Inas (A Novel)

Dr. Eyad Quneibi

This novel is for those seeking benefit with enjoyment... It is realistic, containing profound lessons, rich experiences, and numerous observations. The brothers to whom I showed it agreed that the suspense increases as the story progresses, to the point where it "hooks" you at the end, making it difficult to put down before finishing it... It is not limited to a specific age group; rather, we believe it is suitable for readers aged twelve or thirteen and above...

I intended for it to be a novel that the reader can read alone or that a father or mother can read with their children in daily doses, so that the family gathers around something beneficial and entertaining. They can then discuss its situations and lessons, and the parent can simplify the concepts for younger children...

I divided it into 26 chapters, each of which takes approximately 15 minutes to read.

Note: The names mentioned in the novel are for illustrative purposes only and do not refer to specific individuals if there is any similarity in names. Nor is it intended to criticize any particular trade. Every behavior and practice described is something in which many people engage.

We welcome the readers' comments at: [email protected]

Dr. Eyad Quneibi

Inas (1)

• "Sadiq, I'm on my way to pick you up and welcome your brother Ashraf... Today brings us two joys: you've passed your exams, and Ashraf's ordeal that lasted three years has finally ended..."

• "Aaaah! Three years... so many events and ups and downs... more than all the years of my life! I see gray hairs on my head now, yet I'm only months old!

How will I welcome Ashraf? I must be very careful not to repel him!

I won't blame him for the humiliation he caused me, but I will make up for the lack of kindness and attention I showed him over the past years...

How can I influence him to choose the right path between a luxurious wing in his grandfather's palace and a shared room in a modest apartment?

How can I help him steady his compass and raise his aspirations so he doesn't fall into the same mistakes as before?

A young man of twenty-one... the same age I was when I entered the wrong race track! How can I convince him not to enter the same track and repeat his father's mistake?

How can I advise his brother Sadiq, who is eighteen, so he doesn't get carried away by his success in the secondary exams and enter the wrong race track as well?

Direct advice doesn't work with these young people... so I'll tell them stories... stories?! It was Inas's favorite hobby—reading stories on the couch next to the living room library in the house we lived in for years with our mother Hanan...

Hanan?!... Should I feel sorry for you or be angry? You have debts of emotions owed to me... You loved me and gave me a chance... and lately, I see your glances at me full of longing... Should I suffice in saving myself or reach out to you?

What story should I tell my sons? What story... what story... Why not tell them... my story? My story with them, even though they are my sons?

Yes, they lived with me but didn’t truly live with me! They saw the endings of my story but not its beginnings... Should I recount to them the fifty-four years I’ve lived?

Yes, I’ll summarize them in hours with their fast-paced events, their great lessons, along with their pains and hopes... but will I be as honest with them as I was when I told Inas about my downfall?

Yes, I’ll be honest with them... I’ll offer my sons the essence of my experiences as a kind of "vaccine" to grant them immunity so they don’t stumble for decades of their lives in confusion... I’ll tell them how one achieves everything they desire yet achieves nothing at the same time!

I’ll tell them about the long price of digging in the wrong place searching for treasure!

I’ll tell them about drowning in quicksand and the torment of luxury and drinking from the sea!

I’ll tell them about my father who planted a seed in my heart that didn’t sprout or bear fruit for many long years, yet it never died!

I’ll tell them about my mother who deeply wounded me for many years until the good news came to me...

I’ll tell them about their uncle Amjad, from whom only a room separated me, yet in the world of the spirit, we were light-years apart!

I’ll tell them about the clipping I searched for so desperately in my mother’s room, in her closets... under her pillow... under her bed, and in every corner of the room...

And about the similar search twenty-three years later!

I’ll tell them about my first sacrifice and his three words that terrified me, then his message years later...

I’ll tell them about the call I repeatedly cut off from my brother Saeed, then wished I hadn’t!

I’ll tell them about cunning disguised as wisdom, self-deception, and treating spiritual awakening as something that can be postponed with the intention of summoning it someday!

I’ll tell them about the meaning of not being able to leave what you’ve grown accustomed to even though it no longer brings you joy—instead, it harms you, and you know it!

I’ll tell them about false neutrality... how one deceives themselves into thinking they didn’t participate in the harm when they could have prevented it... but they didn’t because they were satisfied with the results!

I’ll tell them about the courage of a girl who decided to defy her ungrateful parents and refused to be a part of their "personality’s decor"!

I’ll tell them about the day I wished the sun wouldn’t set, even though it wasn’t a good day!

I’ll tell them about the dread of casting shackles around your own neck!

I’ll tell them all of this... but will I endure the pain of it all? Will Ashraf and Sadiq endure it with me?

I must endure it, for the end of my story is not sad... its twists are the labor pains of a new birth... Where do I begin the story with my sons?

Perhaps with a snapshot from an ordinary day thirty-five years ago that represents my personality and those of my father, mother, and siblings... a day when I was ten years old... the day I woke up to my father’s voice, "Abu al-Sa’eed":

• "Get up, boy! Get up, Samir... It’s 7:30. You’ll be late for the school bus... No religion, no worldly matters. You didn’t pray Fajr in my presence, didn’t break your fast with us, and didn’t prepare yourself for school."

My father... the good but nervous man, owner of the "Al-Asala" grocery store, who toiled long hours to provide for us and keep our family from having to beg in the difficult economic conditions the country went through...

The day I heard my mother, "Umm al-Sa’eed," argue with my father:

• "Not like this, Abu al-Sa’eed!"

My tender-hearted mother, who married my father in the prime of her youth and endured his financial struggles in their early years, remaining loyal and affectionate toward him and us.

The day I woke up to the smell of fried eggs with local ghee and mint tea from the remnants of breakfast... I got up sluggishly after staying up late on the tablet I hid from my parents...

To see my older brother Saeed, sixteen years old, elegantly dressed, watering the houseplants...

And to see Tala, the delicate fifteen-year-old girl, holding her favorite book, "Understand Yourself," and watching my father "berate me"... her eyebrows would twitch, her lips purse, and she’d shake her head as if saying to him:

• "Wrong, Baba, wrong... All these are negative messages you’re accumulating in Samir’s soul," and similar phrases we thought she was "philosophizing at us" because of how much she read in psychology and parenting books.

Then I sat at the table to eat the leftovers, in my pajamas with messy hair, and my father scolded me:

• "A thousand times I’ve told you to wash your hands before eating!" So I headed to the kitchen sink...

I saw Asim, twelve years old, washing dishes with my mother, and she said to him—deliberately so I could hear:

• "Finish up, Asim, may God be pleased with you. It’s enough that you surprised us by preparing breakfast... Come, Tala, help me. Enough reading, let Asim get ready for school"...

I approached the sink as if no one was using it, and Asim looked at me with annoyance. He was wearing his hearing aids due to his hearing impairment... he signaled to me with his eyes: "At least greet your mother!"

• "May God grant you goodness, Mother," I said and returned to the table to eat...

I finished my food... and headed to the room I shared with Amjad, the youngest in our house, eight years old. He was searching for his scattered books and notebooks, hoping Tala would help him find them so he wouldn’t be scolded by his teacher—especially since he planned to cause trouble that day and scribble in his classmate Ahmad’s book, just as Ahmad had done to his yesterday. He wanted to win the teacher’s favor by organizing his papers and books in advance...

Saeed, Tala, and Asim left in my younger uncle Suhaib’s car for their school.

And our school bus arrived for Amjad and me... Amjad got in, but I was late. The bus filled the street with the noise of its horn, as it often did, and I got out with my shirt tucked into my pants, my bag unzipped, my shoelaces untied, and my hair messy...

Hehehe! Memories of our house in the Saraya neighborhood... where simple homes have been replaced by tall buildings, offices, and shops...

I’ll begin with these memories for my sons, then I’ll fold the stages and shorten the time gaps to stand with them at the pivotal points of my life and its lessons..."

Sadiq got into the car, interrupting his father’s silence.

Let us leave them to welcome Ashraf and return to where we left Samir in his story, five years back, when Samir was fifteen years old...

---

Abu al-Sa‘id’s Health Deteriorates

Abu al-Sa‘id grew older and suffered from heart muscle weakness, no longer able to run the grocery store alone. He tried hiring help, but found no one suitable, especially given his short temper and intolerance for employees’ mistakes.

Sa‘id was approaching his fourth year of studying civil engineering, while ‘Asim, at seventeen, was ambitious, dreaming of studying hearing aid design to excel in this field and help those like him. One day after school, ‘Asim saw his father gasping for breath, clutching his head in obvious distress.

“What’s wrong, Father?”

“Nothing… lift this box onto the shelf for me, son.”

Abu al-Sa‘id had tried lifting it himself, but it weighed heavily on his weak heart, and it slipped from his grasp.

The sight affected ‘Asim deeply. He was torn between his dream of success in hearing aid design and his desire to ease his father’s burden. After a few days, he told his father he had decided to stop his studies to support him in the grocery store.

Abu al-Sa‘id tried to dissuade him, urging him to continue his education, but ‘Asim insisted. In truth, Abu al-Sa‘id was secretly pleased, as he genuinely needed support in the store.

‘Asim made a significant difference in the “Family” grocery store, bringing a fresh energy. Though customers sometimes had to raise their voices for him to hear, his kind demeanor and warm smile made them prefer shopping there over other stores.

---

Tala’s Search for Meaning

Tala had enrolled in the psychology program at university, but found it did not fulfill her search for understanding the human psyche or the factors that bring peace of mind. Discussions with her older classmates made her feel that the coming years would not be much better. She left university and instead pursued her passion through extensive reading and attending specialized courses in education and mental health.

---

Amjad’s Aspirations

Amjad, now thirteen, was beginning to show the traits of his older sister Tala, who was also his close friend. He had set a goal for himself: to become a doctor. He worked diligently in his studies and reading to achieve this aim, while also visiting the grocery store to help his father and ‘Asim.

---

Where is Samir in All This?

Samir’s father had spent heavily on private schools for him, to no avail. This year, he decided to transfer him to a less expensive school. Samir objected, especially since he was attached to his friends there.

Abu al-Sa‘id had a moment of clarity and said calmly:

“Son, you go to school just for entertainment. I’m exhausted from paying school fees, and it’s all for nothing.”

“I promise you, Father, I’ll work harder. Give me another chance.”

“I’ve given you many chances before. I’ve threatened to transfer you, and each time you promise but fail.”

“This is my last chance, Father. Trust me this time—I’ll change.”

Abu al-Sa‘id felt pity for his son and allowed him to stay in his current school, but with conditions:

“Fine. After five in the evening, no phones or electronic devices. You must study regularly. And most importantly, you must maintain your prayers.”

“Fine, I agree.”

Samir improved after that. He became consistent in his prayers and focused on his studies, but it wasn’t long before he slipped back into distraction.

His father grew angry. His mother intervened and asked Tala to speak with Samir.

Samir sat in his chair, legs crossed, and said:

“Why do you keep harassing me about school? ‘Asim dropped out, and you dropped out of university. May God bless you both—you seem happy.”

“It’s not about school or university, Samir. It’s about being serious in what you do. You need a project to work on. ‘Asim helps Father. I learn and teach. What’s your project? If you had left school to learn something useful, we wouldn’t be arguing with you.”

“I’m fifteen. You want me to have a project?!”

“Of course! And you should have had one long before now.”

The discussion dragged on, with Samir deflecting and joking to avoid the topic.

By the end of the year, Abu al-Sa‘id decided to withdraw Samir from school and began looking for a trade that could help him earn a living.

But Samir was not serious about anything he tried:

• He left carpentry because the carpenter exhausted him.
• He left a restaurant job, owned by a friend of his father, because the staff sometimes made him clean the floor.
• He left his cousin’s auto repair shop because the place had a “bad smell.”
• He left a web design course because he found it “too complicated.”
• He left a mobile repair course because the training center was far and transportation was tiring.

In the end, Abu al-Sa‘id, whose heart was already weak, gave up. He stopped giving orders or guidance to Samir, except for occasional angry outbursts.

---

Five Years Later

Sa‘id, now twenty-six, had graduated, worked at an engineering firm, married, and had a son (Abd al-Rahman) and a daughter (Layin). He was well-liked, competent in his work, and carried himself with quiet dignity.

Tala, now twenty-five, was married to her cousin and had two children, ‘A’isha and Mahmud. She had become a well-known name in the field of parenting and mental health courses, despite her young age. Her marriage had faced some turbulence due to her husband’s quick temper, and despite her psychological knowledge, she had not been able to change his nature much. Over time, however, she grew to understand him better.

‘Asim, the pillar of his father’s support, had expanded the grocery store and increased its variety. Now twenty-two, he was engaged to the daughter of his father’s butcher friend. Strangely, ‘Asim had started smoking two years earlier, though he avoided selling tobacco in the store—out of concern for earning halal livelihood. He would say:

“Even though I’m wrong, I won’t help others be wrong too.”

He often forgave debts for needy customers.

Amjad, now eighteen, had entered medical school on a scholarship due to his excellence. Academic excellence in medicine had become his greatest, if not only, focus, as he sought to stand out in a job market plagued by unemployment and low wages, even in fields like medicine.

---

A Family Gathering

During a visit from Tala to the family home:

“Come sit with us, Amjad. I’ve missed you.”

“I’ll finish these pages in two minutes.”

“This is the second time you’ve delayed me… I’ll leave soon!”

A few minutes later:

“Well?! More than two minutes have passed… I’m about to leave.”

“Honestly, Tala, I need to read this thoroughly to understand it. Give me two minutes.”

“Amjad, you need balance… don’t be single-minded. Give each thing its due.”

Amjad stood up and joined the family, though his mind was still on his physiology textbook.

---

What About Samir?

Samir was now twenty years old. He had no job, no certificate, no trade, no acquired knowledge, and was not ready for marriage or starting a family. Even his prayers had become inconsistent—he would pray one day and miss days. He worked intermittently in the grocery store with his father and brother, asking his father for money afterward to spend with his friends on trips and wanderings. He sought quick earnings by selling old clothes or used items online, obtained from family or relatives. He remained idle for days, concerned only with the day he was living.

Abu al-Sa‘id, now sixty-two, had grown sicker, with repeated hospitalizations. He asked ‘Asim to hasten his marriage so he could witness the joyous occasion and not have an accident rob him of this long-awaited happiness.

What happened to Abu al-Sa‘id?

How did it affect Samir?

How did Samir’s scattered life begin to focus in one direction?

And was it the right direction?

Let us continue.

Iman (2)

Asim got married in the presence of his father... It was a joyous occasion for the family, including Abu al-Sa’id, who remembered his son Asim’s steadfastness, his sacrifices, and his putting aside his own ambitions to support him... His face beamed with joy as he watched his son Asim become a groom...

Three weeks after Asim’s wedding, Abu al-Sa’id passed away.

He left behind a good memory and tongues that invoked blessings upon him.

What was striking was that, despite everything, Samir was no less grieved or affected by his father’s death than his siblings. Samir had been like a “child” dependent on his father, and after his death, he felt a deep longing for the father who had always tolerated his mistakes and tried to help him find his way—even if it was in vain! He even missed his father’s scoldings and reprimands...

Even though his father’s death had been expected, it was still a shock to Samir... It jolted him out of his cycle of heedlessness, and he began to pray regularly. He could now be seen sometimes sitting in a corner of the mosque, reading the Quran...

There had been some distance between him and his mother, as he had often responded to her with coldness whenever she advised him and tried to shake him out of his heedlessness... After his father’s death, Samir began to turn to her:

— “I’ve lost my father... but my mother is still alive.”

He started trying to get closer to her, though he found it difficult. Yet he felt his need for her and her need for comfort after losing her husband, so he improved his treatment of her. He began to hug her and kiss her when he entered the house, albeit awkwardly and hesitantly, as he was unaccustomed to showing her affection.

But something began to weigh on Samir!

In the week following Abu al-Sa’id’s death, his children gathered almost daily at their mother’s home to comfort her and ease the loneliness of her loss... Their conversations returned to their daily lives, and they spoke in front of Samir in ways like:

— “How’s the grocery store, Asim?”

— “Praise be to God... I spoke to our neighbor Abu Ahmad to rent his warehouse and expand the store. What about you, Sa’id?”

— “After a lull, a new project came to our office, praise be to God: designing a bridge at the Flower Roundabout.”

And Amjad spoke to Talia:

— “How did your students respond in the parenting courses?”

— “It’s beautiful, subhan Allah! Some of them tell me: your lectures hurt us in a way because we realize we raised our children without a proper foundation. But on the other hand, we’ve come to understand ourselves better, as well as our children, and we enjoy applying what we learn from you. In fact, we’re even thinking about having more children so we can start fresh with our new kids... What about you, ‘the medical monster’? Aren’t you tired of reading?”

— “If I get tired, I’ll just watch physiology and anatomy videos... From medicine to medicine, I don’t enjoy anything else!”

— “May God protect you from drowning in that!”

Samir listened to these conversations, thinking:

— “What is this?!... They’re all successful... They all have their projects... Except me!” Their success stung him like whips! Their achievements provoked him and made him feel inferior!

Sometimes, as they spoke about the latest news and their accomplishments, they would look at Samir, expecting him to share something of his own... Then they would realize they’d looked at the wrong person! What did Samir have to say? They quickly looked away, not wanting to embarrass him.

This behavior made Samir feel like he was nothing.

Then came the pivotal moment...

Two weeks after Abu al-Sa’id’s death, Samir received a call from his eldest brother, the engineer Sa’id:

— “Samir, we need to meet to divide the inheritance.”

— “Divide the inheritance?!”... Samir thought to himself... This hadn’t even crossed his mind yet.

They agreed to meet the next day.

The siblings gathered to divide the inheritance... The brothers agreed not to sell the house for now, to preserve their mother’s feelings and the memories tied to it, so Umm al-Sa’id would remain in the house with Samir and Amjad, as they were unmarried.

The land owned by Abu al-Sa’id would be divided among his wife, Umm al-Sa’id, Sa’id, Talia, and Amjad... Asim would take over the family grocery store in exchange for paying Samir nine thousand dinars, thereby ensuring Samir received his legal share.

Throughout this discussion, Samir barely spoke. Solutions and divisions were proposed before him, and he agreed, sitting in stunned silence, feeling a strange sensation... It was the feeling of orphanhood in adulthood! Before, he had been dependent on his father... Now, he had to carve his own path, take responsibility for himself... and the only remnants of his father’s care were those nine thousand dinars and the right to live in a house that would one day be sold. None of his siblings had shown him the kind of paternal role—ready to bear the financial burden of his irresponsibility. Samir felt that his father’s death had left him “exposed,” without a shelter to care for him...

For the first time, Samir tasted the bitterness of the vast difference between him and his siblings, and a kind of envy toward them!

As he left the meeting, he said to himself:

“What can I do? I can’t bear this feeling! I don’t want to be less than my siblings... They all have work that earns them money, or degrees, or studies—except me! ...But what can I do? Twenty years of my life have been wasted... How can I bridge the gap between me and them?”

Samir’s scattered thoughts focused on money, considering it the only thing that could compete with his siblings. “I want to get money and status by any means... yes, by any means!”

This was the moment he entered the race, fueled by the fear of being labeled a failure, the pain of feeling inferior, and the determination to justify himself... Bridging the gap through sheer willpower, bearing the consequences of his neglect over the years, was not an option for Samir... He compared himself to his siblings and made material success his benchmark, only to see a painful difference... He was not used to enduring pain or being patient with it... So he wanted to cover this gap by any means... “But how? Where from?”

Samir thought long and hard, then decided to try trading in used cars. He opened a selling app on his phone and began browsing cars and their features, looking for the one closest to the amount he had. He found a car he liked, asked the owner about its price, and the man said:

— “To be honest with you: my car is worth ten thousand dinars, but it has several faults I’ll tell you about, so I’m willing to sell it to you for nine thousand five hundred dinars.”

Samir haggled with the man until he agreed to lower the price to 9,300 dinars. His nine thousand dinars from his father had dwindled due to his needs and food expenses. He asked his brother Sa’id to lend him 400 dinars, and Sa’id gave them to him. Samir bought the car and then took it to his friend Hisham, the owner of an auto repair shop:

— “Hisham, I bought this car and want to sell it. Take a look—what does it need to be repaired?”

After inspecting it, Hisham said:

— “Look... If you want a proper repair so the buyer doesn’t have trouble later, it’ll cost you 350 dinars. But if you want quick fixes—just enough to get by—it can be repaired for 150 dinars, but I won’t guarantee it. The used car market varies greatly in quality.”

This was Samir’s first real test of his integrity... He hesitated, torn between the fear of earning unlawfully on one hand and the motto “I want to get money by any means” on the other.

— “What do you think, Hisham?”

— “How much will you sell it for?”

— “For 9,900 dinars... an attractive price.”

— “What’s your cost?”

Samir didn’t tell him the truth... “My cost is 9,400.”

— “So if we do a proper repair, you’ll make 150 dinars... nothing. Your effort deserves more than that.”

Hisham was silent for a moment, lit a cigarette, and then said:

— “Everyone does quick fixes... If everyone repairs things properly, no one will make a profit in the used car market.”

— “But one should fear earning unlawfully.”

— “I didn’t say we should use cheap parts that will definitely break the car... It can run with the buyer... If a part we install breaks down, the buyer can come back, and we’ll fix it at our expense... The wolf won’t die, and the sheep won’t vanish.”

A Balanced Solution

This seemed like a reasonable and tempting solution to Samir! He tried to negotiate with Hisham to repair the car "properly" at a lower cost, but Hisham insisted he couldn’t. So, Samir decided to take Hisham’s advice!

---

• "Okay then..."

Samir wanted to say, "Okay, with God’s blessing," but he felt the phrase didn’t fit... How could he say "with God’s blessing" when the repair itself was a hidden deception?! So he changed his mind and said:

• "Okay, fix it for 150."

Hisham replied:

• "We place our trust in God!"

