Seed of Faith

Of late, I’ve been receiving a lot of lessons from the Quran which are related to plants. MasyaAllah and I love it! Because we’ve been studying plants for quite a while and all these lessons from the Quran remind me that I need to connect everything that I teach my children to the Quran, to Rasulullah ‎ﷺ, to the Deen, and ultimately to Allah ﷻ. 

It started with a tafseer class with Ustazah Farhana which is currently on Surah Abasa. We covered these ayats:

Then let mankind look at his food. How We poured down water in torrents. Then We broke open the earth, splitting [it with sprouts]. And caused to grow within it grain. And grapes and herbs. And olives and [date] palm trees. And gardens of dense shrubbery. And fruits and fodder. [As] enjoyment for you and your grazing livestock. [80: 24-32]

As I sat there listening to Ustazah, my mind wandered to the time-lapse videos we had watched earlier in the week of seeds sprouting and breaking through the earth, plants growing taller with roots spreading deeper and further into the soil, and flowers blooming beautifully and dying gracefully. I had wanted to show them to the kids out of the blue. But I realised it wasn’t random, it was inspired, so that as I listen to these lessons, I can have visual images in my head that I could connect to. And I hope it would be the same for my kids inshaa Allah when I tell the lessons to them.

And what are these ayats from Surah Abasa actually referring to? The Quran is full of parables and this is one of them. The scholars said that the water is the blessings and goodness sent down from Allah to nourish the seeds of faith (iman) in our hearts. And as our faith sprouts and flourishes, it begins to nourish and sustain our souls. And as it blooms further, it becomes a cure for the diseases in our hearts. And as it grows more rooted and dense, its shade starts to benefit those around him. And even after the passing of a righteous person, his iman could benefit those generations after. And what we are enjoying now could very well be the fruits of labour of our past generations. Allahu’alam. 

SubhanAllah. I thought that was so beautiful. And I also thought of this time-lapse video of a dying plant that  was resurrected by water. It reminds me of a dying heart that is resurrected by the light of the Quran or the light of Rasulullah ‎ﷺ.

I remember when the pictures below were taken - more than a month ago. I was feeling a little sad because the mothers in the Science co-op had decided to stop our classes due to the outbreak. We didn’t want to risk the mothers and children who had to take long rides in public transport for the classes. 

As I walking and lamenting to myself at East Coast, I suddenly saw these beautiful flowers which I had not noticed before, although we are always at East Coast. And I remember thinking to myself then “Allah will not take something from me without replacing it with something better.” Because I realised then that Science is not just in classrooms and co-ops, but it’s everywhere around us and Allah ﷻ has provided all of nature as our classroom. Allah is indeed Al Kareem!

Ixora, periwinkle and hibiscus spotted at East Coast

I finally come to realise why we’ve been dwelling so long on the topic. It is because there are lessons still waiting for me. And the reminders from the Quran continue to come from teachers like Shaykh Mohamed Aslam and Habib Ali Zainal Abidin. May the seed of faith continue to flourish and take roots in our hearts so that we may nourish and shelter our children under our care, especially during these tumultuous times. Aameen.

Adventure Playground @ Jacob Ballas

I had wanted to go to Botanic Gardens but we ended up at Jacob Ballas Children’s Garden instead. We love the new additions to the garden but this tree house is, as they say, an oldie but a goodie. We had the tree house all to ourselves. Alhamdulillah. With an overcast sky and the sounds of chirping birds and gushing water in the background, it felt kinda surreal, like we were in our own world. MasyaAllah.

When Ustazah Umm Muhammad was in town recently, she reminded us the importance of forest bathing and grounding for children. She couldn’t have been more right. It’s important for adults too. It’s what our teachers prescribe for healthy children inshaa Allah. I went home with so much joy and lightness in my well-being. Alhamdulillah. Allah ﷻ knew that I needed that quiet contemplation in nature.

We then went to the pond at Jacob Ballas and had the blessed opportunity of meeting a white-breasted water hen and a pair of terrapins. After observing them for quite a while, they came close to us as we kept really still and quiet. Thank you for coming up to meet us! Alhamdulillah!

After stopping at the tree house, nature playgarden, pond and waterfall, we stopped at a map to figure out where to go next (and to impart some map-reading skills to the girls). Big A said that she wanted to go to the flying fox which was at the other end of the garden. I supposed this was the new extension to the garden and we had not been there before.

We walked along a bridge from Jacob Ballas that brought us over the carpark at the entrance. Then we walked further and found an adventure playground tucked amidst the trees and it was totally empty! Little A had rushed ahead to follow her sister and so I hitched up my abaya (eternally grateful for pants) and followed along. At one point while crossing the swaying bridge, Little A said to me, “Mummy, you are too big for the bridge.” Thanks, Little A.

