So I definetly have not been on this thing in ages. I just wanted to say...

RAMADAN

MUBARAK!!!! (In a few days)

Take all that you can out of this month because time is so precious. Learn all that you can, focus, and hopefully you come through the month feeling refreshed and prepared to take on all that comes the rest of the year. The future is so uncertain, you never know what challenges await you and who will stick with you through those times. Hopefully we don't forget all the things and people we should be grateful for and cherish them like no other. Maybe we can heal some wounds while we're at it. Anyway good luck with the fasting and have a wonderful and fulfilling Ramadan. May Allah bless all you with strength and good tidings this month.

                             - Rashmee

THANK YOU.

Thank you for always being there for me when I know it tore you up sometimes. Thank you for all those times you tried to warn me about things, to show me how things really were instead of letting me get blinded by my own naivety and ignorance. You never gave up in trying to protect me, even when I pushed that protection away and told myself I knew what was right. You were this one stable thing in my life, my rock. I came running to you with all my good news and my worries- family, getting this internship, classes, friends, my future… Thank you for feeding me! You always knew when my grumpiness hit that it was time for khana =) Thank you for motivating me and forcing confidence down my throat when all I wanted to do was stress about how mediocre I felt. Thank you for inspiring me with the passion you had for your own work. Even though I never understood it, it just always made me so happy to hear you be all giddy about the projects you were working on and the things you learned in class. Every time you talked about that stuff I would hope that one day I found a career that I was just as passionate about. Thank you for setting out my pencils/eraser/highlighters so I was good and ready to do my hard-core studying before dinnertime.  Thank you for grabbing 2 fortune cookies before I had to mention it. Thank you for the many thoughtful gifts, they put such a huge smile on my face every time I got one. Thank you for being so wonderful to my mom and siblings, they care about you a lot and haven’t forgotten your time and kindness. Thank you for confiding in me. You opened up so much of yourself to me, I feel truly honored to be given that privilege. Thank you for believing in me and being proud of my accomplishments. While I tried to downplay that stuff, you would boast like no other. You felt my pride, confidence, anger, betrayal, and excitement for me when I was too hesitant to feel them myself.

Thank you for being such a BrIlLiAnT light in my little life.

Men are weak. I've always known that women carry a great burden but I guess in the past 2 years, through my own experiences and that of my family, I've realized just how weak men can be and how much women can withstand. We all make mistakes but the true test of your character and who you REALLY are is how you choose to carry yourself when situations get tough. You do what you have to for your children, your family, the ones you love, because you know that ultimately the strife you are not revealing is crucial to maintaining someone else's happiness and feeling of security. God does not put you through things you cannot handle, but we all have the ability to make choices, to take responsibility for our actions and accept the consequences thereafter.

No one can make you feel inferior unless you let them. The unfortunate fact is that most of the time we give people that power. We choose to stay in unhealthy situations because we are too afraid to make a decision. Hopefully we can all learn to live our life with purpose and make concious decisions, not just take the easy way out.