It was afternoon... During the Asr prayer, Samir thought to himself: "I should call Hisham and tell him to fix it properly so I can start with a blessed beginning." He was preoccupied after the prayer, forgot, then remembered, but procrastinated about calling. Yes, he dozed off and fell asleep... missing the Maghrib prayer. He combined it with Isha... Then he thought about calling afterward... Yes, until the next day. He was busy the following morning... Then he called at noon:

• "Hisham, I’m afraid we’ll earn a sin from the buyer... Just fix it at the higher cost."

• "You’re late, my friend. I’ve already become the owner of the parts and started installing them... Don’t worry, trust in God. If He wills, it’ll work out."

Inside, Samir was happy that his friend had started with the cheaper repair and convinced himself that he had "tried" to make amends!

Hisham finished his patchwork repairs after two days... Samir took the car, promising to pay the repair costs when he sold it, then put it up for sale... He started receiving calls... He showed the car to several people over eight days until "Alaa" arrived—a young employee at a shipping company. He inspected it, then turned to Samir:

• "Honestly... Is it clean?"

• "By God..." Samir wanted to swear but caught himself...

• "Honestly, it’s excellent."

Alaa haggled with Samir over the price... In the end, Samir agreed to 9,850 and convinced himself that this would ease the burden of the patchwork repairs... Alaa handed him the money and said:

• "This is my savings... I collected it penny by penny over the years."

Samir hesitated for a moment as he saw Alaa’s joyful smile over the car... But he quickly reassured himself:

• "What’s the difference of two hundred dinars in repairs compared to the car’s price? If God wills, it won’t cause him any problems... If he pays a little, what’s the issue? Everyone does that... I want to make a profit... I can’t stand seeing my brothers succeed while I appear less than them, as if I’m a stupid failure!"

Alaa took the car and drove off... And Samir left with 9,850.

"400 dinars... 400 dinars profit from one car... An excellent start!" He returned home... prayed Dhuhr... During his prayer, he began calculating in his mind:

• "400 dinars in 11 days from buying the car to selling it... That’s about 1,200 a month... That means... I seek God’s forgiveness... You alone we worship, and You alone we ask for help."* He continued reciting, but the numbers kept intruding!

He finished his prayer, then quickly grabbed his phone to browse used car listings... He wanted to buy another car... For a moment, he remembered: "I need to return the 400 dinars I borrowed from my brother Sa’eed and the 150 dinars to Hisham for the repairs. But why not delay payment to benefit from the money and buy a better car? Sa’eed is my brother; he should help me. He has more money than me. And Hisham is my friend—he’s not very trustworthy anyway; he did a shoddy repair job, so he can’t expect to be paid immediately. I’ll delay paying them."

Over the next two days, Samir inspected several cars until he settled on one... But the money he had wasn’t enough... He needed 500 dinars... "Found it! I’ll borrow from my mother."

With Samir’s focus narrowed to his goal, money became his sole priority. Everything else faded into the background, even if it was right in front of him! People who didn’t help him achieve this goal slipped out of his circle of concern, only returning if he needed them to further his aim... Among them were his childhood and youth friends, including his mother!

Sa’eed’s mother had been diagnosed with lupus during this time... And in her heart, she harbored a grievance against Samir for rarely asking about her or sitting with her... Rarely did he wake up if she tried to wake him for Fajr prayer... Sometimes he ate with her and Amjad absentmindedly... And if she spoke to him, he answered while looking at his phone, flipping through car listings... She would sometimes fall silent to get his attention, and he’d raise his gaze from the phone:

• "Sorry... Uh... Yes, Mother?" He’d look at her with a distracted gaze... Very different from Amjad, who was kind and affectionate, and despite his heavy study load, he still managed her medications and medical appointments.

Now, Samir needed his mother to borrow from her!

He passed by a fruit shop and bought his mother a guava... He entered the house:

• "Mother Sa’eed, I bought you a guava—your favorite. Come, let’s eat together."

Sa’eed’s mother was happy and surprised by this unusual gesture from Samir:

• "May God be pleased with you and bless your hands."

They ate together... Samir felt shy about broaching the subject directly... He delayed it until evening... Then he started "chatting" with her:

• "Mother, did you know I’ve started trading in cars?"

• "Mashallah! May God open the doors of goodness for you."

• "I sold a car and made 400 dinars profit."

• "Mashallah! May God increase your blessings and expand your sustenance."

• "Look... This is the car I’m thinking of buying... What do you think of it?"

• "Beautiful... I love black cars."

Sa’eed’s mother was happy about this unusual chat from Samir. Little did the poor woman know its true purpose.

• "The problem is it’s expensive, Mother... The money I have is 500 dinars short."

Sa’eed’s mother remained silent, not realizing the implication, so Samir continued:

• "If someone could lend me these 500 dinars, I’d make a profit and return their money."

At this point, Sa’eed’s mother innocently said:

• "Well, I’ll give you the money, my son."

The hook was set!...

• "No, no, Mother... You need this money."

• "No, my son... Wait."

Sa’eed’s mother stood up and brought out a bracelet that Sa’eed’s father had given her early in their marriage...

• "Take it and sell it, Samir."

Samir recognized the bracelet...

• "This was Dad’s, Mother... It must be precious to you."

• "It doesn’t matter... I have others from him, may God have mercy on him. Buy the car, and when you sell it and make a profit, return its value to me."

• "Okay, may God keep you safe, my dear, and preserve you for us... I promise to repay the money as soon as possible."

Samir rushed to buy the car... His mother, sensing the unnatural calm in the house, realized this wasn’t a spontaneous act—from the guava to the unusual chat! A pang of sorrow struck her heart. But still, she prayed for her son’s success in his business.

Samir bought his second car. It needed minor repairs, but he was too embarrassed to take it to Hisham after not paying for the first car’s repairs. So he had it fixed elsewhere, then put it up for sale and sold it.

Twenty-five days passed as Samir bought and sold used cars... Then Hisham, the car repair shop owner, called:

• "How are you, Samir?"

• "Praise God, here I am, Hisham."

• "Samir, I’m sorry, I didn’t want to ask, but you’ve delayed payment."

• "Ah, you’re right, Hisham. My apologies, I’m late... But I promise you my car business is going well. Give me one week, and I’ll settle your account."

Hisham was annoyed:

• "No, Samir. From now until tomorrow, if you don’t give me my money, I won’t repair any of your cars in the future. You’ve delayed far too long."

• "Okay, okay... Don’t get upset, Abu Hisham. Tomorrow morning, your money will be with you."

And indeed, he gave Hisham his payment the next day.

What happened to Alaa, the buyer of the first car deceived by the superficial repairs?

And what became of Amjad, the diligent medical student?

Let’s find out.

Inas (3)

The shipping company where Ala' (the man who bought his first car from Samir) worked had a strict manager who demanded that employees never be late for their 8:00 AM shift. Because of this, our friend bought a car despite his modest financial situation—he sometimes arrived late due to transportation delays, and the manager would reprimand him.

Not even a few weeks had passed since he bought the car when problems started to appear! The car broke down on his way to work. Shocked, he called Samir, but he was asleep... so our friend went in search of someone to fix his car. He found a mechanic who worked on it for an hour before asking Ala' for 40 dinars. Reluctantly and sadly, he paid the fee, upset about his newly purchased car...

He arrived at work very late. The manager summoned him:

— "This is the last time... I won’t tolerate your lateness again."

— "I swear to you, sir, I bought the car so I wouldn’t be late, but..."

— "That’s not my problem... Work must go on. Goodbye... back to your desk."

Samir woke up... saw the missed call from Ala'. His mood soured... he hesitated whether to answer or ignore it.

— "First thing in the morning?! Come on, man, leave me alone!"

He reconsidered and thought to himself: "But I don’t want to start my business this way... if the cost is small, I’ll cover it myself."

— "Hello?"

— "Samir?"

— "Yes, go ahead."

— "This is Ala', the one who bought the white Hyundai from you a few weeks ago."

— "Yes, hello... go ahead, how can I help?"

— "Brother Samir, the car broke down today, and the mechanic told me the issue was old. I had to pay 40 dinars to fix it."

— "No, impossible! The car was in excellent condition. I checked it thoroughly before selling it to you."

— "That’s what happened to me."

— "Very strange! Anyway, how much did it cost you?"

— "Forty dinars. But that’s not the main issue... the real problem is that I missed work and got scolded."

— "There is no power or strength except with God... truly, what happened to you is strange... anyway, I won’t let you bear the loss. These are used cars, and sometimes unusual issues arise. I’ll cover the repair cost. Send me your account number, and I’ll transfer the amount."

— "It seems he tricked me! If he were honest, he wouldn’t have offered to cover the cost so quickly. No, no... the man could have refused to pay... perhaps he’s honest but was deceived by the car when he bought it."

Ala' sent Samir his account number, and sure enough, Samir transferred the 40 dinars.

— "What a shame! We were happy with the 400 dinars we earned from this man, and now it’s gone... anyway, let me analyze this bite so it benefits me."

Samir felt he had fulfilled his obligation by paying the 40 dinars. He decided in his mind that he wouldn’t cover any additional costs if Ala' contacted him again.

After the "Guava Day" celebration! Samir had breakfast with his mother and Amjad for two days, then returned to his habit of struggling to wake up for Fajr and breakfast with them.

But another issue worried Umm Al-Sa’eed: Amjad... there was a noticeable change in his mood... he too had started struggling to wake up for prayer... his facial expression carried a hint of sadness... he no longer chatted with his mother as usual...

His mother sat with him at breakfast:

— "Amjad, what’s wrong, my dear?"

— "Nothing, my love."

— "You don’t seem yourself."

— "Maybe I’m just preoccupied with exams... don’t worry about me, my dear."

He ate a few bites and left for university.

— "Could I really be the cause of Amjad’s sadness? Could I have distracted him from the studies he dedicated his life to? Distracted him with frequent medical reviews and medication follow-ups? Have I become a burden on my children? Amjad doesn’t confide in me... who else can he talk to?... Tala... Amjad will be honest with her."

Umm Al-Sa’eed called her daughter Tala...

That evening, Tala took the car from her husband and called Amjad:

— "Amjad, I want to go with you to the hill where our late father, may God have mercy on him, used to take us on the way to the airport."

— "Honestly, I’m busy with tests, Tala."

— "I’m not asking; I’m telling you! And I’m already on my way... I’ve prepared a glass of your favorite fruit juice. Wait for me in front of the house in fifteen minutes."

Amjad was indeed busy with exams, but he needed Tala, and the idea of going with her comforted him...

Tala noticed the change in her brother’s features—the disappearance of the sparkle in his eyes and the brightness in his face... They headed toward the hill... she spoke to him a little on the way:

— "How are your studies?"

— "Praise God."

— "How is your relationship with God?"

— "Praise God."

— "All good?"

— "No, not all good... one must always feel they’re falling short."

— "What have you been reading or doing lately?"

— "Nothing... studying takes all my time. Sometimes I’m with Umm Al-Ghaliya for medical reviews."

— "Drink your juice; it’s cold."

— "May God bless your hands."

— "And yours."

They reached the hill... sat on a rock, looking toward the sunset...

— "What’s wrong, Amjad?"

— "I’m exhausted."

— "Why, my friend?"

— "I don’t know... I have depression. I went to a psychiatrist, and he diagnosed me and prescribed medication. I haven’t told my mother about it."

— "Have you started taking the medication?"

— "No... I’m hesitant... I’m thinking of starting non-pharmacological psychotherapy sessions... but maybe after the exams... I’m busy now."

— "In your opinion, what’s the cause of the depression you’re feeling?"

— "I don’t know... maybe it’s delayed grief over our late father, may God have mercy on him... or grief over my mother’s illness... or academic pressure."

— "Are any of these factors new?"

— "No."

Tala held his hand:

— "Amjad... what you’re going through is the result of a lack of balance in your life... the single-minded focus on one thing that I’ve always talked to you about... which leads to psychological fragility and easy breakdown. My dear brother, we’re all happy with your dedication and success in your studies. But life isn’t just about studying. Remember the saying of our Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him: ‘Give every right its due.’ Your soul has rights over you... it needs you to build social relationships, to unwind, to exercise... and above all: your daily portion of the Quran and learning your religion..."

— "Aaaah, Tala! I’ve indeed neglected all of that! I used to say: I’ll focus intensely on my studies at the beginning to build a solid knowledge base, then I’ll return to my life... but the days passed, and my time became barren. A page now takes me three times longer than it used to, and I replay videos two or three times to understand them—when I used to grasp them the first time. And on top of all that, I’m not even happy."

— "Balance is a life motto; it must always be present and not postponed or tied to achievements."

— "You’re right."

— "When do your exams end?"

— "The day after tomorrow."

— "Fine, I won’t tell you to prepare a program from today... the exams are priority. Then, the day after tomorrow, come to my house so we can organize a balanced program for you together."

— "Okay, God willing. Do you advise me to start taking the medication the doctor prescribed until then?"

— "You can take it slow... even if you start, these medications don’t work quickly."

— "Yes, I’ve read about that."

— "Fine, let’s go back so you can resume your studies. We’ll meet the day after tomorrow... I’ll tell my mother that Amjad is under pressure, and I’ll help him manage his time so he can recover, God willing."

Samir met his brother Amjad and their mother at the tray of kufteh that Umm Al-Sa’eed had prepared for dinner... Samir noticed Amjad’s sadness... after dinner, he asked him:

— "What’s wrong?"

Amjad wasn’t used to Samir asking such a question or even noticing his feelings at all! So he confided in him, eager to continue the conversation:

— "I’m mentally exhausted... I’ll be honest with you, but don’t tell my mother."

— "Go ahead."

— "I went to the doctor, and he told me I have depression."

---

Samira’s Struggle

“Depression?!” Samira was torn between two feelings: she hated seeing her brother in this state, yet at the same time she felt, “Finally, Amjad is no better than me, no more successful than me… He’s serious about his studies, respected by everyone, and devout… and yet he’s depressed while I’m not. I’m no less than him… God must love me since I wasn’t struck by depression like Amjad. I’m in great shape and stronger than to fall into depression.”

---

Samira: “Did you take medication?”

Amjad: “I… I spoke with Tala, and we agreed to work together on a program to restore my mental balance.”

---

Samira: “Mental balance?”

Amjad: “Yes… you need that too, Samir… How about we work together on a program for you?”

---

Samira: “No, uncle… I’m balanced, happy, and everything’s fine, praise God… Anyway, I hope you feel better. Don’t worry about me.”

Amjad didn’t want to argue with his brother.

Amjad: “May God keep you safe,” he said and returned to his studies.

---

After his session with Tala and organizing the program, Amjad began to improve slowly, though he struggled to stick to it—especially with his mother’s declining health. Tala encouraged and followed up with him, but this took time, which sometimes irritated her hot-tempered husband.

Husband: “Tala! Tala! There’s no ironed shirt for me to wear to work, and you’re on the phone!”

Tala: “Just a moment, Amjad… my love, Basem (her term of endearment for “Bassem”), with Amjad, by God… bear with me… (God aids the servant as long as the servant aids his brother)… Share in the reward… just a few seconds and I’ll iron your shirt.” Turning back to her husband, she said, “Amjad, I’ll be right back.”

Despite Bassem’s difficult temperament, remembering God calmed him. He fell silent and packed his bag while Tala ironed his shirt.

---

Am al-Sa’eed felt guilty for keeping Amjad away from his studies and the program he had set up with Tala. She called a neighbor and close friend, a widow:

Am al-Sa’eed: “Umm Ali, I’m embarrassed to ask this favor… You know my son Amjad is a medical student… Lately, he’s been too preoccupied with my illness to focus on his studies. Could you visit me in the mornings to reassure me that someone is here to help if I need it?”

Umm Ali: “With my eyes and head, Umm al-Sa’eed. My son Ali is coming in two weeks, God willing, to travel with me… Until then, I’ll stay by your side until you’re tired of me.”

Am al-Sa’eed: “May God reward you, my dear. The house is yours.”

---

Am al-Sa’eed insisted Amjad focus on his studies and balanced routine:

Am al-Sa’eed: “Your aunt Umm Ali is here… Don’t worry.”

---

Those two weeks were golden for Amjad. He turned back to his studies, joined an online Islamic course, signed up for a sports club, and went on a trip with friends. He called his mother every hour or two, and between lectures… his mother needed to use the phone’s speaker to hear better.

Amjad: “How are you, my love?”

Am al-Sa’eed: “May God be pleased with you. Praise God.”

Amjad: “Do you need anything, light of my eyes?”

Am al-Sa’eed: “May God illuminate your path and your life… I don’t need anything… Take care of yourself.”

Amjad: “I’m fine as long as you’re fine, crown of my head.”

Umm Ali listened to this “flattery,” which Am al-Sa’eed took pride in… She boasted that her son treated her this way and that she was precious to him. Amjad knew this and wanted to “fluff his mother’s head” (make her proud) and make her feel honored in front of her friends, to cheer her heart… despite the lingering depression he still battled.

---

The two weeks passed, and Umm Ali left. But Tala had already contacted Amjad’s siblings to stand by their mother and not leave the task to him—he, in turn, needed help.

Tala began visiting her mother in the mornings…

---

Asim, his mother’s close friend since childhood, started leaving the shop to a sometimes-helper so he could check on his mother and assist her. Sa’eed, the least frequent visitor due to his distant home and heavy workload, still called his mother and visited on weekends, and his wife sometimes volunteered to visit her mother-in-law.

---

Eid al-Adha was approaching…

What happened to Umm al-Sa’eed on Eid? What happened on the other side with Alaa, the deceived buyer? And what was Samir’s stance in both situations? Let’s follow along.

Inas (4)

On the morning of the Day of Arafah, just before Eid al-Adha, Umm al-Sa’eed’s illness worsened so severely that Amjad and ‘Asim had to take her to the hospital. She received intensive treatment, accompanied by the supplications of her children and loved ones, until her condition stabilized on the morning of Eid.

Samir knew nothing of these developments, as he was preoccupied with the pre-Eid car sales season... Amjad called him and told him... so he came to the hospital to find his brothers all there, along with Basim, Tala’s husband, in the waiting room... They were allowed to enter and reassured about Umm al-Sa’eed’s condition.

If Samir had looked out from the hospital waiting room window, he would have seen a scene he missed entirely! It was Ala’, the poor deceived buyer, pushing his car to the side of the road with the help of some passersby.

This Eid was not a happy one for Ala’! He prayed the Eid prayer, then broke his fast with his wife and son and prepared to go to his parents’ house, where he and his brothers with their families would gather every Eid. They would give their mother her Eid gift (the eidiya), and each brother would give their nephews and nieces their gifts in a joyful hour.

Our friend Ala’ woke up happy because this was the first Eid he had a car like his brothers, meaning he could take his wife and son without needing to rush from the Eid prayer straight to public transport, where he would spend a long time before reaching his parents’ home.

The family set off cheerfully in the car Ala’ had bought from Samir... but halfway there, the car broke down again! Ala’ was shocked and frustrated: what could he do? He asked some passersby to help push the car to the side of the road, then tried to call Samir. Samir was in the hospital waiting room. When he saw Ala’s name, his face darkened, and he muttered to himself:

— "Ugh! What a mess! What a mess! My mother is unwell, and I’ve been too busy with sales... Go fix the car and get this off my hands! It’s a ‘used’ car, ‘used’... you’d expect it to be super deluxe, right?!"

And he hung up on Ala’.

Ala’ tried calling again, but Samir put his phone on silent... He called a third time to no avail. Finally, he called a mechanic he knew to fix the car, but the mechanic didn’t answer either—it was Eid, and everyone was busy.

Our friend realized it would be difficult to find a mechanic that day, so he fell into despair: "What do I do? Should I take a taxi to go with my family to my parents’ house? I don’t even know how much the repair will cost. The money I saved for the Eid gift is barely enough to cover the repair now. Is it fair to give my brothers’ Eid gifts to my mother and my children and stand by watching? Or should I borrow from them? Borrow during Eid when their circumstances are as modest as mine?!"

As he thought this way, his eldest brother called him—all of them were gathered at their father’s house and wondered why he was late. Ala’ didn’t know what to say to his brother, so he didn’t answer the call.

In the end, he made the difficult decision to return home with his wife and son, leaving the broken-down car behind and missing the joyful hour they had been looking forward to.

Our friend hailed a taxi and returned home with his family, disappointed. Meanwhile, many calls came in from his brothers, but he didn’t answer any—until his father called, forcing him to respond:

— "Peace be upon you, Father."

— "And upon you be peace. Where are you, Ala’?! We’re all gathered here and will set off soon."

— "Forgive me, Father. Difficult circumstances... God is sufficient for me against the one who sold me this car—it broke down again. I’m at home now."

— "At home?! Why didn’t you come with a taxi?"

— "Forgive me, Father. Circumstances..."

Our friend was too ashamed to tell his father that he didn’t have enough money to repair the car or give the Eid gifts, so he ended the call and sat there, heartbroken.

Of course, Samir knew nothing of the suffering he had caused this poor man when he deceived him just to save a little on formal repairs.

Samir’s brothers left their mother’s room to visit for Eid, while Samir went to visit a friend and continue his business. Tala stayed with her mother... and they agreed to meet again at their mother’s house before sunset.

After Asr prayer, Sa’eed called Samir:

— "Mother is much better, praise God. I’m going to bring her home from the hospital."

— "I’ll come with you..." — these were the words Sa’eed had been waiting to hear from Samir, but Samir didn’t say them!

— "Fine, praise God... excellent."

— "We’ll meet at the family home at six."

— "I might be busy at that time... but if I can, I’ll come."

With a firm tone, Sa’eed said:

— "You should drop everything and come... God knows how long our mother will remain with us, and this is Eid!"

— "Okay, okay... I’ll come."

The brothers gathered at their mother’s house at six. Sa’eed brought her a precious gold ring, Tala brought a coat to keep her warm in winter, and ‘Asim had booked tickets to take their mother on ‘Umrah to the Sacred House of God:

— "Pull yourself together, beloved of us all. You have one month to bounce back like a deer, God willing, so I can take you on ‘Umrah, my lifelong friend."

