Cookies Vs. Cakesters

VS   

Oreo Cookies vs. Oreo Cakesters. I am sure everyone has seen the commercials about the cookies vs. the cakesters. Should oreo cakesters be dunked in milk, or should that be left to the original cookie. As an proud American and long time advocate of America’s favorite cookie, I think should be left to the pros…the oreo cookie.

Tradition. Don’t we love tradition. And don’t we hate it when people try to change it. Just like the oreo dunking. This new generation trying to compete with the lovely, crunchy cookie. Sometimes it is hard to veer away from tradition. People don’t like change. They may say the do, but regarding important stuff, people like things staying the same.

Sometimes it is hard to follow tradition when you live in a different country that has different traditions. And its especially harder when your parents have the traditions of the old country and you are stuck between the tradition of the old and the new. But you know what, the cool thing is is that you can combine traditions. Get the best of both worlds.

For example, in the US, when a woman gets married, she wears two rings, the engagement ring, and the wedding band. Back home, in the old country (middle east), she only wears a wedding band.

There are a lot of traditions that should be kept and a lot that just need to be thrown out. But people keep following them because, well, because they are traditions. You can start your own traditions. That doesn’t mean forget about your old traditions. Keep them, but add on to it.

Change is sometimes good. Even if it means dunking an Oreo Cakester.

Friday Prayer

Friday is the day of prayer for Muslims, just like Sunday is for Christians, and Saturday is for Jews. Everyone leaves there work or school and goes to the nearby masjid to participate in it.

Muslims have to pray 5 times a day. These 5 times are spread out throughout the day in order to God and worship on the person’s mind. You can either pray the 5 on your own, or as a group. On Friday, the 2nd prayer of the day, Dhur, is replaced with Salat al Jum’a, or Friday Prayer. The Friday Prayer is a bit different than the other prayers. For about the first half hour, the Imam gives a khutba, or lecture. And then once he is done, prayer is announced and they start praying.

Friday Prayer usually comes during the middle of the day, around 1ish, while most of us are either in class  or at work. Some people find it hard to leave class or work. But it shouldn’t be. When I was in high school, my mom or dad would always take us out of school early so we could go to Friday Prayer. The really cool thing was that all of our teachers were very cooperative. Legally you are supposed to be allowed to leave for religious purposes, but that wasn’t even brought up. They were really nice and supportive of it.

Now that we are in college, the same thing is done, just without our parents. A lot of us plan our schedules are friday prayer, making sure not to take classes during that time. Some people get stuck with classes, but if you just talk to your teacher, you should be fine.  The same goes for work. Just let them know, be nice about it, and your good to go.

Personally, I think the US should just declare Friday as part of the weekend as well, that way everyone is happy and gets an extra day off.

Canned Humus

Humus out of can. Some say it is nasty, I say it is a great starting point. I, the master of humus making, enjoy making humus out of the can. I agree it tastes gross straight out, but all it needs is a bit of fixing up, and viola, perfect. Or you can make it from scratch, boiling chick peas and all.

Personally, I like doing it straight out of the can, I think it tastes better. Going to my dad, he likes to make it from scratch, the old fashioned way. Then again, I was raised here, he was raised in the old country where humus didn’t come out of a can. Anyways in order to make humus out of a can taste good, you must fix it up with some additions.

According to the can, all you need to do is add lemon juice, oil and garlic. I disagree. Here is what you should do.

• Get a big enough bowl to mix your humus in. (Don’t put the humus in yet)
• Add about a 2 table spoons of tahini and 2 table spoons of lemon juice.
• Put a teaspoon of cumin powder and about a table spoon of olive oil
• Mix all together
• Now add the humus and mix it
• taste it to make sure it is good. you might have to add a bit more lemon juice

Bon Appetite. Amazing humus out of a can.

Some people (like my dad) like to make it from scratch. Basically what you do is boil chick peas and then mash them. After its made into a paste looking substance, you add the tahini, cumin, lemon juice, oil and some salt. Both ways are pretty tasty, just depends on what you are used to.

And if u perfect this humus, check out the falafel blog and use it in your falafel sandwich.

ENJOY!

Dress

One of the frequent dilemmas Muslim women run into is finding appropriate clothes. Especially in the summer. A lot of us just wait till we go over seas to go shopping for the year’s clothes. Thankfully, it is a bit easier now since more boutiques are opening and more Islamic dress sites are coming up.

In Islam, women have a certain dress code they must adhere to. Don’t worry, men also have rules. But women have stricter rules. And that isn’t because Islam oppresses women, as many try to say, it is to protect her and keep her modest. Some of the basic rules that women must follow are, no tight clothes, the length must be to the ankles and wrists. She must cover her hair as well. That doesn’t mean they should just dress up in baggy pants and a baggy shirt. No. There are many ways to look very nice while still being modest and adhering to the rules.

As for guys, they have rules as well. They don’t have to cover their hair, but they still have to be dressed modestly. No tight fitting clothes and their shorts must be knee length or longer. Guys are not allowed to wear silk or gold. Only women are allowed to wear gold and silk because these items are regarded as women items.

Fashion tends to be a problem sometimes. Some years, it is hard to dress Islamically and still follow the fashion, and other years it can easily be done. So a couple of tidbits to keep in mind.

• You don’t have to follow the fashion. As long as you dress nice, and follow the rules your good to go.
• In the winter, make sure to buy plenty of long-sleeve shirts to last you till the next winter.
• When you go over seas, take an extra bag with you to stuff all the new clothes you buy.
• If you don’t go overseas, make friends with someone who does.
• Stay true to your beliefs. Follow the rules. And have fun shopping!

