This weekend was very positive and had a great effect on my children’s well being as well as my own, knowing I don’t need to carry this load alone alhamduillah. I am a great believer in moderation and the middle path, so I would not impose myself and my kids on them too often but enough to maintain a healthy relationship inshaAllah. We all came home feeling we need this , we are missing out, I have also come to realise life in Algeria functions with the family, one who is an orphan or an immigrant to Algeria like myself with no maternal ties here will suffer a great deal of loneliness esp. if the in-laws are not accessible for various reasons. As life in Algeria functions with the family , the extended family play a very important role in the functioning and living life in Algeria subhanAllah I didn’t realise just how much until lately. An example when the wife needs a break from the martial home and life she will go and stay with her maternal family and her mum and sisters, brother and father will support her in so many ways. This is repeated throughout the year many times. She will also if she does not already live with the in-laws spend time with them in a similar fashion. By going away form the marital home it gives her a break and a change of scene to come back refreshed inshaAllah. As I do notice there is not much going out here in Algeria for the women folk as the men do the shopping and most out door dealings, womenfolk stay at home , manage the homes and children, the exception would be for students and working women.
I noted 2 things that are very important for life in Algeria regular outings as a family on the weekends, example would be picnics, drives, walks, short holidays even but an annual one is defiantly a must. The second being family ties, good strong family ties or at least with sisters who really care and are not superficial and offer a fake and temporal love or sisterhood. That when they address you as sister they really understand its meaning and are not superficial about it. If these sisters are going to take the place of family ties then they need to consider the kind of relationship and what it entail they are offering or lack off and the effect this will have on the recipient.

Well what I have decided is we all need family one way or another , I have decided to make the family here more involved in our lives and be involved in theirs more to a limit naturally, we need each other , I have a very big void and my children also, they need to be accepted and loved by their extended families inshaAllah. Sometimes learning to forgive and forget is better than destroying and being resentful. This is what I intend to do inshaAllah but at the same time I don’t want anyone to think I have MUG written upon my forehead and walk over me and my emotions and take advantage of my nature and profit form me in whatever way they want and dump me , relationships work both ways efforts have to come from both ends.