— "God willing, may He make it easy."

Amjad was the least wealthy of his brothers. He had sold part of his share in the land to Sa’eed to cover his own needs and his mother’s medical expenses and check-ups... and their mother had sold her share to Basim, Tala’s husband... her money was in the "safe." She assumed Amjad would take from the safe to cover her treatment, but in reality, he was using his own money—except for the amount she needed to be admitted to the hospital yesterday, when his remaining funds ran low. Despite this, he brought his mother a simple bouquet of flowers within his means, with a card that read: "May God preserve you as a crown upon our heads, my dear."

And what about Samir’s gift? He watched as his brothers presented their gifts, listening as his mother expressed her gratitude to each one and rejoiced in their presents... yet it never crossed his mind to bring his mother a gift for Eid! He felt no shame when he realized he was the only one among his brothers who had forgotten their mother’s gift. He didn’t even notice the oversight or think to make up for it!

His mind was preoccupied with the "prize" car (laqitah—special), fearing he might miss out on it. The only thing that caught his attention about his brothers’ gifts was:

— "Gifts like these show that my brothers have a lot of money... What can I do to have money like theirs? My trade is growing, but not as fast as I’d like!"

As the brothers were about to leave their mother’s home, Sa’eed approached Samir, visibly annoyed by the oversight he saw in Samir’s eyes:

— "About the 400 dinars you borrowed from me, when will you repay?"

Samir was taken aback and flustered:

— "Ah, your money is rightfully mine... I’ve been late in repaying."

To justify his delay, he said:

— "I was cheated on one of the cars and lost money. Give me two weeks, and I’ll repay you, God willing."

Sa’eed remained silent, shook his head, and didn’t want to embarrass his brother further, so he left.

Eid passed, and Umm al-Sa’eed’s condition continued to improve. Her illness was of a fluctuating nature—sometimes worsening, sometimes easing. Two weeks passed, during which Amjad completed his final exams for the first semester and recovered from his depression, beginning his short break between semesters.

His brothers returned to their normal lives, and their visits to check on their mother became less frequent.

As soon as Amjad started his second semester, Umm al-Sa’eed’s health began to decline again.

— "Tala, Mother’s health is deteriorating... The doctor increased her medication, but the response is weak."

— "God is the One we ask for help! Okay, Amjad... I have an educational course to finish in a few weeks... I’ll try to free up time after that, and hopefully Basim will have returned from his trip, God willing."

— "In a few weeks?!" Amjad thought to himself... He had expected Tala’s response to be stronger than that... "I still have several lectures I haven’t studied, on top of being preoccupied with Mother."

For the first time, Amjad addressed Samir, who had not noticed his mother’s condition, as he spent most of his time outside the house and no longer shared any meals with her. Umm al-Sa’eed had been in pain the previous night, but Amjad had left her without waking her for breakfast. He said to Samir:

— “Samir, my mother is tired again.”

— “God is the best of helpers.”

— “She needs many reviews.”

— “Okay, tell me in the morning of the review days, and I’ll give you the car,” Samir said, combing his hair in front of the mirror as he prepared to leave.

— “The car isn’t the most important thing… It’s hard to leave my mother alone in the house.”

— “I’ll hire a nurse, and I’ll share the costs with you.”

— “A nurse?! My mother needs us, Samir.”

— “Amjad, let’s be practical… We don’t know how long my mother’s illness will last. If I neglect my business at this time, it will fail.”

Samir left, leaving Amjad, who decided not to go to university that day because he felt his mother wouldn’t be able to spend the day alone.

Amjad frowned:

— “What is this?! What is this disappointment?! Has my mother become a burden I’m trying to shift onto others?! After the two rejections I received from Talia and Samir, I won’t speak to Sa’eed or ‘Asim again…”

He stood up to wake his mother… then sat back down and said to himself: “But I’m first in my class despite the circumstances I’ve gone through… Will the ‘first in class’ fail his exams? What joy for the haters in college! And why am I alone? Where are my four brothers?! If they shared the burden with me, I wouldn’t fail in my studies… ‘Burden’ again?! My mother has become a ‘burden’?! Where are the Islamic courses I attended? Where is the Quran I recite? Where is ‘And show kindness to parents’? This is the first real test to see if I am among those who act upon their words…”

“But as Samir said: ‘We don’t know how long my mother’s illness will last’… Will I stay with her the whole time? Why don’t we be ‘practical’ and hire a nurse?”

— “No… I know my mother… She’ll be very uncomfortable with the idea of a nurse.”

Amjad’s thoughts were interrupted by his mother’s voice:

— “O Lord, in the name of God…” She was struggling to get out of bed… so he went to help her.

— “Why didn’t you go to university today as well, my son?”

— “Don’t worry about me, my dear… I’ll study the lecture from the book and listen to the recordings, God willing.”

— “You’ve exhausted yourself with me, Amjad,” she said, looking at him sadly. He held her hands and kissed them.

— “Don’t say that, my beloved… It’s an honor for me, by God.”

— “Go, Amjad, may God be pleased with you, illuminate your heart, make your life easy, and admit you to Paradise without reckoning or punishment.”

Amjad’s heart danced, and he forgot his worries at her words:

— “God! May your mouth be blessed, my dear… Come, let me make you the sweetest breakfast.”

Two weeks passed, and Umm al-Sa’eed’s condition worsened. Her kidneys began to fail due to the illness, requiring frequent visits to the dialysis department at the hospital. Samir saw his mother walking with exhaustion, bent over, as Amjad took her to her appointments… and all Samir did was greet her in the morning, help her into the car, and say, “Peace be upon you, Mother,” nothing more! His mind was preoccupied entirely with cars, customers, repairs, and profit.

Samir didn’t notice—lost in his thoughts—that his mother wasn’t looking at him or responding to his greeting, because her heart wasn’t with him.

Lectures piled up for Amjad… His mother noticed his distracted mind and distress despite his attempts to hide it. While he was beside her in the hospital for a dialysis session:

— “Amjad… What’s wrong with your studies, my dear?”

— “Don’t worry about me, my dear… Your health is what matters now.”

Amjad was looking at the anatomy book he was holding, pretending to study so his mother wouldn’t feel she was interrupting his studies. Otherwise, he couldn’t concentrate in the hospital’s chaotic atmosphere. He was surprised she didn’t respond to his words. He looked up at her… tears were silently flowing down the cheeks of this kind woman as she bit her lips to stifle her sobs. He put the book aside, took her hand, placed his other hand on her forehead, and kissed her cheek.

— “Mother, what’s wrong, my dear?”

— “I don’t want to be an obstacle in your path to success. I know you’re upset about falling behind in your studies,” Umm al-Sa’eed said in a trembling voice.

— “An obstacle?! You are the blessing of my life… You are the light of my eyes… You are my success and triumph, Umm al-Sa’eed,” he said, showering her hand with kisses, then her cheek, until the nurse arrived.

Amjad stepped aside as the nurse disconnected the dialysis machine and prepared Umm al-Sa’eed for departure.

What decision did Amjad make after seeing his mother’s tears? And who entered Samir’s life to change it radically? And what were the third words the deceived buyer Ala sent?

Let’s continue.

A person who has been wronged comes to you, seeking help and support. They say:

"I have been oppressed, and my rights have been taken away. I have no one to turn to except God and then you. I seek your help in restoring my rights and bringing justice to me."

You respond:

"May God grant you justice and support you. Do not despair, for God is with those who are patient and seek justice. We will do our best to help you and restore your rights."

The person then says:

"May God reward you for your kindness and support. I place my trust in God and in you."

You respond:

"May God accept your trust and grant you relief. We will continue to strive for justice and fairness on your behalf."

Inas (5)

Tears did not flow easily from Umm al-Sa’eed’s eyes without affecting Ummu Ajwad’s heart. As the nurse prepared his mother to leave, he thought to himself, "My mother is sensitive and understands the expressions on my face no matter how much I try to hide them... I want to dedicate my heart and soul to her... and I won’t be able to do that as long as I’m in university. I don’t want her to keep worrying about my studies... I’ll drop the semester and tell her so to put her at ease and dedicate myself to her."

"But dropping the semester means losing the entire academic year... I’ll have to repeat the whole year and lose the first semester! And I might even have to drop out of university for more than a year if no one helps me take care of my mother."

"What good is my education or even a medical degree if it comes at the expense of my mother’s health and well-being? Should I study to treat people at the cost of treating my mother and her comfort? I will preserve her feelings and dignity no matter the price. By God, He will not let me down."

At that moment, Ummu Ajwad felt an extraordinary sense of tranquility. His hesitation vanished completely, and he no longer mourned the loss of his studies. He made his decision: "I will drop this semester tomorrow and dedicate myself to my mother." He felt that some of his competitive classmates might gloat... He took out his phone and wrote in the college group: "My dear colleagues, I will drop this semester and return when my mother’s condition stabilizes, God willing. Your prayers." Before posting, he thought:

"What do I care about what people say? Let this remain between me and God."

He deleted everything he had written, put his phone back in his pocket, and said to himself: "By God, God will not let me down."

Ummu Ajwad took his mother home. He did not tell her about his decision to avoid an argument with her... The next day, Ummu Ajwad made sure his mother had eaten breakfast and gone to nap with her phone beside her in case she needed to call him... He went to the university, dropped the semester, and quickly returned home. He began messaging some of his professors to explain the reason so they wouldn’t be surprised, which only increased their respect for him—except for the pathophysiology professor, who called Ummu Ajwad immediately after receiving his message. He mocked him and tried to convince him to hire a nurse to accompany his mother to the hospital, pitying this outstanding young man for delaying his studies... But Ummu Ajwad remained steadfast in his decision with tranquility.

Ummu Ajwad returned home with kanafa for him and his mother: — "Umm al-Sa’eed, come celebrate." — "Celebrate what?" — "I’ve decided to specialize now." — "So soon? Don’t you specialize after completing general medicine?" — "I’ve decided to specialize now in filling my eyes with you and earning your satisfaction and happiness, my dear."

Umm al-Sa’eed didn’t understand... Ummu Ajwad held her hands: — "I dropped the semester to earn the honor of accompanying you and dedicating myself to you... It was the happiest decision of my life."

Umm al-Sa’eed cried: — "Why, my son? Why?!" — "Umm al-Sa’eed, by God, I am happy with this decision... The whole world pales in comparison to you... Uways al-Qarani missed the companionship of the Prophet peace be upon him because he stayed with his mother and was dutiful to her. The Prophet peace be upon him said about him that he was the best of the Tabi’in and instructed the Companions to ask Uways to pray for them due to his high status... What am I losing? A semester? Nothing for your sake, my dear. Come, let’s eat the kanafa while it’s hot."

Though Ummu Ajwad expected goodness from his devotion to his mother, he never imagined how much God would honor him for this stance and for the happiness he brought to her heart!

Meanwhile, Samir continued his business... He and his friend Hisham still—sometimes—cheated in repairing used cars, though their cheating was less severe than the cheating they did for Alaa’s car, fearing a bad reputation and bad luck in trade. He also became more delayed in returning home, rarely having breakfast or dinner with his mother and Ummu Ajwad.

He returned early two days after Ummu Ajwad dropped his semester... Ummu Ajwad was praying Maghrib in the mosque... Samir greeted his mother absentmindedly, then sat on the large couch in the living room, facing his mother’s couch, scrolling on his phone. Umm al-Sa’eed was waiting for Samir to ask about her health or express willingness to take her to medical appointments... Fifteen minutes passed, and he neither looked up from his phone nor spoke!

— "Ah... O Lord... in the name of God."

Umm al-Sa’eed deliberately made sure Samir heard these words as she left the living room for her bed, hoping he would feel the need to care for her and perhaps volunteer to take her to appointments and ease Ummu Ajwad’s burden.

But Samir was examining car photos... He didn’t even notice his mother’s voice or her sigh! Then his phone rang, breaking the silence: — "Hello... This is Zuhair... Are you advertising a 2020 Kia Carnival?" — "Yes." — "What’s your lowest price?" — "Fourteen thousand." — "That’s a lot." — "No... the car is in excellent condition, barely driven, and doesn’t need any maintenance."

Umm al-Sa’eed shot Samir an angry, disappointed look, but he didn’t notice any of it! She thought to herself: "O He who carried you in my womb! But I am not in excellent condition—I need maintenance for my health in every way!"

Samir agreed with the caller, Zuhair, on a time to inspect the car, and they met the next day: a man in his early forties, with gray hair mixed with white, thick mustache... He worked as a secretary for a wealthy man (Abu Azzam)... He recognized Samir and was impressed by his energy. They agreed on the purchase of the car, which Zuhair wanted for his son. During the transfer of ownership process at the licensing department, he noticed Samir had wide connections... Zuhair asked about Samir and learned he had "risen quickly" in the used car trade...

"He seems like the right person... Abu Azzam asked me to open a used car dealership and hand it over to one of his employees. None of his employees are qualified, yet he insists."

Zuhair offered Samir the idea of approaching Master Abu Azzam with a proposal to collaborate—Zuhair would provide the capital, Samir would open a used car dealership, and they would split the profits. Samir’s eyes lit up! "Capital?!... That’s what I’ve been waiting for... I need quick leaps." — "Agreed."

Two days later, Zuhair called: — "Samir, Master Abu Azzam welcomed the idea initially, but he wants to meet you first... His schedule is packed, and he has a trip to China this Friday afternoon. The best time is for you to join us for lunch this Friday. Come early, at twelve noon, so he has time to get to know you."

Samir thought to himself: "Twelve noon? That will conflict with Friday prayer time."

Until then, despite often neglecting many prayers, Samir had always made sure to attend Friday prayers... — "Fine, can it be one o’clock?" — "The Master’s plane leaves at four, so he needs to leave my place before two in the afternoon. If you come at one, you won’t have enough time to sit with him. Why not come early? Is there a problem?"

Samir felt shy to admit the reason to Zuhair, who Samir had noticed before wore a gold ring. He feared there wouldn’t be another suitable time soon for the busy Master, and the meeting might be delayed or canceled. — "No... no problem... I’ll come at twelve."

The call ended... "I’ll do good deeds to make up for Friday prayer... God is Forgiving and Merciful... Friday, meaning the day after tomorrow, I need to prepare well for this upcoming meeting."

Wednesday passed, and Thursday arrived... Our friend Alaa, who bought his first car from Samir, was driving his car—which had deceived him!—when it broke down for the third time on his way to work! Once again, he had to ask people to push it to the side of the road... Then he took a taxi, afraid and in a hurry because this had made him late for work and his strict manager would be angry.

Peace be upon you. He arrived half an hour late, so the manager summoned him to his office:

• “Alaa, I’ve warned you repeatedly and told you I can’t tolerate your lateness any longer.”
• “Sir, it’s not in my hands. By God, my car broke down and—” The manager interrupted him:
• “It is in your hands. It’s not in your hands. The car broke down, it didn’t break down—this doesn’t matter to me. If I accept your excuses, the other employees will follow suit and the company’s attendance will become chaotic. I regret to tell you: please, this is your termination letter.”

Alaa left his job, dejected, walking in the street with no money, no job, only a broken-down car on the street’s edge that he couldn’t afford to fix, and a wife and child waiting for him to bring food to satisfy their hunger!

Alaa called Samir, who was asleep... he woke up...

• “Ugh! Again with this heavy blood?” He ended the call and put his phone on silent... then went back to sleep... Alaa sat on the curb and typed a three-word message to Samir on his phone. Less than an hour later, Samir woke up... ate breakfast alone, got ready to go out, then opened his phone... he saw Ala’s name:
• “Ugh... now he’s going to tell me the car has problems.” He opened the message and it was only three words:
• “May God avenge you against me!”

Samir was shocked! This was the first time someone had cursed him like this... so he immediately called Ala back, but Ala ended the call and didn’t answer. Alaa had decided to complain to God and curse Samir, never asking Samir for anything again! Samir called again, a second, third, and fourth time, but Alaa never answered.

Was Samir afraid of sins and the consequences of injustice in the Hereafter? No, none of that crossed his mind much! But he was afraid he wouldn’t be granted success in his meeting with Sheikh Abu Azzam the following Friday. So he thought about appeasing Ala by giving him some money. But Alaa never answered.

Samir tried to rid himself of the guilt: “He doesn’t want to answer... what more can I do? I’m better than others... there are those who blatantly cheat buyers. Everyone cheats in car sales. The buyer should expect that and tolerate some repairs... otherwise, no one will make a decent profit...”

Samir’s fear grew... he looked at the message again... felt uneasy... tried calling Alaa again... no answer. Samir thought to himself: “Anyway, is it even possible the car broke down three times because of Hisham’s shoddy repairs? I don’t think so... or... maybe... if only I had fixed it properly from the start so there wouldn’t be any doubt... anyway, I tried calling him and did what I could...”

Then Samir decided to forget about the matter... Samir spent the day outside the house, returned—as usual—late, and went to sleep thinking about the “great” meeting awaiting him the next day with Abu Azzam and his secretary Zuhair.

What happened in this meeting? And what important event will take place elsewhere during this meeting? Let’s follow along.

Inas (6)

Samir woke up to the sound of the alarm clock on Friday dawn... He performed ablution and then headed to the mosque to pray Fajr in congregation for the first time in months... Hoping that God would grant him the opportunity to meet Abu ‘Izzam, and to make up, at least partially, for missing Friday prayer that day!

During the prayer, as he stood before God, Samir was thinking about what he would say during the meeting (with the teacher) and how to make a strong impression on him about his abilities! He didn’t snap out of his thoughts until the second rak’ah, when the imam was reciting Surah Al-Insan, specifically when the imam repeated twice the verse: "Indeed, these [disbelievers] love the immediate worldly life and leave behind them a heavy Day [of Judgment]."

When the imam repeated it, Samir felt it was a message directed at him... That’s exactly how he was: loving this world and leaving behind the thought of the heavy Day of Resurrection! He said to himself: "It seems I’ve become too attached to this world... But I’m excused, I can’t focus on anything else until I succeed and prove myself... I can’t bear being called a stupid failure, less than my brothers! If I succeed in my meeting with Abu ‘Izzam and make a big leap forward, my mind will be at ease, and I’ll be able to dedicate more time to my religion."

The concerns of this world do not accept delay, but the right of God... (he thought he would deal with it later!) After Fajr, he stayed to recite the Quran for a while... On his way back from the mosque, he passed a restaurant and bought some falafel and hummus to break his fast with his mother, whom he hadn’t broken fast with in weeks.

Samir returned home, knocked on his mother’s door... No answer... He opened the door; she wasn’t in her room... He went to Amjad’s room... Amjad wasn’t there either. No one was in the house! "It seems they both spent the night outside last night... Where? Maybe at my uncle’s house, like my mother usually does. What a shame! I wanted my mother to break her fast with me and be pleased with me..."

Samir sat alone to break his fast. Why did Samir want his mother to be pleased with him? So that God would be pleased with him, and consequently, Abu ‘Izzam would be pleased with him and impressed by him, convincing him to partner with him in the car exhibition...

Samir finished his breakfast and started preparing what he would say to Abu ‘Izzam, and how to convince him of his abilities in car trading. Then he began thinking about where they would set up the exhibition, and how much profit it would generate monthly. He then put on his best suit, sprayed himself with the most expensive cologne, and stood in front of the mirror for a while, admiring his appearance. Then he left for the meeting... On his way, he stopped by a sweets shop to buy an exquisite tray for Zuhayr, the host.

He arrived at Zuhayr’s house... He rang the doorbell, and his heart started pounding with fear that he might make a mistake during the meeting... Zuhayr greeted him warmly and led him to the garden where the gathering was taking place near the pond, around a large round table. The attendees: Teacher Abu ‘Izzam, a stout man in his late forties, with a receding hairline except for the back of his head, holding a shisha in his hand, along with his wife and daughter Hanan, Zuhayr’s wife holding a cigarette in her hand, and Ziyad, Zuhayr’s son, a seventeen-year-old young man... and laughter filled the air from all of them.

Samir wasn’t used to such an atmosphere, but he made sure not to show any surprise. He sat with them and Zuhayr introduced him to everyone one by one. Then, various topics were opened, and Samir participated, trying to display his wit and diverse culture. Teacher Abu ‘Izzam mostly looked at him and rarely spoke.

After a quarter of an hour of Samir’s arrival, his phone rang... It was his brother Sa’id. Immediately, Samir silenced the call so as not to lose the "precious" moments with the teacher! Sa’id called again and a third time, and Samir silenced the call, embarrassed in front of the attendees. Then he put his phone on silent mode... He wondered to himself:

• "What does Sa’id want? Why is he insisting on calling? He rarely calls me in the first place!"

After a while, lunch was served, and it was lavish... Samir made sure to eat with a fork and knife and not eat too much—even though he loved the food—to give the teacher and Zuhayr the impression that he was "a son of nobility."

While the teacher went to wash his hands after lunch, and the others were engaged in conversation among themselves, Samir took out his phone to see why Sa’id had called. He found two missed calls from Sa’id and a message from him as well. He opened it and found: "Mother is in critical condition. Come to the Mercy Hospital!"

Samir was shocked! Critical condition! So he had to go immediately. But how? The next few moments were crucial for reaching an agreement with the teacher. They hadn’t even discussed the financial support from the teacher for Samir or opening the car exhibition; they were still getting to know each other, and the teacher was assessing his personality.

Samir thought about telling the teacher and Zuhayr about his mother’s dire situation, but he feared that "they would take it as a bad omen" with this event coinciding with the preparation for the agreement! Also, the teacher was traveling to China after this meeting. If they didn’t reach an agreement now, it would be postponed, and the teacher might change his mind. Samir was perplexed and started to feel anxious... He was about to call his brother Sa’id to check on his mother, but then the teacher and Zuhayr returned with the tea.

