{"id":2450,"date":"2021-04-12T02:56:52","date_gmt":"2021-04-12T02:56:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/?p=2450"},"modified":"2021-04-13T18:17:21","modified_gmt":"2021-04-13T18:17:21","slug":"how-i-ended-up-here","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/how-i-ended-up-here\/","title":{"rendered":"How I Started Volunteering at Masjidu Ahlus Sunnah"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">A Featured Story <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">by Sister Alison<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"425\" height=\"425\" src=\"https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2457\" srcset=\"https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image.png 425w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-24x24.png 24w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-36x36.png 36w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-48x48.png 48w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-100x100.png 100w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 425px) 100vw, 425px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-preformatted\">       I was always told stories as a part of my cultural indoctrination growing up in Jamaica\nbecause my family had strong griot traditions. My grandmother would sit me down in the living\nroom, especially on nights with bad weather, and tell me folktales, parables, and stories with a\nmoral or life lesson. These stories informed, to an extent, the way that I interacted with the world,\nand were a large part of my experience in Jamaica. I internalized from an early age that in telling\nstories you can reach people and can teach people how to learn from the experiences and tales of\nothers. And so ironically enough, as I sit here during the first storm of 2021, just as my\ngrandmother sat on bad weather days in Jamaica years ago, I would like to tell you all a story, my\nstory. My story is about finding belief, finding hope, and finding faith.\n\n<\/pre>\n\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-preformatted\">      One stormy evening, in late October of 2012, I made a decision that would change my life\nforever. While Hurricane Sandy ripped her way through the Tri-State Area, causing massive\nflooding and power outages, I sat in my living room lit entirely by candles. As I sat in my living\nroom, with a phone unable to connect to the internet, and void of the distractions from life birthed\nfrom social media, I made the decision to make good on a promise I made to myself years earlier.\nI began to read the Qur\u2019an. Although I was raised as an Anglican, a denomination of Christianity\npredominately found in Jamaica and in the United Kingdom, I was moved beyond words by what\nI read in the Qur\u2019an. In the Qur\u2019an I found perfection, I found beauty, I found something that I\nhad been looking for my entire life. Prior to reading the Qur\u2019an, I did not know that my spirit had\nbeen searching for anything. However, in reading Surah Al-Fatiha, and a precursory introduction\nproviding readers with insight into the completeness of Allah (S.W.T), I knew in an instant that I\nfound so something special that it spoke to my being and resonated with my soul.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-1.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2458\" srcset=\"https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-1.png 640w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-1-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-1-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-1-24x24.png 24w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-1-36x36.png 36w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-1-48x48.png 48w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-1-600x600.png 600w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-1-100x100.png 100w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-preformatted\">     Fast-forward eight years to October 2020. I made a decision during this time that acutely\nchanged the trajectory of my life. After months of adjusting to social distancing, new shopping\ndynamics, and a general slowing down of life due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I sent an email to\nthe Islamic Center of America, the Masjidu Ahlus Sunnah in East Orange, NJ. I used to drive past\nthe masjid at least twice a day Monday through Friday for ten years, and for eight of those years I\nalways thought to myself that one day I would go inside for Salah. Although I had found belief\non that stormy evening in October 2012 when I first read the Qur\u2019an, for eight years after that, I\nallowed a host of other life circumstances, and frankly speaking fear, to interfere with becoming a\npart of the Muslim community for which my spirit yearned. However, something changed in me\nin 2020.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-preformatted\">      2020 was a monumental year. The COVID-19 pandemic, and the resulting government\nregulations and CDC recommendations, forced me to take several steps back from my social\nactivities and close relationships. I learned that I had underlying health conditions that required\nme to re-evaluate my eating habits and the energy that I exert during my daily activities. I also left\nmy job of fourteen years, the only job that I have had since graduating from college. Life was\noverwhelming, and at one point, I felt like I lost so much in 2020 that I did not know how to pick\nmyself up, or how ask for help.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"512\" height=\"616\" src=\"https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2460\" srcset=\"https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image.jpeg 512w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-249x300.jpeg 249w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-20x24.jpeg 20w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-30x36.jpeg 30w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-40x48.jpeg 40w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-preformatted\">     When I was at my lowest, I experienced a moment of serendipity. While cleaning my book\nshelf one afternoon I found an old book that I received years ago, but had not gotten around to\nread. The book that I found is about Islam, the characteristics of Allah (S.W.T.), and about what\nit means to be a Muslim. I devoured the information in this book, and it struck a chord in my heart\nas it reminded me of what I found eight years ago when I first read the Qur\u2019an. In that moment, I\nrealized that while in 2012 I found my belief, I found hope and faith in 2020.