Reflections of a year gone by

So it’s that time of the year when we look back and wonder where on earth the time went to. Seriously, I remember it being May just the other day (unintended rhyme:)) and now we’re a few days away from 2011. We are indeed living in the days when time flies. In any case I have to say that Alhamdullillah this has been a very good year for me. Surely it has also been a very busy year, but I suppose that anything you want to do takes work. While I’m thankful that the busyness has momentarily stopped and I can take a bit of a rest, I’m also sad for the days gone by. I know that I can never get the days that have passed back and I wonder if I have made the best of that time that I have being given.

I don’t believe in making “New Year’s Resolutions”. It doesn’t really make that much sense to me. I believe that we should be changing, growing and trying to do more valuable things with our time constantly, on an everyday basis. So yes, I would like to make more effort to better myself (on all levels), but this is something that I want to be doing continuously, not just when the new year begins and then as time goes by I forget all my resolutions and resort back to my old ways.

A new year beckons and I have to say that I am quite excited, (although not in the I have butterflies in my stomach and can’t sleep sort of way). I am eagerly anticipating what lies ahead for me in this coming year. With Allah’s will I pray that everything will be good and I am hopeful that whatever happens in my life in the next year will change me for the better. With each passing year we should look at ourselves and evaluate whether we have changed, learnt more, strengthened relationships, helped others, improved ourselves in different ways...but more importantly, we should look at whether we have strengthened our bond with our Creator and at the efforts we have made to reach closeness to Allah Almighty.

For me 2010 has been a year of learning, a year of growing, of eye openers, of building new relationships with new Muslim sisters, and strengthening old friendships. It has been a year of joy and some sadness; a year of stress, craziness, tight deadlines, sleepless nights, new experiences, and eventually peace and contentment. I am not that exact same person I was last year this time and I know that next year this time, I will not be the exact same person that I am now. I only pray that Almighty Allah never leaves me and continues to guide me, because without Allah (SWT) in my life I cannot achieve anything and my life would be absolutely futile.

Shukr Alhamdullillah for the days gone past, and In Shaa Allah the days to come will be even better.

May the Almighty Allah forgive us all, guide and protect us and help us to accept what He has willed for us so that our days on this Earth can be well spent. May Allah bring us closer to him and never leave us alone!

To everyone out there, I wish you all the best for the days to come.