The attendees sat down, and Ziyad (Zuhayr’s son) started recounting some funny incidents involving famous "YouTubers," and everyone laughed. Samir hid his anxiety and forced a smile... Then suddenly, Zuhayr opened the topic of cooperation in car trading with Samir... The teacher responded briefly, addressing Zuhayr:

• "A good idea initially... Let me think about some things and give you an answer while waiting at the airport," then the teacher changed the subject and they returned to Ziyad’s "jokes." Samir realized that no details would be agreed upon at that moment... And his anxiety about his mother began to rise:
• "With your permission, I need to leave." Zuhayr said:
• "Where? The ice cream is on the way."
• "Forgive me, I have an urgent matter and need to leave now. It was a pleasure meeting you all."

Zuhayr accompanied him to the garden’s outer gate:

• "The teacher doesn’t like to give a direct answer, but I think he was impressed with your personality... Don’t worry, I’ll convince him."
• "God willing, for the best," Samir replied. His anxiety meter was rising, and he wasn’t in the mood to chat with Zuhayr, so he greeted him hastily and sped off in his car toward Mercy Hospital.

Samir called Sa’id, who didn’t answer because he had gone to Friday prayer at the hospital’s mosque and kept his phone silent afterward. He called Amjad, but he didn’t answer either. He called his sister Tala:

• "Tala, how is our mother now?" She replied in a faint, weak voice mixed with suppressed sobs, as she was beside their mother...
• "Mother?... Mother is dying."
• "Dying?!" Samir was shaken, and sweat began to pour from him:
• "Which room is she in? Which floor?"
• "In the intensive care unit... That’s it, peace be upon you."

Samir started speeding through the cars until he reached the hospital... He quickly ascended to the floor where his mother was... In the waiting room, he found the families of his brothers, their spouses, and children, some of them crying! What had happened? He quickly entered the intensive care room... Sa’id, ‘Asim, Tala, Amjad... all around the bed...

• "Where is our mother?" No one answered him... He looked again at the bed... There she was, covered with a white sheet...

She had just passed away! His brothers were in shock! They hadn’t expected death to come so suddenly. Sa’id... was biting his lip, crying silently, his grief mixed with regret, as he had been preoccupied with a major project in recent weeks, only checking on their mother by phone without visiting her.

Tala... lifted her head and glanced at Samir briefly... Her eyes were red, tears streaming down her face as she caught her breath between sobs... She lowered her head again... She was about to finish her course in psychological education... And she had arranged with her husband to stay with their mother in the coming days while he took care of the children.

‘Asim... had his Umrah tickets for him and their mother in his pocket, brought to tell their mother: "Cheer up! We’re traveling the day after tomorrow," not knowing that their mother’s departure for the Hereafter would be sooner!

The Passing of a Mother

Amjad... his legs could no longer support him, so he sat on the ground with his head between his knees, crying like a child! His mother had been his entire life in recent times. After dropping out of school, he dedicated his time to caring for her—taking her to the hospital, showing her affection, reciting the Quran for her, and entertaining her with stories about the past and her memories with his father. In her final days, he lived those moments as if they were all the years he had missed. There was nothing left he could do to honor her memory that he hadn’t already done... Yet he still couldn’t get enough of the look of satisfaction in her eyes, nor her prayers for him morning and evening, or her laughter—despite her illness—when he joked with her and composed humorous verses to cheer her up.

Everyone was in shock... They hadn’t expected death to take their mother from them so suddenly.

What about our friend Samir? Not just in recent days, but for years, he had been the one closest to their mother in appearance! His room was right next to hers, separated only by a wall between their beds. Sometimes, he even had to cover his head with a pillow to fall asleep when his mother raised her voice reciting the Quran after the Fajr prayer. But in reality, he was the furthest from her of all his siblings—further than Saeed and Tala, who lived dozens of kilometers away from their mother’s home!

Samir approached the bed hesitantly... He uncovered his mother’s face... Kissed her... A tear fell from his eyes... He wiped it away... But in that moment, he felt something strange! He felt a barrier between himself and his heart!

Their mother’s old wish to Saeed: that they not delay her burial after her death. And indeed, she was washed, shrouded, prayed over, and buried at sunset. The news spread among acquaintances, and they came to offer condolences at the mother’s house, which was now called: The Parents’ House—may God have mercy on them.

While Samir and his siblings were receiving the mourners, he received a call from Zuhair. Samir was flustered! Should he step aside in a corner of the house to answer? No! It was his mother’s funeral... So Samir ignored the call and didn’t answer. Zuhair called again... Samir, embarrassed, stepped aside and answered...

— Peace be upon you. — And upon you be peace. What’s up, Abu Shareek? You’ve been hard on us from the start?! It’s enough that you didn’t even call to ask about the teacher’s decision, and now you’re ignoring our call too?!

Samir hesitated to tell Zuhair he was at his mother’s funeral! Again, so as not to bring bad luck upon himself and the teacher!: — My apologies, I’ve been a bit busy. Of course, the teacher’s opinion matters to me. — Relax, man. Your mother is your intercessor! The teacher called me from the airport and said he agrees to the partnership contract. Come to my place tomorrow at ten in the morning to finalize the details and we’ll immediately start renting a showroom.

Samir thought to himself: Tomorrow? My mother’s soil hasn’t even dried yet... Maybe it’s not appropriate, but in any case, the mourners are coming in the evening. There’s nothing I need to do in the morning, so why not go to Zuhair?

There’s nothing I need to do in the morning! Samir didn’t even consider taking his mother’s passing as an opportunity to reflect and reassess his priorities... Instead, he hid his face from the mourners so he could show interest and joy for Zuhair, and agreed to the meeting!

Hours later, everyone left, and only Samir and Amjad remained in the house, after the passing of the woman who had been the one between them... Samir lay on his bed. If anyone had seen him in that moment, they would have thought he was crazy! He was thinking about the great achievement of convincing the teacher to partner with him, smiling... Then he remembered that his mother had died only hours ago, forcing his facial muscles to stiffen and his brows to furrow slightly... But before long, he thought about the next day, the showroom he would manage, and the cars he would buy, and his face relaxed unconsciously into a smile! Then the sound of Amjad reciting the Quran in a trembling, sorrowful voice interrupted his thoughts, reminding Samir that he should grieve and force a frown! And so, our friend slept in this state of constant fluctuation.

The next morning, Amjad woke him for Fajr prayer, and he actually got up and went with his brother to the mosque. In his prostration, he prayed to God to grant him success in his meeting with Zuhair, while Amjad beside him prayed for their mother—may God have mercy on her and admit her to Paradise! Samir noticed in the last prostration that his brother’s prayer was mixed with weeping, so he also remembered his mother and hastily prayed for her. Then he returned home and slept, exhausted from the previous night’s wakefulness.

The day Saeed, Samir’s father, had passed, Samir had been deeply affected for a while, frequenting the mosque and reciting the Quran... But this time, the whirlwind of life had taken hold of him, and he didn’t pause to reassess...

He woke up to a call from Zuhair: — Where are you, Samir? — What time is it? Oh! Nine-thirty?! Sorry... I’ll get ready now and come to you.

Samir rushed out, anxious: — They might get the impression that I’m careless... asleep and late on the first day. He arrived... Zuhair didn’t scold him... and had hoped Samir would relieve him of the worry about the idea of the car showroom that Abu Azzam had come up with.

They signed the contract: 150,000 dinars from the teacher Abu Azzam for renting a showroom and buying used cars to sell, with profits split as follows: 40% to Samir, 50% to Abu Azzam, and 10% to Zuhair, who would help manage the showroom. Then they set off, and by the afternoon, they had found a suitable place for the showroom, which Samir rented.

Samir returned home elated... Finally... The big leap he had been waiting for had been achieved. He received the mourners while calculating in his mind how to start his showroom... Reminding himself every so often that... it was his mother’s funeral!

After the mourners left, Saeed and Aasim quarreled, and their voices grew loud!

What was it about, do you think? And why did Saeed insist that his brother Samir come in a few days to read their mother’s will? And what was in the will?

Let’s continue.

Ienas (7)

After the mourners had departed on the second day of Umm al-Sa’eed’s mourning period, Sameer overheard his brothers Sa’eed and ‘Aasim arguing… about what, I wonder?

That afternoon, Amjad had brought the remaining money from their mother and given it to Sa’eed to distribute according to Islamic inheritance shares… 8,300 dinars, along with her jewelry:

— “How did so much money remain with our mother?” — “Didn’t you forget that she sold her share of the land to Bassam?” — “I didn’t forget… but she spent it on her treatment.” Amjad fell silent… — “Who was paying for her treatment then, Amjad?” — “She and I are one.” — “So you were paying from your own money?” — “Umm… it wasn’t much.”

‘Aasim had been listening to the conversation… so he joined them and conducted a “hearing” with Sa’eed to find out how much Amjad had spent on their mother’s treatment.

— “I didn’t calculate it.” Sa’eed said: — “Go calculate it.” — “Fine, over these past two days.” — “No, now.” — “It’ll take time.” — “Go calculate it now… we’re still receiving mourners if they come.”

After the mourners had left, Sa’eed resumed his questioning of Amjad away from ‘Aasim… but ‘Aasim noticed and joined them again.

— “Around seven thousand dinars.” — “Including the cost of medications outside the hospital as well?” — “That doesn’t count.” Sa’eed’s tone rose, and he looked firmly at Amjad: — “It’s enough that you didn’t tell me about the deterioration of our mother’s health and left me preoccupied with my work instead.” — “I didn’t expect things to progress this quickly.” ‘Aasim intervened: — “It is what God has decreed; He does what He wills. The important thing now is to tell us how much the treatments cost.” — “About fifteen hundred.”

At that, Sa’eed and ‘Aasim quarreled… each wanting to take responsibility for their mother’s expenses by paying the costs to Amjad so that it would be a righteous deed for her after her passing.

‘Aasim, who still had the umrah tickets in his pocket and looked at them from time to time, looked at Sa’eed sadly: — “Tomorrow was the umrah date with our mother. Imagine how I feel. Give me this chance.” Sa’eed responded angrily, raising his voice so that ‘Aasim, who had difficulty hearing, could hear: — “‘Aasim, please, consider my feelings… I’ve been too busy with my work lately and left a big void in my life.”… A tear fell from his eye… ‘Aasim had no choice but to yield to his older brother, and Amjad did not dare refuse the amount from his brother.

All of this happened in front of Sameer, who was “impressed by the situation” but never crossed his mind that he might be part of it! He was too preoccupied with preparing his new exhibition the next day!

Four days had passed since their mother’s death, and while Sameer was busily preparing his exhibition, he received a call from his brother Sa’eed: — “Sameer, we found a will your mother wrote in the wardrobe beside her bed. Come to my house today to read it.” Sameer said: — “Leave it for me at our mother’s house when you’re done with it.” — “No, I want to keep it.” — “Fine, send me a picture of it on my phone, Sa’eed. I’m very busy today. I won’t be back until late at night.”

Sa’eed said somewhat irritably: — “Sameer, I’m telling you: it’s your mother’s will. Come to my house today, even if it’s late.” Sameer said: — “Is there something in it that concerns me?” Sa’eed fell silent in frustration, and Sameer understood: — “Fine, fine. I’ll come to you tonight.”

Their mother had sensed her end was near, so she wrote her will two days before her death, her handwriting showing signs of fatigue. Sameer arrived at his brother’s house late that night… in the guest room, where Sa’eed and ‘Aasim were seated. Sa’eed took the will from its envelope and handed it to Sameer, his face tense.

Sameer began to read:

“My beloved children, Sa’eed, ‘Aasim, Tala, and Amjad, I feel that these are my last days, and I will soon join your father—may God have mercy on him. My dear ones, I wanted to tell you that I am pleased with you, and I am not afraid for you after me, for by God’s will, you are obedient to Him as your father raised you. I am pleased with your spouses and children, whom I loved dearly and who loved me in return. I will never forget how you all accustomed them to honor me and compete to please me. So I ask God to grant you righteous children and spouses for your children who will be kind to you as your spouses were to me.

My dear ones, I beg you not to grieve for me much, nor to prolong your mourning when I die… I cannot bear to imagine you crying, nor do I want to be the cause of your sorrow. It is enough that I am pleased with you, for you have surrounded me with your kindness and loyalty. I write this will while wearing your ring, Sa’eed, and Tala’s coat warms me, ‘Aasim. Beside my bed is the umrah bag you prepared for me, and on the wardrobe is Amjad’s beautiful bouquet—its flowers have wilted, but the love it expresses has not. No matter how far you may be from me, your breaths remain with me.

Sa’eed, my dear, I know you have been preoccupied with your new project lately, and I excuse you. Take care of your siblings, for you are their elder. Tala, your husband is an honorable man; bear with his temper, my daughter, and do not neglect your duty to him. ‘Aasim, my friend since childhood, do not grieve if I could not go with you to the umrah. I still remember the longing and yearning in your eyes for our journey together when you visited me last week, and I ask God to record its reward in full for you under all circumstances. I have also learned that you have started smoking recently, even if you hid it from me. I beg you, my son, to quit today. You are good-hearted, so preserve your good breath, and remember that the angels are offended by what offends the children of Adam, as our Prophet peace be upon him informed us.

Amjad, I know I burdened you greatly, my beloved son, and that you sacrificed your studies to care for me. But I say to you from the depths of my heart: ‘Go forth; may God be pleased with you, grant you success, and illuminate your path wherever you go and settle.’

And I advise you, my children, to ask Amjad how much he spent on my treatment throughout this period and do not let him hide it from you, for I noticed that my money in the chest did not decrease much. So compensate him from my money that I will leave you and from my share of our father’s house—may God have mercy on him.

As for your fifth brother, he borrowed five hundred dinars from me for his trade and promised to return it at the earliest opportunity, but it seems that the ‘earliest opportunity’ has not yet come. So demand it from him, for it is your right after me, as I did not waive it for him.

Sa’eed, Tala, ‘Aasim, Amjad… I entrust you to God, the Keeper of trusts. Let the fear of God be before your eyes, and take care of one another and of your spouses and children. I ask God Almighty to gather us all with your father—may God have mercy on him—in Paradise. Your mother, who loves you dearly: Amina.”

Sameer read his mother’s will… he left it on the table in front of Sa’eed, then took his wallet from his pocket and pulled out a checkbook. He wrote a check for five hundred dinars and handed it to Sa’eed…

Sa’eed said to him: — “Is this what you understood from the will?!” He did not take the check, so Sameer left it on the table, stood up, and left his brother’s house…

Sa’eed called after him: — “Sameer, Sameer…” But he did not respond.

Sa’eed had hoped that this will would be a new beginning for Sameer. He expected to see regret in his brother’s eyes, to comfort him, and to help him turn a new page… and so he insisted that Sameer read the will in his presence… but none of this happened, alas.

Sa’eed compared Sameer’s attitude to what had happened the day before. He read the will in the presence of his siblings and in the presence of Bassam, Tala’s husband, his voice trembling and their eyes all welling up with tears… And when he reached their mother’s words to Tala about enduring her husband’s temper and not neglecting her duty to him, Tala rested her head on Bassam’s chest, and he held her close, his hand on her head…

And when he read their mother’s words to ‘Aasim about quitting smoking, ‘Aasim took the cigarette pack from his pocket, crushed it in his hand, and threw it in the trash, placing his hand on his head as if to say, “On my head, Mother,” though he did not speak the words aloud, as grief choked him.

Samir’s Anguish

Samir drove his car home… "Why, Mother? Why this humiliation in front of my brothers? You could have reprimanded me in private… You’ve been so harsh! What will my brothers say when they read this? They’ll never respect me… Could their husbands have found out about this? What about my cousin, Tala’s husband? He might tell his father! How will my reputation stand among my relatives?! For 500 dinars, Mother? I’m your son—couldn’t you have forgiven me instead of exposing me? I’d completely forgotten about the 500 dinars. If you’d asked, I’d have given it to you on the spot."

He arrived home late… He passed his mother’s room… her bed was empty… and Amjad was asleep. "They found the will in the wardrobe," Samir thought. He shut the door to his mother’s room, opened the wardrobe drawers, opened the closet, dropped to his knees, and looked under the bed… What was Samir searching for?

He was searching for any scrap of paper his mother might have left for him, hoping to find something written like: "I blame you, Samir, but I love you." Any note that mentioned him by name… but Samir found nothing.

He went to his own room… He had planned to pray Asr, Maghrib, and then Isha so that "God would guide him" in his new business venture… but he was exhausted, so he threw himself onto the bed. For a moment, he remembered his mother reciting the Quran during Fajr prayer, her voice drifting from the other side of the wall that separated their rooms. He longed for her voice, even though he had covered his head to block it out and sleep. His anger at his mother’s "harshness" and resentment over her "public shaming" had faded, and he began to think: "So Mother died displeased with me? How many times did she mention my brothers? Four times… and me? Not once! She called me ‘our fifth brother’! Did she hate me, Mother? Why? I love you… Do I?"… And Samir fell asleep.

By the way, Samir did love his mother—just not more than his business! He didn’t mistreat her, but he didn’t treat her well either. He wouldn’t have been happy if she were angry with him (if he’d even considered it!), but what mattered more to him was not being seen as a failure!

The idea of helping his mother and taking care of her health had crossed his mind… but like distant fantasies that never found a way into his car-cluttered mind. He would tell himself: "Maybe I should ask Mother if she needs my help…" But procrastination—"I’ll do it soon"—would always take over. After all, life was long, and days stretched ahead, and right now he was busy with what couldn’t be delayed. As for his mother, he’d take care of her "one day." He never imagined that death would come before that day.

Samir didn’t wake the next day until Zuhair called: — "Where are you, Samir? You’re late… The paint is here at the showroom, and the owner wants your choice of wall colors."

He rushed to the showroom, busy with preparations all day, with no time to dwell on the bereavement his mother’s will had revealed!

The 150,000 dinars Abu ‘Izzam had agreed to were divided by Samir as follows:

• 10,000 dinars to rent the showroom for a year.
• 4,000 dinars for setup: electricity, water, decorations, paint, a secure door, and furniture.
• 3,000 dinars for official paperwork and permits.
• 700 dinars for an assistant’s salary for the first two months.
• The remaining amount, about 132,000 dinars, would be used to buy and refurbish used cars to sell…

Samir felt exhilarated as he calculated! He had started his business not long ago with less than a tenth of this amount, and now he could buy ten cars. What did Zuhair (Abu ‘Izzam’s secretary) do when he heard about Samir’s mother’s death? And what would happen to the family home after Umm al-Sa‘id’s passing? And who was Hanan, the woman Samir would think of proposing to?

Let’s continue.

Inas (8)

Samir began his new exhibition with vigor... determined to dedicate all his time to it and craft through it the story of his "success"... Meanwhile, Zuhair was flipping through newspaper pages, searching for important news about the businessman, Sheikh Abu Azzam. Suddenly, he read the names of Samir’s brothers, along with Samir’s name, which he hadn’t known was in the announcement. They were thanking those who shared their loss of their dear mother and praying for her mercy... Zuhair read the date of her passing... It was last Friday! The same day Samir had been at his house (Zuhair’s house)...

Zuhair was stunned. "It seems Samir’s mother died in an accident that day... But why didn’t he tell me?!" He immediately called Samir:

— "Hello, Samir." — "Hi, Zuhair." — "I read in the newspaper... Was it your mother who passed away last Friday?"

Samir was shocked and flustered!: — "Yes, may God have mercy on her." — "May God have mercy on her, may He preserve you... How? A car accident?" — "No, she... uh... was sick."

Zuhair sensed the embarrassment that had overcome Samir. He offered condolences for his mother again, ended the call, and thought to himself: "So Samir was sitting with us, eating grilled meat, listening to Ziyad’s jokes, and smiling at them while his mother was dying! This man worships money then! That’s why he’s drooling over meeting Sheikh Abu Azzam!"... Samir’s respect in Zuhair’s eyes had diminished greatly because of this situation, though he didn’t show it to him.

The parents’ house now had to be sold, and the proceeds divided among the heirs... Tala suggested allocating a quarter of the proceeds to contribute to building a mosque, hoping the reward would reach their parents... Amjad presented the idea to Samir... He thought for a moment... The goodness left in him and his love for his parents outweighed his love for money, so he agreed.

Amjad wanted to live in a small apartment near the university, while Samir wanted an apartment near his exhibition, far from the university. Amjad tried to find a middle ground, but Samir wasn’t cooperative, so in the end, each rented their own apartment... Before handing over the family home to the buyer, the siblings gathered there, reminiscing about childhood memories with their father, Sa’eed, and mother, Sa’eeda—may God have mercy on them. Asim and Amjad took some photos in different corners of the house... Tala sat on the swing, Sa’eed took some plants to keep in his home... Even Samir felt a sense of awe as he took a final look at the family home... Then they left the house... Samir and Amjad parted ways, and Samir lost the few moments he used to spend with Amjad. He had, unknowingly, been affected by Amjad, though weakly.

A year passed, during which Amjad returned to medical school, diving back into his studies with renewed enthusiasm and excelling once more. Meanwhile, Samir dedicated his life to the exhibition... The selling prices were attractive, but there was sometimes a bit of "negligence" in repairing the cars before selling them. To prevent his business from failing and his reputation from suffering, Samir would personally repair any sold car if he thought the buyer wouldn’t stay silent about their rights.

Amjad tried to stay in touch with Samir... He invited him to go out to a restaurant together... Samir agreed the first time, hesitated then agreed the second, then started postponing and making excuses about being busy each time. And Amjad, too, became preoccupied.

Samir’s rapid growth as a car trader impressed Sheikh Abu Azzam, especially since he himself was struggling with setbacks and losses in some of his other investments at the time. Their direct relationship strengthened, and they no longer relied on Zuhair as an intermediary. Samir’s visits to Abu Azzam’s palace became more frequent.

Hanan, Abu Azzam’s daughter, was a twenty-year-old girl, spoiled by her father and mother... They never refused any of her requests... She had failed her high school exams, so they let her repeat the year, and now she was in her first year of a graphic design diploma... "Raw," superficial in her thinking... This ambitious young man, Samir, caught her attention... It happened repeatedly that she would open the door for him when he came to the palace and welcome him warmly... And in turn, Samir began to feel an interest in her.