Guilt by Association

The easiest thing for people to do is point fingers. Pass the blame onto someone. Some do it because they don’t want to waste their time figuring out the truth and others don’t care and others just want to someone to get caught, or be held responsible. Sometimes people don’t just point fingers, but they assume. Stereotypes. Oh look, a blonde, she’s dumb. Or hey, it’s a Mexican, I bet he is illegal. Better watch that Muslim, he might blow something up.

And then there is guilt by association. Just because someone bad is associated with a particular group, doesn’t mean that group is bad. Example, Islam. Many people believe that Islam is a religion that promotes violence and hatred, when in fact it doesn’t. Just because a so-called Muslim carried out an attack does not mean the religion promotes violence.

A lot of people tend to relate a person’s actions to who they are, or what they are associated with. As I was growing up, my mom would always tell me and my brothers to watch our behavior, because people aren’t going to say, “Oh hey, look at so-so, he is such a bad person”, instead they are going to say “oh, look at that muslim fellow, such a terrible kid”.

Growing up, I didn’t really believe that. I didn’t think people would associate me to something else. I mean, I’m just like everyone else. No difference. And how will the even know I am Muslim? Well, after I began to cover, the last reason was out the window.  But looking at the world today, and how everyone associates things with certain groups of people, I have come to realize that my mom was right. People will associate your actions to who you are/represent.

As this one guy tweeted, “how are we supposed to grow as a community with all this bigotry and hate?” . And I agree. How are supposed to be united if all we do is criticize and spread bad ideas against certain groups of people because someone who associated themselves with that group did something bad.

Don’t be quick to judge someone because of their affiliations. There are bad people in every group, every religion, every country, but that doesn’t mean that that group, or religion, or country is bad.

But because people will always judge and associate, we should all just become really good people and represent our own affiliations in good light. And if we’re lucky, maybe world peace will come as a result.

Honor Thy Parents

As we grow older, we start to think differently than our parents. Sometimes we don’t see eye to eye. Sometimes it just gets so frustrating when they don’t understand what you are trying to say, although thats probably what you think. Sometimes you just think they are against you. My last post was about listening to your parents. Taking their advice. Consulting them. This one is about honoring and obeying them.

Kids always get mad at their parents, or annoyed. Its normal. But regardless of how upset you are, you must always respect them. Always obey them. Don’t assume the worst. Don’t think that they are against you, no. You will always be a kid to your parent, even when your 60 and they’re 80. And even then, you should still respect and obey them.

It is said that once a man asked Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) what action Allah (SWT) loves the best? The Prophet (PBUH) then replied prayer. Then what? The man asked. Then kindness to your parents. (Abu ‘Amr ash-Shaybani)

That is the importance of parents. Even in other religions besides Islam, you must honor your parents. “Honor Thy Mother and Father” is part of the 10 Commandments. And if your not religious, or don’t follow a religion, you should still respect your parents. It is one of those unsaid rules of life. Your parents are the ones who raised you, cared for you, and loved you unconditionally. The least we can do is respect them. Respect them unconditionally.

A story that I hear often from my mother illustrates the importance of parents, and the importance of pleasing your parents.

The was once a man, during the time of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), couldn’t say the shahada on his deathbed. In Islam, Muslims must say the shahada before they die. Continuing with the story, this man could not say the shahada. So his friend went and called the Prophet (PBUH) over. The Prophet (PBUH) asked the man to say the shahada. He still couldn’t. So the Prophet (PBUH) asked the people to get his mother. So when his mother arrived, the Prophet (PBUH) asked her if she was upset with her son. And she said yes. The Prophet (PBUH) asked her if she wanted her son to enter paradise. And she said yes. And so the Prophet (PBUH) told her that she must forgive him.

His mother’s anger and sadness could have cost him big time. But because she loves him, and because all parents love their children unconditionally, they are willing to forgive. So regardless of religion, ethnicity, background, respect your parents.

For more detail and reference to Islamic Text check out “Parents” by Imam Bukhari

Consulting the Wise

“He who consults with the wise, seeks for the lights of intelligence to be enlightened with”, (and will recognize right from wrong).
— Imam Amir ul Mu’mineen Ali [a], Text: Ghurar-ul-Hikam, p. 336

One common thing among the youth, and people in general, is that they think they know everything.

“Dad, you don’t get it. These are different times from when you were a kid.”

How many times have we heard that? Or how about:

“It is different in this country.”

Plenty of times. A lot of the times we undermine what our parents tell us. We think that we know what is best for us. Sometimes we think this because either we have forgotten that our parents were kids once before or because we live, and grew up in a different place and different time.

Whenever my brothers and I would try to convince ourselves and our parents that we were right, my mother would always say “I wasn’t born yesterday”, or “I wasn’t born an adult”. Usually it was said in Arabic, more serious. But that is besides the point. As we grow up, we go through many experiences, experiences that our parents probably went through, regardless of the time and place. Sure there are somethings that are different, but the basics are the same.

Think about it. Who taught us right from wrong? Who taught us what to do in certain situations? Who taught us morals and how to behave properly? So why when we turn 15 or 16 we start thinking we know everything? Why is it so hard to follow our parents’ rules when we become young adults?

Because that is when we begin to develop our own thoughts. We begin to think for ourselves. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t consult our parents, or someone older. I agree that it is time to experience the world on our own, and stop hiding in the shadows of our parents, stop depending on them. But we should still go back to them. Ask them for their advice. Sometimes we only learn through our own mistakes, and other times, we should learn from those of our parents.

And hopefully as you get older, and more mature, you’ll start hearing:

“Do what you think is best.”

And your parents don’t say that because they are sick and tired of arguing with you, they say that because they know the person you are. And whether you like it or not, deep down inside are the values they stuffed in you as you were growing up.

So go back. Ask your parents. Listen. Learn. You’ll be surprised. Things don’t change that much from their generation to ours or from the old country to the new.