They tried everything there and found most delight in the flying fox. They squealed happily each time they hit the spring at the end of the line which would throw them high up into the air before they go zipping back down the line. MasyaAllah such pure joy. We will be back inshaa Allah!

Jumu'ah Rangers - As Samee'

A week after our previous session of Jumu'ah Rangers, we had another one at Botanic Gardens. That week, the children learnt the hijaiyah letter س with a lacing activity, stamping, and tape-resist painting.

Lacing activity

Stamping

Happy to be on the purple mat during circle time

Painting with friends

Glamming it up with glitter

Removing the tape

And the letter س is revealed

After some songs, off they went to Drama Land, which later proved to be the most remembered piece of drama for the little girl. At Drama Land, they met Khadijah the Cat who was hungry, so the children helped by catching some fish (سمك) for her.

Off to Drama Land!

Look at how worried they were for Khadijah the Cat!

Catching some fish for Khadijah

Putting together the letters to form سمك

Giving the fish to hungry Khadijah

When the children were walking back to Khadijah the Cat to give her some fish, Khadijah was seen making du'a. When asked what she was doing, she said that she was making du'a to Allah as He is As-Samee' (The All-Hearing).

Then the children listened to the story Swimmy by Leo Lionni which was accompanied by beautiful hand-drawn storyboards. This was followed with some stamping with fish-shaped sponges on a big fish.

Stamping away with سمك

After Jumu'ah Rangers had ended, the children ran to the grassy area nearby to pick up twigs, play with dried leaves, swing on low branches, and run around under the shade of trees. I stood nearby and watched as the little girl, who is turning 3, laughed and chatted with other children of her age or older. They created their own adventures, exchanged stories, and laughed themselves silly. 

Exploring the low trees nearby

Playing with fallen leaves and twigs

Yes, it was a blistering hot day, but moments like these were too precious to let the heat spoil my day. I was so grateful that I had a chance to witness the little girl interacting with her friends and with nature. They even chanced upon a swarm of fire ants and I asked them not to go near the ants as they might get bitten by them. Then I pretended to be a fire ant, with fingers on my head as feelers, and chased after the children, which sent them screaming and scampering away. What a delight!

At home, we tried the tape-resist art again, this time for the hijaiyah letter ش. I also let the little girl watch another episode of Misri Bunch to enforce the lesson learnt that Allah is As-Samee'. 

Jumu'ah Rangers - Al Baseer

When I got to know that two of my mummy friends were going to organise weekly playdates on Asmaul Husna (Names of Allah) at Botanic Gardens, I knew the little girl had to be a part of it. With His Will, she got a place in the weekly Friday playdates which ran from May till late June.

For the first playdate, the children were introduced to the hijaiyah letter ب with two activities. One was a lacing activity and the other was decorating the letter with glitter glue and paint.

Lacing the letter ب

Getting in on the action

Decorating the letter ب

Then during circle time, the Jumu'ah Rangers were each given a personalised badge with his/her face on it, to hang around their necks. Then out came a magic bag with magnifying glasses and cameras inside them. The children then got to make their own binoculars for them to bring on their adventure.

What's in the magic bag?

Ready to make her binoculars

Pasting stickers after taping up the rolls

Choosing stickers is always fun

And after some songs were sung, off they went to Drama Land to help Ranger Ba (ب) look for the missing dot. During the search, the children were told that Allah is Al Baseer (The All-Seeing) and He can see everything at all times. 

Listening attentively to Ranger ب

Off to Drama Land to look for the missing dot

After they were back from Drama Land, it was time for stories! Oh how I love stories. The first was the story of ب ت ث. The story was accompanied by lovely hand-drawn story boards and I'm so glad that I took a video of the story being told. 

Next was the story of Ilyas and Duck Search for Allah. That's a story that all the children were familiar with and masyaAllah it was accompanied by the prettiest hand-made backdrops. After that, the children got to tie up twine for their very own goggles!

Beautiful backdrop for Ilyas and Duck Search for Allah

Posing with their goggles

We got to bring home a print-out of Al Baseer and so the next day, the little girl used an ice cream stick to smear blue glitter glue all over it. And we also made our own craft activity of ب using glittery paint, twine and googly eyes. I also enforced the lesson learnt on Al Baseer by letting the little girl watch an episode of Misri Bunch on YouTube.

Our take-home activity

Our follow-up activity

Jumu'ah Rangers may have ended last Friday but the little girl and I will have fond memories of our playdates at the park. Both of us have benefitted greatly from the sessions and I'm glad I had made numerous video recording of songs and stories. May Allah reward the mothers immensely for all their efforts in putting together the programme for us and may their plans for the future be realised.