Samir thought: "Hasn’t the time come for me to get married and start a family? All my brothers are married—except Amjad—and their children are growing up... What am I missing to get married?" He considered proposing to Hanan, Abu Azzam’s daughter, but then thought to himself: "Impossible! The Sheikh is a millionaire, and I’m just an ordinary man, a partner in one of his smaller investments. I’m not even a university graduate... The Sheikh won’t agree, and maybe his daughter won’t either. Someone like her marries the wealthy." "But I think she’s interested in me too... Why not give it a try?"

After much hesitation, Samir decided to give it a try and gradually broach the subject with the Sheikh, testing the waters. But after a remarkable month with high profits—where Samir met with Abu Azzam at the end of each month to report on the cars bought and sold, the net profits, and the growth in their business—Samir redoubled his efforts and dedication... And then came the high-profit month: 45 cars were sold, with net profits of 11,700 dinars, a 14% increase from the previous month. Finally, he decided to propose to Hanan.

Samir went to his monthly meeting with Abu Azzam, dressed meticulously, and organized a summary of the past months’ achievements in numerical tables. He came with a proposal to expand the exhibition and buy the building instead of paying annual rent. Abu Azzam was impressed by the rapid growth of the car business and noticed Samir’s great enthusiasm. As he listened to Samir, he thought about how he could employ this young man’s energy—who hadn’t yet turned twenty-three—to benefit him the most.

After Abu Azzam expressed his admiration for these achievements and his agreement to pay 140,000 dinars to buy the exhibition building from its owner, Samir said: — "Uncle Abu Azzam, I’m very happy to work with you, and I hope our relationship deepens." This was the first time he had called him "uncle," as he usually addressed him as "Sheikh."

Abu Azzam replied: — "And I’m happy with you, Samir. Keep up this energy, and take my open support." — "May I ask for something else that brings me closer to you, besides financial support?"

Abu Azzam was surprised. "Go ahead." — "Perhaps my social standing is still modest, but I have ambition and... uh... regarding... Miss Hanan..." Samir hesitated to state his request outright, fearing the Sheikh’s rejection.

Abu Azzam was taken aback by the request. He was silent for a moment, thinking, then said: — "Fine, let me speak to Hanan and her mother about the matter."

Samir was relieved that the Sheikh hadn’t rejected him outright, then excused himself and left.

Abu Azzam knew that many wealthy businessmen and officials might propose to his beautiful daughter, but he had noticed Hanan’s interest in Samir and saw in him the right person to help manage his projects and investments... "A young man, ambitious, serious in his work, who could help me solve the problems that had led to recent losses. I can ensure his loyalty by marrying him to Hanan and improving his social standing, and I won’t lose out—my daughter will benefit."

Abu Azzam had two sons; the older one was unreliable, spending his time with friends and avoiding any tasks his father assigned him, while the younger one was still small... So Abu Azzam wanted to bring a young man close to him who could assist him.

Abu Azzam sat with Hanan and her mother...

• "Samir has achieved remarkable success in a short period."
• "He seems intelligent and energetic, Papa."
• "Yes," he said with a smile. "Do you know what he asked me today?"
• "What?"
• "He’s thinking about proposing to you."

Hanan’s face turned red, and she felt immense happiness.

Hanan’s mother became agitated:

• "Impossible! He’s just a simple young man... Hanan won’t accept anyone but a 'prince' from our social standing. My friends have started hinting about Hanan for their sons or wealthy brothers, and I’ve been delaying because she’s still young."
• "This young man has a future, and Hanan will be happy with him."
• "What will I say if my family and friends ask about his job?"
• "Tell them: a businessman and a partner of mine in some investments. I’ll help him, Susan, so he can grow quickly... The boy has the qualifications... And the best part is, he’ll stay close to us so we can see Hanan whenever we want. Can you tolerate him taking Hanan away from us, possibly traveling with her to another city or even country?"
• "Of course not... Hanan is my soul... But where will they live?"
• "In the Jasmine Villa," Abu Azzam replied. It’s the villa where our family lived before we became wealthier, then we moved to the palace and left it without selling it."

Susan turned to her daughter:

• "Hanan, my dear, do you accept a young man who isn’t a university graduate?"
• "Samir is exceptional, intelligent, and ambitious, Mama."
• "But..." Abu Azzam interrupted:
• "And I’m not a university graduate either, Susan... Have I failed in life?"
• "He’s young..."
• "He suits our little daughter..." After a long discussion, Hanan’s mother reluctantly agreed.

The next day, Abu Azzam went to his luxurious office. While sitting with his secretary, Zuhayr, he told him about the remarkable success of the exhibition Samir had presented the day before, as well as his intention to marry Hanan to Samir. At this, Zuhayr began to feel intense jealousy toward Samir! After all, it was Zuhayr who had introduced Samir to the Master, yet now they were surpassing him and not inviting him to many meetings. The Master even spoke of Samir with admiration and wanted to marry him to his daughter!

Driven by jealousy, Zuhayr said:

• "Master, Samir is excellent as a trader—I agree with that. But as a son-in-law? Forgive me... Hanan is like my own daughter... Samir is not worthy of her... I didn’t tell you this, but do you believe that when we first had lunch with him, he left his dying mother alone?"

The Master realized Zuhayr’s words were fueled by jealousy and didn’t pay much attention:

• "Impossible, Zuhayr."
• "Believe me, sir... Ask him... He was desperate to see you at any cost... Forgive me, but someone who isn’t good to his mother won’t be good to your daughter, Master."

The Master didn’t like Zuhayr’s attempts to discourage him about Samir and replied with an odd response to shut him down:

• "If Samir is this dedicated to his work, that will be one of the keys to his success." Zuhayr fell silent in bitter frustration.

The Master deliberately delayed for a week before calling Samir and inviting him to the palace, where Hanan and her mother were waiting. It was the happiest day of Samir’s life! One piece of news after another: he would marry the Master’s daughter, the Master would gift them the Jasmine Villa as a wedding present, and the wedding would be held in a luxurious hotel with wealthy businessmen and socialites in attendance.

Samir couldn’t hide his joy and shock! He swallowed hard repeatedly... But when the conversation turned to wedding expenses, he hinted at the potential costs. The Master said:

• "Leave the matter to me. I’ll arrange the most beautiful wedding for you both."

Six months passed, during which Zuhayr’s attitude toward Samir changed... but Samir ignored him, realizing he was starting to envy him. Then came the long-awaited wedding day... Samir invited only his brothers and their families—not the rest of his relatives—due to the limited number of invitations his "uncle" Abu Azzam had given him. Within minutes of the wedding starting, his four brothers and their wives left, shocked and dismayed by what they saw!

Samir and Hanan’s wedding was a huge leap that distanced Samir from his brothers, his family environment, his upbringing, and his closeness to Abu Azzam’s world. Samir himself was surprised and embarrassed by some of the displays and arrangements, but he felt it was "unreasonable" to express any dissatisfaction or objection to the will of his "uncle" Abu Azzam, who had "surrounded him with kindness": funding the exhibition, marrying him to his daughter, the villa, covering the wedding costs, and now introducing him to his "distinguished" friends, shaking their hands, greeting them, and introducing himself to them as: "The young rising businessman, my partner in some investments," as Abu Azzam would say.

Abu Azzam had become the air Samir breathed! He could no longer do without him or say "no" to him about anything. Thus, at his own wedding, he remained silent about many things, justifying it to himself as usual.

The wedding ended, and the newlyweds traveled to Cyprus for two weeks. Upon returning, they moved into the villa, which Samir and his father-in-law shared the cost of furnishing. They began their life together in harmony and affection... Each was happy with the other...

Wanting to express his gratitude to God, Samir became regular in his prayers in the following weeks and taught Hanan how to pray! The last prayer Hanan had seen in her environment was her grandfather’s—the mother’s father—before his death years ago. Hanan responded and sometimes prayed with Samir in congregation. When they bought prayer clothes and Hanan wore them, her beauty and kindness grew even more in Samir’s heart. However, the topic of the hijab was never brought up in this environment, and Samir didn’t dare broach the subject with Hanan.

A full month passed after the wedding, during which Samir didn’t think to contact his brothers, and they, in turn, didn’t contact him out of resentment. Who, then, finally called him? What did they say? What did Zuhayr do out of jealousy? And what was Samir’s firstborn child?

Let’s continue.

Inas (9)

A month after Sameer’s wedding, Amjad called him asking to meet... Sameer welcomed him and invited him to the villa. Amjad arrived with a box of sweets as a wedding gift. He began by inquiring about Sameer’s well-being, his happiness with his wife Hanan, and his success at work. Then, Sameer asked Amjad about his studies in the Faculty of Medicine and how he spent his time living alone.

After these pleasantries, Amjad spoke in a calm, sorrowful, and cautious tone:

— “Sameer, you’ve been drifting far away...”

Sameer understood his brother’s intent. The warmth and openness in the conversation vanished, and he fell silent. Amjad continued:

— “My brother, this is not what our parents, may God have mercy on them, raised us for—your prayers... your relationship with God... your ties of kinship... Sameer...”

Sameer interrupted him:

— “Amjad, I haven’t neglected anything. But it seems you’ve come to lecture me. You didn’t even say ‘congratulations on your marriage’.”

— “Brother, honestly, what happened at the wedding doesn’t make it blessed by God. I can’t lie to you just to spare your feelings.”

— “Brother, don’t make this difficult. It’s the night of a lifetime—people want to enjoy themselves.”

— “Brother, if the only thing that makes you happy is what displeases God, then that’s heedlessness! When God grants you blessings, you should be at the peak of gratitude and obedience to Him.”

— “Don’t call me heedless... I’m not heedless! When you offered to allocate part of our parents’ inheritance to build a mosque, I agreed. I constantly do charitable work, though I don’t necessarily tell you about it. When we left our parents’ house—may God have mercy on them—I could have taken an apartment through the bank, but I didn’t. Instead, I rented a modest one... and prayer... who told you I don’t pray? I sometimes fall short, but I haven’t abandoned it completely. In fact, I even encouraged Hanan, and now she sometimes prays with me. So please, don’t position yourself as a judge of my relationship with God!”

— “Brother, I advise you out of concern for you... A servant should not be satisfied with doing some of what God commands, only when he feels like it... Sameer, I expect more reverence from you for God’s rights, not to belittle them.”

At this point, Sameer’s irritation grew:

— “I’m not belittling God’s rights. I love God, and I’m certain He loves me... Look how He has blessed my business—I succeeded quickly. Look how I now live in a luxurious villa... I constantly supplicate to God, and He responds—in my illness, in my business, in my dealings and relationships.”

— “Sameer, all you mentioned is worldly gain. God gives worldly success to those He loves and those He doesn’t. But He only grants faith to those He loves. True love for God is reflected in your success in your religion and your parents’ satisfaction. The day my mother passed away...”

Sameer’s face flushed with anger. That day was the raw nerve he couldn’t bear touched—he couldn’t bear being compared to his siblings in it. He interrupted Amjad:

— “May God have mercy on my mother and father. Amjad, I thought you came to congratulate me on my marriage. Anyway, thank you for your visit and your gift. May God guide us all.” It was clear he wanted to end the visit.

Amjad left, saddened by his brother’s state. He realized that Sameer’s perspective was entirely confined to worldly matters—he measured his relationship with God by his worldly success!

Amjad got into his car. Before driving off, he sent Sameer a text message with two Quranic verses:

“As for man, when his Lord tries him by honoring him and blessing him with ease, he says, ‘My Lord has honored me.’ But when He tries him by restricting his provision, he says, ‘My Lord has humiliated me.’ No! Indeed, it is not the honor or humiliation from God that is based on worldly provision.” (Quran 89:15-17)

Sameer read the message. He understood what Amjad wanted him to realize: Honor and humiliation are not determined by worldly success.

He remembered his mother’s advice and her prayers for his siblings, while he was deprived... But then his bride, Hanan, called him. He thought to himself, “Maybe I should think about this matter... but not now. It’s enough that my blood is boiling—I’m a groom. I’ll think about it later... at the first opportunity.” Then he went to Hanan.

A year passed... During that time, two major events occurred:

First, Abu ‘Izzam began involving Sameer in managing his other investments outside the car dealership. He would brief Sameer on the nature of these investments, their challenges, and task him with finding solutions. The files for these investments were with the secretary, Zuhair. After each meeting, the Master would say to Sameer:

— “Follow up with Zuhair and get the details from him.”

Zuhair was seething with resentment toward the spoiled young man (Sameer), whom the Master relied on to solve problems that Zuhair himself couldn’t handle:

“I’m the one who brought you to Abu ‘Izzam... and now the two of you are bypassing me in meetings. Then, not long after, he marries off his daughter to you when you were nothing! And he thinks you’ll be more capable than me at solving problems?!”

So Zuhair treated Sameer coldly, deliberately delaying giving him some details, making excuses about being busy, and even hiding important information or intentionally providing misleading details—all to sabotage Sameer.

Sameer realized what Zuhair was up to. So, in a “clever” manner, he began recording some of their conversations and saving their correspondence. He pretended to trust Zuhair, allowing him to continue his schemes... while Sameer thought to himself:

“I don’t like hurting anyone... but anyone who stands in my way... I’ll crush them!”

Pride... a child born in Sameer’s heart on his wedding day, and its effects had already appeared when Amjad advised him. Now, it continued to grow...

Sameer began to feel that the blessings he enjoyed were the fruit of his intelligence and effort. He would repeat to himself:

“Victory is on your side.” “Success follows your steps.”

Sometimes, when he was alone, he would forget himself, curling his lips in arrogance and raising his thumb in approval, saying, “You deserve it!” He was so full of himself that he believed he could “crush” Zuhair with the evidence he had gathered—evidence he planned to present to Master Abu ‘Izzam.

But what delayed him was the second event: the birth of his first child with his wife, Hanan.

Abu ‘Izzam came to the hospital... He held his first grandson with joy.

— “What should we name him, boy? What should we name him? ...Hmm... Ashraf.”

— “Suzan... take a picture of me with Ashraf.” She took the photo and sent it. Abu ‘Izzam took out his phone and posted on Facebook:

“With my first grandson, whom I named Ashraf, to be a symbol of honor in a time of deceit and fraud.”

It was strange that Abu ‘Izzam didn’t consult Sameer—who had already prepared a name for his child—but remained silent, understanding his father’s joy over his first grandson.

The newborn brought joy to Sameer and Hanan’s home. A week after Ashraf’s birth, Sameer’s brothers visited to congratulate him. It was an opportunity for Hanan to get to know Tala, Sa’eed’s wife, and ‘Asim’s wife. Despite their differing personalities, the visit had moments of harmony and joy over the new baby.

Two months passed, and Sameer found the right time to “crush” Zuhair! He asked the Master (his uncle) to arrange a meeting with the three of them. They gathered in the Master’s office, and Sameer surprised them with a complete file of evidence clearly incriminating Zuhair. It showed that he deliberately obstructed Sameer’s work and sabotaged him, including transcripts of recorded calls. There was even evidence of Zuhair’s negligence and failure in managing some investments...

Abu ‘Izzam flipped through the papers with a frown, while Zuhair looked toward the window with indifference.

Sameer said:

— “Of course, Uncle Abu ‘Izzam, I can no longer work with this man. Needless to say, he doesn’t deserve the 10% profit share we agreed upon for the dealership—he hasn’t contributed anything to its success.”

Abu ‘Izzam raised his eyes from the file and looked at Zuhair with suppressed anger. Sameer continued, somewhat gloating:

— “Uncle, if you decide to let Zuhair go, I suggest you don’t sue him or publicly shame him. Perhaps he’ll find another job and start fresh.”

Zuhair gave a cryptic smile, took out a cigarette, lit it, and said:

— “As for me, Master, I suggest you find someone who can keep your facilitation files secret before thinking about letting me go!”

Meeting Aftermath

Samir did not understand what Secretary Zuhayr meant by “the secrets of the facilitation file,” yet he was stunned when his uncle Abu ‘Azzam’s reaction was nothing like what he expected. Abu ‘Azzam simply looked toward the window, cigarette in hand, and said:

“Zuhayr, I do not want this behaviour repeated with Samir. We must all set aside our differences and prioritise the company’s interests.”

And that was it—utterly matter-of-fact. Zuhayr fell silent, a suspicious hush settling over the room.

Abu ‘Azzam then divided the work between them, clearly marking each man’s boundaries. He told Zuhayr that his share of the car-show profits would drop to five percent, in exchange for a reduction in his responsibilities for the show, while Abu ‘Azzam’s own share would rise to fifty-five percent. Zuhayr swallowed his protest in silence.

The meeting ended. Zuhayr left. Samir hesitated to ask his father-in-law why he had reacted so coolly; he was about to walk away when Abu ‘Azzam called him back and asked for the evidence that incriminated Zuhayr, so that he could keep it safe.

Samir left determined to uncover the meaning of “the secrets of the facilitation file.” He began digging—literally “excavating”—behind both the teacher (al-Mu‘allim) and Zuhayr. He tried to build personal ties with anyone connected to the teacher’s investments. He seized every chance to glance at Zuhayr’s office computer and rummage through his desk when the secretary was absent. He even lingered near the teacher’s door whenever he noticed it shut, suspecting a private call the teacher did not want overheard.

Samir carried out this spying while frustrated by his repeated failures to “crush” Zuhayr, who had long treated him badly and actively tried to undermine him.

Over more than two months, Samir uncovered fragments of the truth. Meanwhile, the teacher also discovered that his son-in-law was digging into his affairs; friends of the teacher, whom Samir had tried to extract information from indirectly, had told him. The teacher summoned Samir to his office. What happened in that meeting between Abu ‘Azzam and his son-in-law Samir? Why did he not dismiss his secretary Zuhayr? What exactly were these “facilitation secrets” Zuhayr had mentioned? And what had Samir learned about the hidden world of Abu ‘Azzam and Zuhayr?

Let us continue.

Inas (10)

The teacher summoned Samira to his office, closed the door behind them, turned his wheelchair toward the glass window away from Samira, pulled out a cigarette, lit it, took a deep drag, and exhaled a cloud of smoke from his mouth... Then he said to Samira:

— "One learns from life what cannot be learned in university, courses, or conferences... And from this experience, Samira, ideals and values are undoubtedly important. They are essential for a healthy psychological life and for feeling satisfied with oneself. But if you let these values interfere too much in your life, they will restrict you, and everyone will outpace you. The one who lags behind in the race not only earns less reward but is swept away by the flood. We live in a merciless world."

The teacher turned his wheelchair toward Samira, picked up some office supplies in front of him, and said:

— "Imagine these pieces, Samira, as wooden planks, and imagine the office as a sea where the wind stirs its waves. The planks move back and forth, approach and recede... Can I build a tall structure on them?"

Samira replied:

— "Of course not."

The teacher smiled and said:

— "So it is with ideals and values in our world: society is the sea, circumstances, changes, and problems are the wind, the wooden planks are our opportunities in this life... the foothold we can reach. If the wind calms one day and the planks come close together, and we try to build high ideals and noble values on this foundation, what will happen with the first gust of wind and the first wave of the sea?"

Samira said:

— "It will collapse."

The teacher said:

— "Well said! It will collapse, and you will collapse with it! And the higher the ideals, the faster the collapse. So, after more than a quarter-century in the workforce, I’ve learned that religious values and moral ideals are beautiful, but I allow them to intervene in my life only to the extent that reality permits. In other words, I carry each plank only as much as it can bear, what it can sustain no matter how hard the wind blows or the waves rise. This way, I harmonize my spiritual needs with reality at the same time. Others may insist on building high, but when it collapses, they’ll be ready to abandon all their values and morals and cling to the planks just to avoid drowning! No, my dear, a little that lasts is better than a lot that is cut off. The wolf does not perish, nor do the sheep."

Samira fell silent and swallowed hard... It seemed to him that his uncle Abu ‘Izzam had "some logic" in what he said! This long introduction of "wisdom" from the teacher was a prelude to what he decided to reveal to his son-in-law Samira over more than an hour about the nature of the "facilitations," "arrangements," "sweetening deals," and "manipulations" that the teacher engaged in with his investments.

Samira discovered that his uncle Abu ‘Izzam’s world was full of fraud, forgery, and bribery! Far more complex than the naive cheating Samira had used to swindle Ala’ when selling his first car, and far more complex than the limited cheating he had grown accustomed to in repairing some cars afterward. Samira realized that the secretary, Zuhayra, was not just a secretary but the one who handled what the teacher called "facilitations" and "sweetening deals," so that the teacher himself would not appear in the picture and could maintain his "prestige."

That was why the teacher did not deal firmly with Zuhayra when he discovered that she was deliberately sabotaging Samira—because he did not want to push Zuhayra to the point of (damn him and my enemies) and expose all the secrets, (ruining everyone’s house)!

Samira left Abu ‘Izzam’s office in a daze... He had justified to himself cheating worth a hundred or two hundred dinars, but now he had to adapt to a much "higher" level! For a moment, Samira thought about withdrawing from this corrupt world... But how could he withdraw? Abu ‘Izzam was his lifeline; he could no longer do without him! He was the path to achieving his ambitions and crafting his success story... Incidentally, Samira had outwardly achieved his ambition—his financial situation was nearly equal to that of his brothers, he had married and had children like them, and he had gained significant prestige among the employees of the showroom, his customers, the employees of Abu ‘Izzam’s investments, and his acquaintances among the "elite class." Yet his intense preoccupation with work, his hatred for Zuhayra, then his schemes against her, and then his spying on Zuhayra and the teacher—all of this made the moment of achieving his "ambition" pass without Samira even noticing it or "tasting" it.