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-preformatted\">      Belief without hope and faith ultimately leaves a person hollow. I learned that that\nhollowness will be filled by whatever the mind contrives for better or worse, but most often for\nworse. Taking in the influences from news, and social media about the state of affairs due to the\nworsening pandemic, wars overseas, unemployment rates, mindless entertainment, and programs\nlacking substance can fill a person with a miasmic energy that contorts how a person views the\nworld, others, and themselves. It took me eight long years to learn this lesson. In the course of\nthese eight years, while I had belief, I lacked hope and faith, and so I was living a life dictated by\nthe influences of others. My purpose for being, the things that I valued, and the things that I\nthought that I wanted for myself were impacted by external stimuli. I could not continue living\nmy life under this influence, and so finding that book on my bookshelf, and reading that book\nshook me to my core. Immediately after reading the first few chapters of this book, I prayed, and\nI prayed, and I prayed. After prayer I felt at peace, a feeling I had not had in quite some time. This\nfeeling of peace opened me up to wanting to become more invested in Islam.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-preformatted\">     Although I thought that 2020 brought me low, the truth is that it was in 2020 that Allah\n(S.W.T.) saved my life. I was reminded by that book that I found on my bookshelf that, as a\nMuslim I submit myself entirely to Allah (S.W.T.). I seek refuge in Allah (S.W.T.), and to Allah\n(S.W.T) alone do I turn for help. I pray to Allah (S.W.T.) for guidance, and to Allah (S.W.T.)\nalone do I ask for forgiveness. The Qur\u2019an is the answer and the cure to my problems, and the\nSunnah is The Way, lit by the proverbial torch of knowledge. In learning about Ar-Rahman ArRaheem, two of the many names of Allah (S.W.T.), I felt hope in knowing that the entirely merciful, entirely compassionate nature of Allah (S.W.T.) enables me to strive to always do better, rather than giving up. My faith was sparked and inspired when I read an article explaining the significance of the Takbir, Allahu Akbar. Allah (S.W.T.) is greater. I learned to have faith because regardless of what I may be going through, and no matter how much of a challenge things may seem to be to me, Allah (S.W.T.) is greater.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"660\" height=\"660\" src=\"https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-2.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2461\" srcset=\"https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-2.png 660w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-2-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-2-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-2-24x24.png 24w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-2-36x36.png 36w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-2-48x48.png 48w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-2-600x600.png 600w, https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/image-2-100x100.png 100w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-preformatted\">     That brings me back to the Islamic Center of America, the Masjidu Ahlus Sunnah. Through\nprayer, and soul-searching, I changed my outlook on 2020, from a deficit perspective, where I\nthought that I lost a lot, to one that took into account all of the time I now had to dedicate to matters\nthat I, at my core, value and hold dear, namely Islam. I am a Muslim, and it is important for me\nto be a part of a community of Muslims. And so, in wanting to be a part of a community of\nMuslims, I offered my services to the Islamic Center of America, the Masjidu Ahlus Sunnah. I\ndecided to send an email to the masjid to inquire about how I could give to the community in 2020.\nEven though I had never been inside of the masjid, I thought that giving of what I had to give was\na good starting point. And while I cannot make up for time lost, my intentions are to become\ninvolved in the community I used to watch from the parkway for eight years, and to be a more\npurposeful Muslim moving forward. That is how I ended here, writing about my story. I do not\nknow how the masjid will benefit from what I offer, but I offer what I can give all the same,\nbecause I am motivated by Islam itself.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-preformatted\">     I pray that whoever reads my brief story takes away from it the understanding that people\nare brought to Islam in different ways and for different reasons. It took me one hurricane, one\npandemic, losing friendships, a health reality check, walking away from the only job that I have\never known, and finding a book on my bookshelf which had been ignored for years, for me to find\nmy way, and here I am. One thing that stands out to me about my experience is that life became\neasier once I eliminated a lot of things that I thought I needed, but were not really necessary to\nliving life. I learned that in simplicity there is truth. Brothers, and sisters, Islam is simple. Islam\nhas taught me that I need to lead a purposeful life wherein I walk with faith, and be guided by\nprayer and the Qur\u2019an. Simple. I no longer allow external sources to dictate my purpose, my\nmood, my values, and my actions. Simple. Instead, Islam is my nucleus, and it is from Islam that\nI draw my inspiration, Insha\u2019Allah. I am deliberate in the things that I do, and the things that I do,\nI do for the love and pleasure of Allah (S.W.T.). Simple.<\/pre>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A Featured Story by Sister Alison I was always told stories as a part of my cultural indoctrination growing up in Jamaica because my family had strong griot traditions. My&hellip; <a class=\"continue\" href=\"https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/how-i-ended-up-here\/\">Continue Reading<span> How I Started Volunteering at Masjidu Ahlus Sunnah<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":2458,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2450","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>How I Started Volunteering at Masjidu Ahlus Sunnah - Masjidu Ahlus Sunnah<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/thesunnah.org\/masjid\/how-i-ended-up-here\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How I Started Volunteering at Masjidu Ahlus Sunnah - Masjidu Ahlus Sunnah\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A Featured Story by Sister Alison I was always told stories as a part of my cultural indoctrination growing up in Jamaica because my family had strong griot traditions. 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