Still, it was difficult for him to give up this life... And Samira saw no alternative but to "adapt" to his new knowledge of Abu ‘Izzam’s world... It wasn’t an easy task, but the "trio"—his uncle Abu ‘Izzam, the jinn’s whisper, and his own soul commanding evil—collaborated to keep the (self-accusing soul) in Samira under sedation! Whenever it stirred, they "injected it" with one of the ready-made needles of various shapes: "You’re better than others," "Life is like this," "Everyone does what you do," "Make up for it with charity," "Ideals are one thing, reality is another," "I can’t destroy what I’ve built in my trade and social standing," "The vast mercy of God will encompass you," "When I achieve my ambition, my soul will settle, and I’ll give my religion its due time," "One day I’ll go to Hajj, weep at the Kaaba, and turn over a new leaf"... Of course, this was in addition to the old original needle: "I don’t want to be less than others; I don’t want to be called a failure."

Abu ‘Izzam even involved Samira in charitable work he actually did! He tasked Samira with organizing Ramadan iftars and distributing charity baskets... But Abu ‘Izzam never forgot to have photos taken of himself at these events... And when the news was published on the Abu ‘Izzam Investments website, the numbers were doubled compared to reality! A Ramadan iftar that actually fed a hundred orphans was advertised as three hundred, with meticulous photography to make the crowd appear larger. And a hundred charity baskets distributed to the needy in reality were advertised as two hundred!

Samira remembered how his father used to call his brother Asim and give him a bag full of rice, sugar, milk, and chocolates, saying:

— "Ya Asim, take this bag to Umm Ra’fat’s house, but make sure no one sees you."

Umm Ra’fat was a widow whose husband had died of cancer, leaving her with three children. Abu Samir used to provide for her with provisions but did not want anyone to know. So Asim would go to her house every few days, look right and left to ensure no one was watching, leave the bag at her door, ring the bell, and flee quickly before the door opened. When he told his father the task was successful, his father would smile and say:

— "Praise be to God. O Lord, accept from Your servant this charity, which You have provided him with wealth to spend and with which he supports her."

Samira had always remembered this scene and these words, but he only retrieved them from the depths of his memory when he saw Abu ‘Izzam’s "charitable" work exaggerated two or three times for commercial purposes! Abu ‘Izzam knew how to "tame" Samira gradually... At first, he revealed to him some of the truth about the "facilitations," while hiding even worse matters... Then he moved from the stage of habituating Samira to remaining silent about these "facilitations" to gradually involving him in some of them... And whenever he saw that Samira had grown accustomed to giving up some of his religion and values, he began to habituate him to relinquishing another value instilled in him by his parents since childhood. This made any attempt to object to this "twisting," "entanglement," or "intensification" seem unnecessary, and Samira did not dare to protest!

As the cards (of deception and circumvention) were revealed to Samira and he was gradually drawn into them, his prestige in the eyes of his uncle Abu ‘Izzam diminished. Samira complied with many things and increasingly remained silent about the wrongdoing to gain his approval and continued support. But in reality, this made him appear in Abu ‘Izzam’s eyes as a (useful tool) rather than an independent entity deserving respect!

Often, Abu ‘Izzam made Samira feel that his achievements were below expectations and that he had expected better results... All this to "squeeze" every last bit of potential from Samira...

Samir felt that his compromise of his principles had cost him Abu ‘Izzam’s respect. He tried to return to them and show that he was “a man of principle” in order to regain that respect. He even displayed a kind of opposition to things to which Abu ‘Izzam had recently accustomed him… but Abu ‘Izzam was not unaware of the reasons behind this reluctance. Whenever Samir opposed him, Abu ‘Izzam would look at him with a yellowed smile that carried a hint of scorn, then carry on as though Samir had said nothing.

Despite Samir’s deep negligence and his sinking into the mire of Abu ‘Izzam, there was one principle he held fast to and had not abandoned all these years. This principle acted as a brake on his rapid decline, and the teacher did not press him too hard on it, lest his reproaching conscience suddenly awaken!

What was this principle, then? And how did Samir’s life with Hanan unfold after the developments in his relationship with her father? Did Samir have any guarantees to safeguard his work rights with Abu ‘Izzam?

Let us continue.

Inas (11)

Despite Sameer’s deep heedlessness and his immersion in the filth of Abu ‘Izzam, there was one principle he clung to and never abandoned throughout these years. Sameer had a sense of reverence for Allah the Exalted... true, it was weak reverence that did not prevent him from participating with Abu ‘Izzam in many forbidden acts nor did it motivate him to preserve his prayers, but despite that, he feared the idea of doing something that would strip him of the description of Islam.

Abu ‘Izzam and Zuheir were dismissive of religion, and once they displayed this dismissiveness in jest... Sameer did not humor them in that; rather, he expressed discomfort, frowned, and changed the subject. After that, they avoided such jokes in front of him.

This innate seed of goodness was preserved by Sameer’s father. Sameer still remembers the day he went with his father to a wedding feast at his paternal cousin’s (Abu Hilmi’s) house. Sameer was ten years old at the time... At the dining table, Abu Hilmi wanted to make the guests laugh, so he said:

— “Have you heard the latest joke? Jibreel descended and entered a shop...”

Here, Sameer recalls how his father’s features changed instantly. He interrupted Abu Hilmi:

— “I seek refuge in Allah, Abu Hilmi, do not joke about religion.” — “Abu Sa’eed, just listen.” — “No, we do not laugh about anything that touches religion, then we discuss whether it is correct or wrong... May Allah be pleased with you... everything except the wrath of the Lord of the Worlds.”

At that point, one of the guests intervened:

— “Abu Sa’eed is right. Jibreel is a noble angel, about whom Allah said: ‘It is the word of a noble Messenger, possessed of power, established in the presence of the Lord of the Throne, obeyed there, and trustworthy... We do not include him in jokes.’”

Abu Hilmi fell silent and said:

— “I seek forgiveness from Allah.”

Sameer still remembers the scene vividly: his father’s angry expression, his raised voice, the heat of his faith, and his zeal for his religion. Abu Sa’eed was not a scholar; rather, he was one of the common Muslims, yet he was a lover of Allah and revered Him.

Sameer still remembers a recurring scene from his childhood: his father would hold invoices that contained the basmala or the name of Allah the Exalted and tear them before throwing them away. He also remembers a hadith his father repeated to him and his siblings many times... that the Prophet peace be upon him mentioned a man from a previous nation to whom Allah had given wealth and children. When death approached him, he asked his sons: “What kind of father was I to you?” They replied: “You were the best of fathers.” He said: “Then I have not saved any good deed with Allah,” meaning he had not set aside any righteous deed intended for the sake of Allah to save him on the Day of Judgment. He gave his sons an unusual instruction: “When I die, burn me until I become charcoal, then grind me. When a windy day comes, scatter my ashes in it,” meaning scatter the ashes of my body so that they may be carried away by the wind... And why all this? He said: “By Allah, if Allah decrees punishment for me, He will punish me with a punishment no one else among the worlds has ever received!”

The Prophet peace be upon him said: (So Allah took their pledge on that, by my Lord, and they did it. Then they scattered his ashes on a windy day. Allah the Exalted said: ‘Be!’ and he became a man standing. Allah asked: ‘O My servant, what made you do what you did?’ He replied: ‘Out of fear of You.’ There was no delay before Allah had mercy on him at that moment)... meaning Allah the Exalted then showed him mercy when he said that word!

Sameer still remembers how his father, despite his sternness, would tremble and his features soften every time he read: “There was no delay before Allah had mercy on him at that moment” when repeating the hadith on more than one occasion... and how he would say to them: “What saved this man, O my sons? It was his reverence for Allah. Strive, no matter how much you err, not to lose this lifeline, and do not allow anyone to snatch this jewel from your hearts with a silly joke or a trivial word you laugh at or humor someone in, lest you ruin your Hereafter.”

This reverence in Sameer, despite its weakness, was a thread that kept him connected to his religion, a faint spark that could yet grow. Abu ‘Izzam warned him against approaching this red line.

After months of Sameer’s involvement in Abu ‘Izzam’s other investments—beyond the car dealership—his life with Hanan began to be affected, and their happiness grew clouded... In these years, Sameer discovered the bitter truth: that Abu ‘Izzam had not married him to his daughter and given him the villa out of affection for him or because he loved him and considered him a son, as Sameer had once imagined! Rather, it was so he could use him as a ring on his finger in his investments and benefit from him as much as possible. Sameer’s respect for his uncle Abu ‘Izzam diminished as he discovered the crookedness in the “facilities” and “concessions,” and for another reason that greatly irritated Sameer: over time, he realized that Abu ‘Izzam was not concerned with resolving the problems Sameer was facing with Zuheir; rather, he was happy for them to continue so he could exploit them! He deliberately made comparisons between them to stoke the competitive fire in each, even if it came at the cost of their mental well-being and increasing envy between them. The only time he would put an end to their animosity was if he felt it affected the (business interest)!

Sameer began to see himself and Zuheir like two horses (or donkeys!) pulling a cart that Abu ‘Izzam whipped to make them go faster and faster! Additionally, the financial arrangements between Sameer and his uncle Abu ‘Izzam were unclear. Sameer had a 40% share in the profits of the car dealership. Fine—what about his efforts in managing the poultry farm? The fast-food restaurant chain? The contracting company? The insurance company shares? Abu ‘Izzam had lured his son-in-law into helping manage these ventures without agreeing on Sameer’s compensation for his efforts in them. Was he a partner? An employee? There was nothing in writing, and he had not received any financial return from them so far.

Of course, it was difficult for Sameer to broach the subject with his uncle Abu ‘Izzam while living in the luxurious villa rent-free, especially since his uncle had bought him an expensive jeep—though the opportunity to register it in Sameer’s name had not yet arisen! Nor did Abu ‘Izzam forget to surprise Sameer from time to time with tickets for him, his wife, and his son to travel to tourist destinations, or with tins of oil, boxes of vegetables and fruits, and bags of meat sent to Sameer’s home. And when Hanan gave birth to their son Ashraf, Abu ‘Izzam promptly paid the hospital bills and periodically gave his daughter money.

Faced with all of this, Sameer’s question to his uncle, “What do I get for my efforts?” would seem rude in his eyes! What more could he want than what he already had? Yet despite that, he was uneasy about the lack of clarity regarding his earnings for dedicating his life to his uncle’s investments. Apart from this, Sameer began to arrive late to work, and even when he was at home, he often received and made work-related calls, including ones that sparked his anger and disrupted his time with Hanan. Sameer was determined in all of this to “prove himself” in the competition with Zuheir in front of the Master, and Zuheir undermined Sameer’s work (behind the scenes) without leaving any trace, having learned his lesson after Sameer had gathered evidence against him!

Hanan loved her husband and asked for his affection and attention...

— “My love, Ashraf and I are waiting for you... I showed him your picture on my phone, and he smiled and said, ‘Baba... baba,’ then stood by the door waiting for you. When will you be back?” — “Hehe... my love, oh Baba... fine, I’ll go out in a little while.”

At home: — “My love, please, I don’t like to see you in a bad mood... be with us and leave work alone.”

At first, Sameer pitied Hanan when he saw the pleading and sincere love in her eyes, so he responded, calmed himself, and sometimes even put his phone far away to devote himself to her and Ashraf. But over time, his responses changed:

— “Please, come back to us, Sameer, Ashraf and I miss you.” — “I’m busy with my father’s interests.”

At home: — “Please, turn off your phone, we want you with us.” — “I have to. Until your father is pleased,” he said with a tone of irritation. Sameer used to refer to her father as “Uncle Abu ‘Izzam”... now he called him “your father.”

---

In contrast, Hanan noticed her father’s declining respect for her husband... and she could do nothing to change the strained relationship between them. She too began to feel tense and restless in her own relationship with Samir... but one thing kept a measure of affection alive in the home: Hanan was pregnant with Samir’s second child... and in the final months of her pregnancy, she deliberately feigned fatigue and the need for care to draw some affection and attention from Samir... who, in turn, struggled to pull himself away from his work and dedicate some time to his family.

Three years after the birth of Ashraf, Hanan gave birth to her second child... Samir rejoiced at his new son... but before long, Abu ‘Izzam arrived to spoil the joy! He came to the hospital and told Samir, Hanan, and her mother that he had “decided” to name the newborn (Sadiq).

Strangely, it never occurred to Abu ‘Izzam to “consult” Samir at least about naming his son or to ask if he had already chosen a name for his child! For Abu ‘Izzam had begun—unconsciously—to view Samir’s children as part of his own possessions.

On his Facebook account, the teacher posted a picture of himself holding the newborn, smiling, with the caption: “My new grandson, I named him (Sadiq) so that he may be truthful in an age where lying has spread, just as I named my first grandson (Ashraf) to preserve honor in a time of deceit and fraud!” Then the teacher began receiving likes from admirers, congratulations from clients, partners, and employees.

Samir realized that his children’s names were now being used by the teacher for commercial purposes, to conceal his true face and polish his image in front of his acquaintances. The feeling was harsh and humiliating for Samir. He thought to object and say, “But I had already chosen a name for my son,” yet he was as if drugged when it came to opposing Abu ‘Izzam!

Dr. Amjad called Samir... he had completed his medical studies and was specializing in neurology... Samir assumed Amjad had heard about the new baby... so he was surprised, especially since his relationship with his siblings had weakened over time due to his many responsibilities and problems. He rarely met them except on holidays, and even then, perhaps only one of them by chance while shopping after months of no contact. The one who stayed in touch the most was Dr. Amjad, who checked on Samir with WhatsApp messages, patiently enduring Samir’s frequent ignoring of his calls and messages, only to reach out again until Samir responded... Amjad was determined to keep even the thinnest thread of connection between them. He was also waiting for the right moment to tell Samir the words his mother, Umm al-Sa‘id, had said before her death—words he hoped might make a difference in Samir’s life. But he was saving these words for the right opportunity, not wanting to “waste his shot” by saying them when Samir was distracted, allowing them to be lost among the clutter of his worries and preoccupations. That moment had not yet come... so why had Amjad called?

---

• “Samir, I’d like to invite you to my house.”
• “Masha’Allah! When?”
• “Next Friday at five o’clock in the Nobles Hall.”
• “Beautiful... by the way, I’ve just had a baby.”
• “Masha’Allah... what did you name him?”

Samir hesitated and thought to himself: “What did I name him? Unfortunately, it wasn’t me who named him... my siblings name their children, while I...”

• “Hello?”
• “Sorry... we named him: Sadiq.”
• “A beautiful name... I’ll be waiting for you on Friday, and I’ll tell my siblings about your new baby.”

---

Who is the young woman Dr. Amjad is engaged to?

He had visited Talal’s house two weeks earlier:

• “Talal... is there a bride for a respectable young man who looks just like me around you?” Talal teased:
• “Looks like you or respectable?” Amjad smiled:
• “My big sister—I can’t answer you.”
• “I have a student in the parenting course—pious, well-mannered, and what’s best about her is her tender heart, quick to tears.” Amjad’s eyes lit up:
• “Beautiful?”
• “And what’s that to you? That’s what your respectable friend who looks just like you would ask.”
• “Talal... you know who I mean.”
• “Fine, just say it from the start and stop beating around the bush, you rat!”
• “Er... er... the doctor of the world, and you call me a rat?!”
• “Sorry, I meant Dr. Rat...”

---

Amjad went with Talal to the home of his student, Juman... and met her and her family. The chemistry was there... two months later, Samir attended his brother Amjad’s wedding. The joyful atmosphere made him think about mending his own situation... How? How could he achieve what he wanted without achieving it at the same time?! And what major event would impact Samir’s life?

Let us continue.

Inas (12)

At Amjad’s wedding, Samir met with his brothers and their children... Everyone was happy... He wondered to himself: “Why are they happier than I am? Why do I see in them a peace and tranquility that I do not find within myself? I go out every day from morning until night, devoting my life to the interests of my father-in-law, Azzam, who plows me relentlessly, and I do not know what my reward for this will ultimately be... Fine, if this man dies, what will be my share of all these investments? The money will go to his children, and I will lose all the years I’ve spent! My bank balance hasn’t increased in over a year because I’m preoccupied with the showroom... I want to build something for my own future...”

The car showroom was the only thing in which Samir had a clear share of the profits, so he returned to focusing on it after his father-in-law, Azzam, had kept him occupied with other investments over the past period. So when the teacher asked him about his delay in managing the other investments, he would reply:

• “I’m busy with the showroom today; tomorrow I’ll go manage the chain of restaurants.”
• “The showroom took my time today; tomorrow I’ll arrange for the farm’s poultry feed.”

Then Samir insisted on importing used cars instead of dealing locally with used ones, even though this was not what the teacher wanted, as it would force Samir to travel and be preoccupied with other investments... The teacher tried to stir Samir’s enthusiasm by appealing to his competitive spirit with Zuhair:

• “Since you’re busy, hand over the management of the insurance company to Zuhair.”
• “Fine, I’ll meet with him the day after tomorrow and hand over the files to him.”
• “Good, perhaps he will succeed in achieving what you could not.”
• “I hope he does... Let him busy himself with something instead of sitting around plotting and digging!”

The teacher was surprised by Samir’s response and realized that Samir was beginning to feel aggrieved and that he needed to feel a sense of independence. So the teacher decided to grant his son-in-law this “illusory” independence, as long as it ultimately served his own interests, and to keep Samir under his control!

The success of the showroom, traveling to import cars, and being preoccupied with his father-in-law’s other investments—even if minimally—occupied Samir with his work once again. Sadiq did not receive the same attention that Ashraf had enjoyed in his childhood... Hanaan’s tenderness made Ashraf call his father when he missed him, hoping that Samir might feel some longing for him. Samir would reply:

• “Fine, my dear father, I’ll come and take you to the park.” He would arrive late, taking the family in haste while preoccupied, and then he would come when Ashraf and Sadiq were already asleep... Soon, he stopped responding to most of Hanaan’s and Ashraf’s calls...

Weekends were rarely a break for Samir...

• “Dad, come play with us.”
• “I’m busy now, my dear; I’ll come in a little while.” Ashraf would return after a few minutes...
• “Dad, we waited for you and you didn’t come.”
• “Just a few minutes, Dad; leave me alone now. I’m doing calculations—you distract me every time I come.”

The poor child would come back shortly:

• “Later, Dad?”... “Finish up, Ashraf... When I’m done, I’ll come to you.”

Samir did not notice that when he shouted, “Finish up, Ashraf,” the child was frightened and trembled... Then he left and did not return.

Over time, Samir’s emotional connection to his sons weakened. Whenever Ashraf or Sadiq called him, an unconscious image of the teacher exploiting their names to beautify his own ugliness flashed in his mind! He felt a vague sense that his sons were not truly his. Hanaan’s gentle reproaches and her pleading with him for more attention began to turn into resentment and arguments with him in front of their sons:

• “You come late just to sit on your phone or laptop! Ashraf overpowers me; he doesn’t listen... He also needs help with his studies.”
• “I’m busy with your father’s interests.”
• “Don’t speak about my father like that... What my father has done for you, no one has done for a son-in-law.”

Samir raised his eyes from the laptop and looked at her furiously:

• “What my father has done for me?! Your father plows me for his own interests; I wake up and sleep thinking about them and working on them... For what? For this so-called ‘bliss’?”
• “Whose name is this bliss in? What do I have from all of this? Even you have started blaming me!”

Hanaan left him for a while, then returned to him:

• “My love, Samir, I didn’t mean to burden you... But you hurt me by talking about my father like that... Please, don’t drag me into your problems with my father.”
• “Fine, okay.”
• “Come, sit with us.”
• “I’ll come in a little while.”

Half an hour passed, and Hanaan waited... Then Samir came as the boys were asleep. Hanaan was on her phone... Samir spoke to her briefly, and she felt a lump in her throat. Then they both went to sleep...

Over time, Ashraf and Sadiq began to slip out of their mother’s focus, just as they had slipped out of their father’s. Samir was “achieving himself” by dedicating his time to the showroom... So Hanaan began to “achieve herself” by gaining more followers on social media, increasing engagement on her posts, and spending time with her friends. The two boys were no longer a “project of success” for either of their parents. To rid themselves of their annoyance, their parents began leaving them to spend long hours on electronic devices—each of them had a tablet and a phone, and they had a PlayStation.

Hanaan’s younger brother would take Ashraf with him to gatherings of friends and to the university—during Ashraf’s school holidays—proud of his nephew’s good looks and hoping to attract the attention of his university colleagues and hear their praise for Ashraf. Ashraf began picking up negative traits from his uncle’s companions, which Samir did not like, but he remained silent because it somewhat filled the void Ashraf felt from his parents.

At the age of six, Sadiq’s schoolteachers made frequent remarks about his performance... His parents took him to a specialized assessment center owned and run by a wealthy, generous man... Samir was preoccupied during the assessment session, focused on his phone instead of following his son’s performance. The director thought to himself: “The father needs treatment before the son!” He took Samir aside and told him that Sadiq suffered from learning difficulties and a high level of distraction, the main cause of which was the lack of effective social interaction with his parents and excessive exposure to electronic devices. He needed occupational therapy sessions three times a week...

The director fell silent, looked at Samir with a knowing smile, and said in a compassionate tone:

• “You both need to communicate more with your son.”

Samir was stunned.

• “My son has learning difficulties?!”

On the way back to the villa, Samir and Hanaan blamed each other and shifted all responsibility onto the other regarding this problem... Samir held Sadiq’s hand as they climbed the villa’s stairs. He looked at him with pity and decided to take better care of his son... But, as usual, this “decision” was a temporary emotional outburst... After being out of focus for his sons for so long, Samir had lost his communication skills with them. He found no joy in talking to them, playing with them, or watching them grow—trying, stumbling, succeeding, making funny mistakes in their speech... All of this passed him by as he remained preoccupied. Even his attempts to play with them felt forced because, in his mind, they were simply not part of his “project of success.”

Vacations were an outlet where Samir would gather with his family to spend some “pleasant” time together... But it was never free of tensions, blame, and work-related calls. The good feeling would quickly fade when Samir returned to the whirlwind of work. With Samir’s focus on the car showroom, the business did indeed flourish, and his bank balance grew. Yet strangely, his psychological balance did not increase—it only decreased in inverse proportion to his bank balance!

Samir could not understand the reason. Everything in Samir’s life—materially—was beautiful: a beautiful villa, a beautiful car, a beautiful office and gallery, a beautiful wife, two beautiful children, trips to beautiful tourist destinations, and recently, beautiful bank balances... Yet, despite all this, his life was not beautiful! Though he had neglected his studies in his youth, he was not bad at the basics of mathematics, especially since he needed it for his work. So he could not understand this equation: how could the sum of all these beautiful things result in an ugly life?

Amidst the material life that had consumed him, the word “barakah” (blessing) never crossed Samir’s mind, nor did he consider including it in his equations! Then, one day, he happened to read the words of the Imam—on the morning of his mother’s death—when he read: “Indeed, they love the immediate [life of this world] and leave behind them a heavy Day [of Judgment].” He realized he had neglected God, then numbed himself with the thought that he must first achieve worldly success and then turn to God. Samir did not realize that moments of awakening are not something we can summon at will with a magic spell! Rather, they are granted by God. If we do not make use of them, we forget them—and forget ourselves along with them.

Samir’s feelings of frustration and dwindling motivation grew... His enthusiasm and relentless pursuit had once been driven by: “I don’t want to be less than my brothers. I don’t want to be called a failure. I want to accumulate wealth and status. I want to live a life of luxury.” And Samir had achieved what he wanted—yet, at the same time, he had not. He had achieved these ambitions, which he thought would guarantee him happiness, but the surprise was that they did not bring him happiness! He felt like a thirsty man walking exhausted through a desert, seeing an oasis, reaching it—not a mirage... There was water, indeed... But the strange thing was that he drank and drank and still did not quench his thirst!

The resentment toward Zuhair and the attempt to prove himself in competition with him were no longer sufficient motives to keep him exerting double the effort. His enthusiasm waned, and the symptoms of impatience resurfaced once more. The solutions he offered, which Abu ‘Izzam had relied on him for so much, became at times quick fixes—akin to the “cosmetic repairs” he had touted when selling that first car to poor ‘Ala’! They were not fundamental solutions based on calm reflection and patient contemplation...

The “malfunctions” of these quick fixes began to appear to Abu ‘Izzam, which irritated him and strained his relationship with Samir even further. This tension spilled over into Samir’s home... In short, Samir’s life became like a broken necklace with its beads scattered, and his situation was in disarray. After eleven years of marriage, and after this drought and wandering in a life that had entered a long autumn season—amidst a fractured family and a marital relationship that swayed between improvement and deterioration—a sprout emerged in the desert of his life... when his wife gave birth to a daughter.

This time, Samir did not wait for the teacher’s intervention to name his children. He had already chosen a name for her the day he learned—while she was still in her mother’s womb—that she was a girl... He named her: “Inas” (consolation). This name reflected what he lacked in his life and the state of loneliness he was living in. This Inas would be a turning point in Samir’s life. Why, you might ask? And how did she capture her father’s heart and revive his life anew?

Let us continue...

Inas (13)

Inas had captured Samir’s heart, and he felt a love for her unlike anything he had ever felt for his previous children—or indeed, for any other person. Her presence had rekindled a sense of mercy and tenderness between the couple, and Samir began rushing home from work just to see Inas.

He was not the only one who felt this way—everyone loved Inas: Abu Azzam and his wife Susan, Ashraf, Sadiq, and even the maid at the villa. Even Samira, in her joy over Inas, invited her siblings to the house for the first time in years to share in her happiness! They accepted her invitation and, for the first time, felt as though someone from Samir’s side was truly a part of them.

As the little girl grew, so too did Samir’s love for her day by day. Inas was like the green shoot that sprouts from a dry, withered tree that one might have thought was dead. That was how she was with Samir, and that was how she was in Samir’s life. Fair-skinned, with brown hair and eyes, as though all the innocence of childhood had gathered in her face and smile. When asked, “What’s your name?” she would lower her head shyly, hiding behind her father, and answer in a soft voice, “Inas.”

When she was four years old, her father began taking her to work with him whenever he felt he could not bear to be apart from her. No one could see her without loving her. She slipped into hearts without permission. Even Zuhayr, Samir’s bitterest enemy, would unconsciously smile at her, and she would smile back at him. When her father was momentarily distracted, Zuhayr would speak to her or give her a piece of candy.

Her uncle, Dr. Amjad, had recently had a daughter, Fatima, who was now the same age as Inas (four years old). He had bought each of them a doll the same size as themselves, with white skin and brown eyes. Inas had won Samir’s heart and brought life back to his dry household. In the morning, she would wake up, hugging her doll, and surprise her father, who was engrossed in his laptop. She would stand in front of him, waiting for his usual warm welcome, her radiant smile and sunlit face beaming with the light filtering through the window. The way she held her doll made him feel a pang of pity for her need for him and his affection, so he would set aside his device and embrace her.

“Hello, hello, my life, hello, my Anus,” he would say, holding her close and kissing her, running his hand through her hair for a few minutes, charging her with life for the day ahead.

Samir would finish his breakfast and head to the office in the villa to finish some work before going to the car exhibition. Inas would stand at the office door, arms and legs spread wide to block the entrance.

“No… come play with me,” she would say.

Samir would smile and wish he could tear open his chest and place Inas inside.

“My love, I have work to do.”

“Work, work, work! Finish… then you’ll play with me.”

If he was away from her for too long at home, she would come to the office:

“Dad, come read me a story.”

“Okay, Baba, in five minutes.”

“Then I’ll count to five and come… okay?”

“Hehehe… it’s minutes, minutes, not dawwāq.”

Inas would try again:

“Dawwāq… minutes… you’ll come after five dawwāq… right?”

“God willing, my love.”

Inas would leave.

“Sadiq, when five dawwāq pass, tell me.”

Sadiq would laugh.

Every few minutes, Inas would ask Sadiq:

“Have the five dawwāq passed?”

“Not yet.”

“Aaaah…” Inas would pout, crossing her arms in frustration at the long wait her father had imposed.

“Inas… the five dawwāq are up!”

Inas would hurry to Samir’s office.

“Come on, come read me a story.”

“Just a little, my love.”

“No! No! Come!”

She did not ask for her right from her father the way Ashraf used to; she imposed herself on Samir. He would reluctantly get up, lift Inas into his arms, and kiss her as she laughed in triumph.

Ashraf, now fourteen, was out of control. He no longer asked his parents for attention, and he rarely obeyed them if they asked him to sit with them or go out. He spent most of his time on electronic devices or with his friends.

Sadiq, eleven years old, had recovered from his learning difficulties and still went out with his parents and Inas on some outings and trips. When Samir noticed Sadiq watching him as he played with Inas, Samir would force himself to pay some attention and play with him.

Another year passed, and the rose that was Inas grew even more beautiful in her movements. She would scatter puzzle pieces across the living room floor, then go to fetch Sadiq from his room, Hanan from hers, and Samir from his office, pulling each of them by the hand. They would all sit on the floor and assemble the puzzle together. She seemed to be the one raising her parents, pulling them away from their immersion in the whirlwind of life so they could exercise their humanity with her.

In the evening, she would come to her father while he was engrossed in his calculations. She would tiptoe so as not to be noticed until she stood right in front of him. He would lift his eyes from his laptop to find her holding a tray with slices of apple, orange, and pear—and best of all, her smile, which expressed affection and a sense of accomplishment.

Inas started kindergarten. She performed well, harmonized with her classmates and teachers, and was beloved by everyone. However, toward the end of the second term, the principal informed Inas’s mother that she had noticed Inas sometimes zoning out for a few seconds, accompanied by a quick blink of her eyes, as though she were not fully conscious. Samir was alarmed and thought of finding a suitable neurologist: “My brother Amjad is a renowned neurologist; he’ll take good care of Inas.”

Amjad had specialized in neurology, and his wife, Juman, had given him three children: Zaynab, eleven; Fatima, six—Inas’s age—and Umar, two. They were a happy, loving family. Amjad was not only successful in his specialty but also kind-hearted, deeply faithful, and tender-hearted. His patients benefited from his smile and gentle words as much as from his precise diagnosis and prescribed treatments. He also held educational and faith-based courses for youth, helping them fortify themselves against destructive ideas and doubts. His students saw him as a role model and wished to be like him in both faith and worldly life. Throughout all this, he felt as though he had been nourished for years by the blessings of his mother’s prayers for him.

Amjad had not seen Inas for some time—not since the day he visited her and gave her the doll. Even during the previous holidays, Samir had sometimes been traveling and had been too busy to meet with his siblings. Now, Samir and Inas entered from the waiting room into Amjad’s office.

“Welcome, welcome, welcome, Anus!”

Amjad lifted her, kissed her, and sat her on the examination bed. He looked at her for a few moments.

“You look just like my mother, my girl!”

Inas gave him her radiant smile.

“What God has willed! May God preserve you.”

He turned to Samir.

“Is everything well with you, Samir?”

Samir told him about the symptoms the school had reported. Amjad sent her for a brain scan, and after examining the results, he said to Samir:

“This is a type of excessive brain activity. It’s nothing to worry about; it will fade away in time, God willing. Until then, keep giving her this medication.” He took a box of medicine from the clinic’s cabinet.

Samir grew anxious and began asking many questions about his daughter’s condition. Amjad saw his opportunity and said:

“Don’t be afraid, but it would be best if one of Inas’s close relatives stayed with her at school at all times. What do you think, Samir? What if you transfer Inas to Fatima’s school next year? That way, I can ask Fatima about her observations, and I can sometimes pick them both up from school. It would be an opportunity for me to monitor her condition. What do you think?”

Amjad wanted to surround this little flower with the best possible environment, so he made sure to foster a strong bond between her and Fatima.

Samir did not hesitate, as long as it was in Inas’s best interest. Registration time came, and Susan, Hanan’s mother, intervened, refusing to enroll her granddaughter in that school.

• "This is an ordinary school... Inas, you must go to an elite school." Sameer insisted and this time he fulfilled his wish, for nothing was more important to him than Inas's well-being.

What will happen to Ashraf? And how will this affect his family's life? Let's follow...

Inas (14)

Ashraf, Inas’s older brother, is now sixteen years old... he has completely slipped out of his parents’ control... and his bad behavior has caused them a great deal of embarrassment. His parents were reaping the fruits of years of neglect toward Ashraf. Finding no care or affection from them, the boy sought attention from bad companions and acquaintances of his younger uncle.

The couple tried to make amends with Sadiq, now thirteen, but they lacked patience and genuine interest in effective communication with him:

• “Teach your son.”
• “You teach him; I’m busy.”
• “And I’m busy and tired.”
• “Busy doing what?! You have a maid. It’s enough that I take care of your father’s interests.”

And the argument would begin over the word “your father”!

During the holiday:

• “Take Sadiq with you to work; he’ll get bored and overwhelm me.”
• “He won’t do anything at the office. He’ll get bored too. Take him and enroll him in a karate club.”

They realized they “had to” give Sadiq more attention, but they disagreed on who “should” take on this task. The tragedy was that this argument took place in front of Sadiq or within his hearing, so he received the painful message:

• “My parents care about Inas because they love her and enjoy spending time with her, while they care about me only because they ‘have to,’ and each one shifts this ‘duty’ onto the other!”

This forced “attention” proved useless, even if one of the spouses eventually took on this “burden.” Sadiq grew more distant from them day by day.

The gentle Inas noticed how her parents treated her differently from Sadiq, and she couldn’t accept it for her beloved brother... At the dinner table, her father would put a bite in her mouth, saying, “Inas, my heart’s beloved...”

She would say:

• “And Sadiq too, right, Baba?”
• “Uh... of course, of course, and Sadiq, but he has to listen.”

One day her father told her:

• “If you bring high marks, Inas, I’ll get you the most beautiful gift.”

She smiled and said:

• “And Sadiq too... right?”
• “Uh... Sadiq’s marks aren’t good... If he paid attention to his studies, I’d get him the sweetest gift.”

Inas said:

• “He’ll study and get high marks, and you’ll get him a gift... right, Sadiq?” Sadiq remained silent, pained.

Samir remembered that his sister Tala held parenting courses. He called her, asking for advice on raising Sadiq and “reclaiming” Ashraf... Tala visited, sitting with him and Hanan for two hours, explaining and correcting them. She made it clear that change would take time...

They began applying some of her advice... Sadiq’s response was weak... Within days, they fell back into their old ways of dealing with him, pushing him away.

Each began blaming the other for the failure in raising their sons... Arguments would erupt, with Inas sitting nearby. Her little heart would race, her smile would vanish, and anxiety would appear on her face... The argument would end with each of them sitting in angry silence. Inas would look from her father to her mother, then take each of their hands in her small ones and clasp them together. Her eyes would say more than words ever could: “Please, reconcile... Don’t make me lose my sense of security... I love you both, and I want you to love each other... Your affection is the bed on which I sleep.”

They would notice this and soften the situation, ending with brief words and stiff expressions.

Despite the repetition of such moments, nothing could break Inas’s cheerful spirit or her kind nature... Yet the villa’s atmosphere had become irritable and dry. Inas had learned to read, yet she would still ask her father to accompany her to the house library to read her a story... If he forgot—his mind preoccupied—she would take his hand and wrap it around herself.

Amjad would sometimes call Samir:

• “I’ve picked up Inas and Fatima from school... I’ll drop them at our house so they can play for a while until you come to take Inas in the evening... Okay?”
• “Okay.”

Samir didn’t mind, knowing Inas was attached to Fatima and that this was an outlet for her, breaking the stiffness of her days in the dry atmosphere of the villa... Hanan would sometimes object and sometimes remain silent, enjoying some time to herself, especially since Zainab, Amjad’s eldest daughter, would sometimes volunteer to teach Inas, taking this task off Hanan’s hands.

Anyone seeing the many visitors to Amjad’s clinic would think he lived in a grand palace—but he didn’t. He was a compassionate doctor whose joy came from easing his patients’ suffering and putting smiles on their faces. When he heard the poor’s prayers as he gave them medicine from his own supplies—refusing to charge them even a consultation fee—he felt more happiness and peace than if they had paid him. His house was somewhat spacious, minimally decorated, with comfortable, unpretentious furniture and a medium-sized garden. Yet to Inas, this house felt far more welcoming than the villa she lived in with her fractured family.

The call to prayer would sound in Amjad’s house, and they would take turns performing ablution and praying together... Inas had grown used to this, so she would join them after Fatima gave her a prayer set of her own.

Inas would return to the villa with her father... She would hear the call to prayer... “Baba, Mama, let’s pray together.” Samir and Hanan had nearly abandoned prayer in recent years, except for Friday prayers, which Samir still attended. They were happy their daughter prayed and wanted her to be better in her faith than they were.

In the villa, with all its material luxuries, nothing was more beautiful than the sight of Inas placing her little chair by the sink, rolling up her sleeves, performing ablution, and then putting on the white prayer clothes that Fatima had given her.

Her parents were moved by the sight. They responded a few times, praying together... Then they would slacken again, postponing and avoiding it.

• “Baba, why don’t you pray anymore?”
• “I’ll pray, my love, I’ll pray when I finish what I’m doing.” And Samir would not pray...

Inas would wake up for Fajr at the sound of the alarm Fatima had given her. She would go to her parents’ room:

• “Baba, Mama... It’s time for prayer. Come, let’s pray together.” Samir would lift his head and say:
• “Okay, my love, in a bit.” Then he would fall back into a deep sleep. Hanan wouldn’t wake up at all!

Her brother Sadiq would sometimes imitate her, then grow lazy... Inas herself nearly grew weary, but her repeated visits to her uncle Amjad’s house had a deep impact on her, renewing her determination whenever it faltered.

The used car market began to decline, shrinking the profits from the dealership... Abu Azzam intervened and arranged for an “expert” to tamper with car odometers so they could be sold as low-mileage at low prices! Samir didn’t intervene, as he had grown accustomed to deception. He was also weak in the face of Abu Azzam and unable to resolve many of his investment problems. Moreover, the balance had begun to tip in Zuhair’s favor in their competition, so he didn’t want more “defeats.” All of this silenced him in the face of such blatant fraud.

Inas was now eight years old. Two years had passed since she began treatment, and the seizures had stopped completely since the early stages of therapy... Dr. Amjad tried gradually reducing Inas’s medication and found her condition stable without it.

Samir was overjoyed by the news: “Inas is cured.” But within days, a shocking call came:

His eldest son, Ashraf, now eighteen, had been arrested on charges of drug dealing!

Samir rushed to the prison... Ashraf was devastated:

• “By God, Father, I didn’t deal... I did use, yes, but I didn’t deal. My friends framed me with the accusation, and they lied on me to save the real dealer, Umadah.”

---

The Family’s Secret

“You loser! Dealing or using… it’s all just disgrace piled on disgrace… What drove you to this?! What scandal have you dragged us into?!”

Samir stormed out of his visit to his son Ashraf and called his lawyer, who told him the charge meant three years in prison… It was a shocking piece of news for everyone, though not entirely unexpected for a young man drowning in spiritual emptiness.

Inas wept for a long time when she understood what had happened to her brother—that he might be absent from home for years.

The lawyer told Samir he would try to secure an acquittal for Ashraf, but asked for ten thousand dinars in fees. Samir agreed.

The atmosphere at home turned sour. Samir and Hanan each blamed the other for Ashraf’s downfall. Yet the family had to keep the painful truth hidden and behave normally in public. Abu ‘Izzam had invited acquaintances to his sixty-eighth birthday party the following week, and he did not want anything to spoil his celebration.

Samir, Hanan, Sadiq, and Inas attended Abu ‘Izzam’s birthday party, which brought together business partners, major clients, and employees of Abu ‘Izzam and others with their families.

Ziyad (son of the secretary Zuhayr), who knew what had happened to Ashraf, wanted to embarrass his father’s rival by picking at this fresh wound right at the start of the party. He said to a group of young men present—Ashraf’s peers who knew him before:

“Hey! Where’s Ashraf? Ask his father about him.”

Two of them approached the table where Samir’s family was seated.

“Uncle Abu Ashraf, where’s Ashraf? Why isn’t he with you?”

It was an excruciating moment—every time the word “Ashraf” was spoken, it felt like a knife twisting in Samir’s chest.

“There’s a small problem,” Samir replied.

“What is it?”

“Nothing important.” He then busied himself with his phone. Samir was more consumed by this “shame” than by the fact that he had “lost his son”: “Ashraf’s situation will damage my reputation,” he thought. “What will acquaintances say about me and my parenting?” “Will it affect my business?”

The party proceeded with introductions, food, singing, games, and humorous segments. Samir and Hanan forced smiles the entire time.

After the party, on the way back to the villa, Samir began lecturing Sadiq: “Look, Sadiq, how Ashraf has brought disgrace upon us! Don’t keep company with idle youth… don’t hang around your uncle… don’t do this, don’t do that…”

Sadiq remained silent throughout. He realized his father’s concern was not for him but for his own image—“My father fears I’ll embarrass him like Ashraf did, not that he cares about me,” he thought. “He doesn’t care about my emotional needs as a fifteen-year-old. My inner world doesn’t matter to him—his image is all that matters to me.”

From that moment on, Sadiq treated his father with cold detachment, avoiding sitting with him or listening to his forced advice. He spent more of his time with friends instead.

Samir remained on edge, fearing he might one day hear something about Sadiq that would “shame him,” compounded by the loneliness of his son’s rejection.

Samir and Hanan visited Ashraf in prison. Ashraf longed to see his father and mother, hoping to hear words of reassurance or hope. In the early visits, the parents reproached Ashraf and blamed him for his deviation. Later, they began sharing updates from the lawyer about his case, giving him hope of release within weeks or months.

Will the lawyer secure an acquittal for Ashraf? What will make Hanan object to Inas going to her uncle Amjad’s house? What grave mistake did Samir make in a moment of weakness in front of Abu ‘Izzam? And what words will Abu ‘Izzam say to Samir to dredge up memories more than twenty years old?

Let us continue…

Inas (15)

Six months after Ashraf’s problem, after Amjad had dropped Fatima and Inas off at his house and left for his clinic until Samir came to pick Inas up in the evening, Inas said to Zaynab, Fatima’s elder sister:

— “Bring me the phone.” — “Why?” — “I’ll play you a beautiful song called The Melody of Eternity by a Korean band. Mama listens to it a lot, and I love it.”

This conversation was overheard by Jumaan, Amjad’s wife, who had read about such songs and their emotional and ideological exploitation. She said to Inas:

— “My dear… do you love God and His Messenger?” — “Of course, Auntie.” — “God has told us about Paradise, into which the people of faith and truth will enter, and Hell, into which the people of falsehood will enter… These singers reflect these truths in their songs because they do not believe in God or His Messenger.”

Inas did not fully understand the meaning of the words, but she said: — “So it’s forbidden for me to listen to them?” — “Yes, my dear, it is forbidden.” — “The dancing they do in the presence of young men and women like that… Do you think God is pleased with it?” — “No.” — “So don’t listen to it, my dear.”

Inas returned that day and went to her mother: — “Mama, Aunt Jumaan told me it’s forbidden to listen to The Melody of Eternity.”

The word “forbidden” was never used in the villa before… It upset Hanan. She fell silent and did not respond. Then she went to Samir’s room: — “I don’t like Inas going to her uncle’s house so often.” — “She benefits from it there and plays with Fatima.” — “They’re different from us… Inas has started being influenced by them in an exaggerated way… It doesn’t bother me if Inas prays or even asks us to pray… I’m not against religion… But she’s started interfering in my life.”

After an argument, Hanan insisted on preventing Inas from going to her uncle’s house. She began deliberately picking her up from school so that her uncle wouldn’t take her.

— “Mama, let me go to my uncle’s house.” — “No, Mama. You have to study.” — “I’ll study with Fatima.” — “No need, Mama. We don’t want to burden your uncle’s house.” — “On the contrary, Mama. They love having me there.” — “This isn’t your home, Mama. You have your own family and home.”

Inas resorted to her father to intervene, but he was in a bad mood: — “Dad, I don’t want to discuss this with your mother now… I’m thinking about tomorrow’s session, where the final verdict will be issued regarding your brother Ashraf.”

Samir went to the court session the next day. Ashraf’s case was one of ten cases for which a decision would be issued. Samir felt deep shame as he sat in the hall, seeing the nature of the cases being judged. Yet he hoped Ashraf would be acquitted and this file would be closed… especially since the lawyer had assured him he had done everything possible.

Finally, Ashraf’s case was called. Samir held his breath as he heard the verdict…

Ashraf was sentenced to three years in prison! Samir was stunned.

— “Where are the lawyer’s promises?! Where are the ten thousand dinars I paid?!”

The lawyer excused himself, saying he had tried his best, but “the court has become stricter recently.”

Samir left the court, and Hanan called him repeatedly as he hung up. He arrived home, and the verdict on Ashraf was written all over his face! Hanan was alarmed.

— “Was he sentenced?” — “Three years in prison.”

Hanan gasped. “Why?!”

He looked at her with a glare and a look of blame… They began blaming each other, each shifting responsibility onto the other. The tension only eased when Sadiq and Inas returned from school.

Ashraf needed psychological support and a spiritual awakening… and he had been waiting for a visit from his parents… but he found none of what he needed in either of them. You cannot give what you do not have! You cannot expect Samir to teach his son patience when Samir himself lacked patience. Nor could he expect Samir to teach his son the necessity of reviewing his deeds and correcting his relationship with God when Samir himself was in greater need of these lessons.

Their visits to him were filled with routine questions about whether Ashraf needed anything—money, clothes, the nature of the food he ate, or his health—until Ashraf felt like he was in “a chicken farm,” just like the one his father managed! Ashraf grew tired of it and began to hesitate about meeting them unless he heard that they had brought a little girl, nine years old… It was Inas! Ashraf loved seeing her because she was the most honest thing in his life. He would hurry to meet her. They would look at each other in silence for a while, tears welling in their eyes, until Inas would break the silence with words like, “I pray for you in my prayers.” Those words meant a lot to Ashraf and gave him a sense of comfort.

Amjad and his family missed Inas, but he was preoccupied with travel afterward, working voluntarily for an international medical organization. He traveled to Muslim countries facing epidemics to treat patients, leaving a assistant doctor in his clinic… upholding the principle of the global Muslim community and trying to offer whatever help he could.

Samir began to reap the consequences of the used cars he had purchased with tampered odometers… Customers complained… It was unbelievable that these faults would appear in cars used for such limited distances! The conflict with one of them, a “wicked” man, escalated. The man and his brother attacked the car dealership at night, setting fire to it and causing significant damage to a large number of cars! Samir had no evidence against them. It was a huge loss. Samir asked Sheikh Abu Azzam to inject some money into the dealership to compensate for the damaged cars by importing replacements… The Sheikh refused, citing his other investment interests. Samir was forced to withdraw a quarter of a million dinars, most of his bank savings, to buy replacement cars.

“But wait… who will these cars be registered to? For years, I’ve worked with capital from Abu Azzam, registered the cars under the dealership’s name, and shared the profits with him. Now I’m contributing my own money to the dealership. These cars are entirely mine. This is an opportunity to demand that Abu Azzam register the dealership as a company between us. I could even demand clear compensation for my efforts in his other investments. Even if I’ve been partially occupied by them in recent years and didn’t develop them as quickly as he wanted, the truth is that I’ve dedicated my life to the dealership and to Abu Azzam’s interests, solving his problems and bringing him great profits.”

Samir went to Abu Azzam’s office to broach the topic of partnership in the dealership. The Sheikh looked at him with a firm, almost contemptuous gaze and said:

— “The cars you import with your own money will be registered under the dealership’s name, and you will receive 70% of the profits from them. In the end, your rights are preserved… but we don’t want any complications.”

“Under the dealership’s name” meant “under Abu Azzam’s name.” “Your rights are preserved”… Samir didn’t understand how they were preserved?! When would he recover the cost of these cars? There was nothing on paper… only a vague promise of a higher percentage in these cars! Samir felt weak in front of the Sheikh, overwhelmed by his “favors.” The path was closed to him, and he didn’t speak. The moment the cars were registered under the dealership’s name passed like a drug-induced stupor, a moment he would later think about in shock and disbelief at his position!

Samir hired a night guard for the dealership out of fear of another attack, yet he remained in a state of fear and anxiety. He would sometimes wake up in the middle of the night from nightmares about the dealership. He even found himself jolting awake in the middle of the night, getting into his car, and rushing to check on the dealership!

He visited a psychiatrist, who prescribed treatments to reduce his anxiety and improve his sleep… Samir felt as though he was accumulating money only to lose it. He had already spent on treating Sadiq for the effects of his parents’ neglect, then on Ashraf’s lawyer, and now on his own treatment… and on the cars that were registered under the dealership’s name…

Samir had reached a stage where he was tormented by his own prosperity! His wealth and his two sons had become a source of suffering for him! He toiled to accumulate money, feared losing it, felt shame before his wife, worried about Saadiq’s future, and endured the coldness of his sons’ treatment.

The affection between him and his wife Hanan had faded in recent months amid constant problems and Samir’s frayed nerves day and night. Hanan could no longer tolerate this situation, so she turned to her father to pressure Samir into separating from her. Abu ‘Izzam summoned Samir to his mansion, and a heated argument erupted between Samir on one side and Hanan and her parents on the other.

The Teacher defended his daughter and placed all the blame on Samir. In a moment Samir would never forget, he said to his uncle:

“Is this how you side with your daughter instead of urging her to stand by her husband in his hardship? Where is loyalty?”

The Teacher gave a bitter, angry smile and recalled a memory from more than twenty years earlier that he had never paid attention to at the time:

“It’s amusing to hear about loyalty from someone who used to eat grilled meat and listen to jokes while leaving his mother to die.”

Samir was stunned as if he had been slapped in the face. He left the Teacher’s mansion in silence, feeling deeply humiliated.

Yet Samir and Hanan decided to remain under one roof for the sake of Inaas, since neither could bear to be apart from her for days on end, and also to preserve their “prestige” in front of acquaintances.

It was agony for Samir to see his wife toward whom he no longer felt any affection, and to be forced to escort her to social gatherings and acquaintances’ events, pretending to have a normal relationship in front of them. Sometimes they would even drive separately to the same venue and agree via WhatsApp to meet at the door, avoiding traveling together. Poor Inaas had to choose each time which parent to accompany.

Inaas tried repeatedly to soften both their hearts toward each other, but the estrangement ran too deep. Samir no longer found any tenderness in Hanan, felt no pride in his son Ashraf, and received no sincere love from Saadiq. The only person in his life was Inaas. She was the only human being Samir truly loved deeply, and he found a measure of reassurance in holding her or going out with her for a walk. Unlike his other children who sought their fathers for comfort in moments of fear, Samir himself would pace through the large, desolate villa searching for his daughter anxiously like a child, to embrace her and draw a sense of calm from her.

During these months, Inaas did not visit her uncle Amjad’s home. Amjad called Samir repeatedly asking permission for her to come stay with him, since everyone missed her, but Samir was weighed down by worries and did not want to enter any discussion with Hanan. What kept Fatima and Inaas going was that they met at school.

After a long separation, Samir met his siblings and their children at the Quranic recitation circle of Ibn Sa‘id ‘Abd al-Rahman. Samir took Inaas with him. The atmosphere was blessed and joyful. ‘Abd al-Rahman, a young man of twenty-six, radiant of face and bearing the mark of piety, stood when the recitation ended, kissed his father’s hand, and they embraced, the father’s eyes brimming with joyful tears over his dutiful son whom he had raised and nurtured with lawful wealth.

‘Abd al-Rahman was not the only one like that; such was the environment of Samir’s brothers and their children. Samir looked at ‘Abd al-Rahman and compared him to his own son Ashraf. For the first time, Samir felt envy toward his siblings—not for their material status or physical comforts, for Samir had reached a level of prosperity equal to theirs and even better than some of them.

This time, for the first time, Samir envied them for their wholesome atmosphere, the tranquility of their souls, the purity of their joy, the righteousness of their children, and the affection among them—things Samir utterly lacked.

Inaas came out from the women’s section to return home with her father. The poor girl was beaming, her face glowing, for this was the environment her kind soul and pure nature craved. The problems of her family had erased the innocent smile that had once never left her face. Now, as Samir returned, he saw that smile on his daughter’s face.

On the way back, Inaas said:

“Papa, Auntie Tala told me I resemble Grandma, may God have mercy on her.”

“Inaas resembles my mother?” Samir thought. “Amjad said that before.” He could not answer the question because he had almost forgotten his mother’s features. The last time he had seen her was when he helped her into the car so Amjad could take her to the hospital. Samir had said to her, “Get well soon, Mother,” but she had not replied and remained sullen with him, a fact he had not noticed because his mind was preoccupied with the car business he had just started.

Inaas continued:

“Papa, please let me go to my uncles’ houses. I love them, and I love their wives and daughters. Auntie Tala does too. Fatima, Zaynab, and Aunt Jumman asked me, ‘Where have you been? Why haven’t you visited in so long?’ Fatima begged me to sleep over one day, and Aunt Jumman was very welcoming.”

“I cannot bear to be away from you, my dear.”

“Just once in a while, please, Papa.”

Samir took pity on his daughter and realized she had found in her uncles’ homes what she lacked in the villa and in her broken family. He decided to disregard Hanan’s objections and said to Inaas:

“All right, my dear, God willing.”

“Praise be to God,” she exclaimed, and the little girl flew with joy, already dreaming of the day she would stay overnight at Fatima’s. They returned to the villa, and Samir remained lost in thought about the hour he had spent in the recitation circle. The dryness he had been living through gave him a chance for reflection.

More than twenty years earlier, Amjad had visited him and advised him to wake from his heedlessness, but Samir had become angry. Amjad had sent him a message, and now Samir examined it closely… then his bride Hanan called him, and he forgot the matter. Now there was no Hanan.

For the first time, Samir seriously considered rectifying his spiritual state. What had Samir done? And what had been Abu ‘Izzam’s reaction? Let us follow the story…

Inas (16)

After returning from the Quranic studies session with Abdurrahman, Sameer sat on the couch facing the sunset during a blessed hour of that Friday. It was a prayer he had not attended in a long time due to his recent heedlessness.

He held his only joy in the world, Inas, under his arm. She was clutching an old gift from her uncle—a blonde doll—and had placed a prayer outfit on its head. She examined it, then removed the outfit, put the doll back on her head, and examined it again. Sameer smiled at his daughter’s antics without understanding its significance. Instead, he let his gaze wander with the colors of the sunset clouds, lost in thought.

"My life has become bitter... my family is shattered... my son is in prison... I work like a slave for Abu Azzam... I’ve passed forty... where am I headed? What is my fate?" As the last ray of sunlight vanished, he made a decision: "I will seek advice from Amjad." A sense of relief washed over Sameer as he resolved to do so, thinking to himself, "Enough, I’m tired!"

Inas interrupted his quiet reflection, holding the doll in front of his face with the prayer outfit on its head and said:

— "Papa, I’ve decided to name my doll: Huda (Guidance)."

He smiled and replied: — "A beautiful name."

Inas was skilled at reading her father’s eyes. She sensed he was going through a different moment and said: — "Papa..." then paused.

— "Yes, my life?"

— "Come, let’s pray together."

For the first time in years, Sameer did not hesitate to fulfill his daughter’s request! — "Okay, let’s perform wudu (ablution)."

Inas said in a trembling voice: — "I’ve already performed wudu."

He rolled up his sleeves and said: — "Okay, just a few minutes. I’ll perform wudu and come back to you."

Sameer was lost in thought and did not notice his daughter’s expression at that moment. Inas was crying, catching her breath between sobs. Finally, her father would pray with her... finally, her father would roll up his sleeves to perform wudu... finally, she felt that the spiritual atmosphere she had experienced in her uncle’s house and among her other uncles’ families that day would now be seen in the person she loved most: her father, in this villa where she had lived for more than ten years—empty except for material luxuries.

Inas wiped her tears so her father wouldn’t see them. She removed the prayer outfit from the doll (Huda) and put it on herself, along with a prayer skirt. She quickly spread out two prayer mats—one for her and one for her father—and sat adjusting their edges. Sameer arrived, led the prayer, and they prayed together.

Sameer did not wait until the next day. That night, he called Amjad: — "Amjad, I need your advice on an important matter."

— "May it be for good, God willing?"

— "I’ll tell you when I see you. Does tomorrow morning work for you?"

— "Welcome... The clinic starts at twelve noon. Come to my house anytime before that, and don’t forget to bring Anous with you."

The next day, Sameer went to Amjad’s house with Inas. He explained everything to his brother—starting with the first tampered car and the buyer’s message, moving through his entanglements in Abu Azzam’s shifting sands, his involvement in "facilitations" and "perks," and ending with his broken family life.

Amjad remained silent, not interrupting him at all... then stayed in stunned silence after Sameer finished speaking. Sameer asked him: — "What’s wrong?"

— "I’m amazed by God’s patience with you!"

— "Fine, I want a solution."

Amjad felt as though he were standing before a mountain of problems that had accumulated over more than twenty years. He decided to prioritize and guide his brother step by step to resolve them one by one: — "Sameer, this isn’t a time for flowery words... frankly, you are trapped in a kind of slavery—to material things and to people... a false slavery from which only the slavery to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, can free you. He created you... your prayer is the key to your liberation from false servitudes when you stand before Allah the Exalted and say, ‘You alone we worship, and You alone we ask for help.’ ‘You alone we worship’—meaning I worship no one but You, O Lord, and I obey no one absolutely but You, O Lord, and I humble myself to no one but You, O Lord. Whoever humbles themselves to You will be honored in this world. This liberation will have heavy consequences for a soul accustomed to clinging to material things, which is why you seek Allah’s help by saying, ‘And You alone we ask for help.’ The first thing you must do is preserve your prayers and reflect on this meaning as you recite Al-Fatiha."

Sameer was impressed by his brother’s words and showed no hesitation. Amjad continued: — "At the same time, you must leave Abu Azzam, his environment, and working for him."

Sameer immediately replied: — "I can’t, Amjad! You know my situation. My financial affairs are tied to him—I work in his showroom, live in his villa, and many of my clients come through him. The capital I withdrew to buy new cars instead of the burned ones is registered under his showroom’s name." Sameer did not mention to his brother his eagerness to maintain his ties with "the elite class" that Abu Azzam had introduced him to, nor the prestige he enjoyed from Abu Azzam’s investment management, nor the trips he took on behalf of his teacher’s investments.

All these things brought Sameer neither happiness nor tranquility, yet he felt at the same time that he could not do without them!

Amjad said: — "You want a solution, and I don’t see one for you other than this, Sameer... you will remain enslaved, and you won’t be truthful in saying, ‘You alone we worship, and You alone we ask for help.’ Instead, you’ll be deceiving yourself! The greatest affliction in your life has been your lack of patience—patience in obeying Allah and patience in avoiding disobedience and luxuries that distance you from Allah because you disobey Him for their sake. You must purify your earnings from everything unlawful."

Sameer argued for a long time... Abu Azzam was his lifeline, even if it was poisoned!

Finally, Amjad said to him: — "At the very least, go to Abu Azzam and tell him you will not comply with any unlawful demands—no usury, no cheating, no tampering with car odometers, no bribes, no unlawful investments. This isn’t a radical solution, and I fear remaining with this man, so you must gradually distance yourself from him. But start by refusing to carry out anything unlawful or suspicious he asks of you."

Sameer was convinced after seeing the firmness in his brother’s stance. He decided to meet the teacher and inform him of his new conditions. As Sameer was about to leave, Amjad asked to see Inas, who was spending a pleasant time with Fatima.

Inas came in: — "Papa, please, let me stay at my uncle’s house tonight."

— "No, my life. You have studies tomorrow, it’s a workday, and you don’t have your books with you."

Fatima intervened: — "Please, uncle, she’s in my class, and we’ll study together from my books."

Amjad said: — "And I’ll make sure to come to your house tomorrow morning to pick up her bag and take you both to school."

— "But she isn’t prepared for that. She doesn’t have pajamas or a toothbrush."

Fatima said: — "I’ll give her one of my pajamas, uncle... Papa, will you bring Inas a toothbrush?"

— "Of course, of course... the nicest toothbrush."

— "Okay, you’re cornered, uncle."

Sameer relented and allowed his daughter to stay overnight at her uncle’s family’s house. The two girls flew with joy.

Before Sameer left, Amjad said to him: — "Let me know when you’ve informed your teacher of what we agreed upon."

Sameer replied: — "Leave it to me."

There was still a trace of arrogance in Sameer’s heart. He could not accept the idea of his brother "monitoring" him in this matter, even though he had agreed with him to follow up on encouraging prayer. He left his brother’s house intending to go directly to Abu Azzam’s office—without an appointment—to inform him of his decision.

How did Ienas spend her first ten years at her uncle Amjad’s house after nearly a year of separation?

It was the happiest day she had ever experienced! Everyone was overjoyed and celebrating her return: her uncle, who stayed with her for a while before leaving to visit a friend, her aunt Jumaan, her eldest cousin Zaynab—now fifteen—Fatimah, and Omar, who was now six years old. They all felt closer to her than ever before, and Ienas was one of them, a full member of the family… Her personality had matured even more during that year of separation—polished in her manners and speech, naturally sociable, and utterly unpretentious.

Zaynab began teaching her “little sisters,” Ienas and Fatimah, then they all had lunch together. Ienas passed around the dishes, arranged them, and cleared the table as if she belonged there completely. After lunch, they all prayed Dhuhr together, then brought out some games they felt were new because they were sharing them with Ienas. Am Omar, her uncle’s wife, made a cake and invited them to eat it, laughing and joking together. She deliberately put away the iPads and tablets so they would choose games that increased their closeness and cooperation instead of being distracted by electronic devices and screens all day.

Ienas found herself acting with complete spontaneity and ease, more than in any previous visit. She let out childish impulses that had no outlet in the dry atmosphere of the villa: the girls getting ready for prayer, Ienas snatching the prayer garment from Fatimah’s hands, putting it on instead of the one given to her, and both girls laughing. Zaynab was reading a book when Ienas came from behind the couch and covered Zaynab’s eyes with her hands. Zaynab guessed, “Who is it? Fatimah?” Ienas laughed a childish, innocent laugh. “Ah… I’ve tricked you!” Omar challenged her: “Who can keep a straight face without laughing the longest?” Within seconds, they were both laughing.

Ienas was like a bird that had flown from a cage into a garden, now flitting among the branches with the other birds. She laughed that day as she had never laughed before—not even with her school friends—and the redness in her cheeks from all the play only added to her beauty. Dr. Amjad returned after praying Maghrib on his way home. Everyone greeted him at the door joyfully, and Fatimah rushed to explain what they had done that day. Ienas noticed the affection and longing between Amjad and his wife at that greeting, and her uncle understood her look… It was a scene she had not seen between her parents in years. He broke her silence by saying:

— “I brought Halawani knafeh and the prayer garment. Bring the plates and spoons, girls.”

They all sat eating in a wonderful atmosphere of warmth, talking—including Ienas—about the activities they had enjoyed and teasing her. Amjad smiled and engaged with their conversation…

Amjad looked at his niece, absorbed in conversation with his children, and his thoughts wandered: “This innocent girl… how was she raised in the environment Samir described to me? I wonder if he kept the promise we made? Will he rebuild his life on a sound foundation and fear God in his family and for this poor child?”

It was time for bed… a difficult task for Ienas and Fatimah! They tried to sleep, but one would remember something, tell the other, sit up and talk a little, then say, “Enough, we have to sleep,” lie down again, and then start a new topic!

The last thing Ienas said: — “Fatimah…” — “Yes?” — “Is it possible that Paradise could be more beautiful than the day we just spent?”

Fatimah, half-asleep, smiled and said: — “Of course,” then drifted off into deep sleep. Ienas thought for a moment, then fell asleep too.

That night passed… just before the Fajr call to prayer, Ienas woke to the sound of beautiful recitation. Her uncle Amjad was praying Qiyam al-Layl. She heard him recite: “Indeed, in that is a sign, but most of them were not believers. And indeed, your Lord—He is the Exalted in Might, the Merciful.” She drifted between sleep and wakefulness, hearing the same verse over and over, until the Fajr call to prayer sounded and everyone got up to pray.

The morning atmosphere was joyful… Amjad was sitting at his laptop writing an article to publish. Ienas approached her uncle, stood beside him as he sat, placed her hand lightly on his shoulder, and looked at the article… titled: “Kinesin Protein: Wonders of the Neuron!” Amjad had included some images… and at the end of the article: “Indeed, in that is a sign, but most of them were not believers. And indeed, your Lord—He is the Exalted in Might, the Merciful.”

— “You were reciting that verse repeatedly last night, Uncle.” — “Did I wake you, my dear? I tried not to make my voice loud.” — “On the contrary… I was happy to hear you.”

Zaynab entered… — “Dad, the teacher gave us a free writing topic… What do you suggest?” — “What do you think, my dear? How about talking about belonging to the Islamic Ummah, feeling its hopes and pains, and striving for its glory?” — “Okay… is there a verse I can include in the topic?” — “This is your nation—a single nation, and I am your Lord, so fear Me.” — “Just a moment, I’ll write it down… Which surah is it from?” — “Al-Mu’minun.” — “Thank you!” Zaynab rushed off.

“A single nation”… “belonging to the Ummah”… concepts and phrases Ienas never heard in her dry villa. They gave life another dimension and a deep meaning she had never considered before.

The atmosphere was beautiful… Ienas couldn’t help but compare her uncle Amjad to her father. She began to dream of seeing such an atmosphere in her own home.

While Ienas was spending that wonderful day at her uncle’s house, what happened with her father Samir in his meeting with Abu ‘Izzam? Would he truly begin a new start?

Let us continue…

Inas (17)

After Sameer left Amjad’s house, he arrived at the teacher’s office, who was surprised by this unannounced visit. After a cold greeting, Sameer said:

• “Teacher, I’ve decided to change my life. It’s better for me, for Hanan, and for our family.”

The teacher remained silent, so Sameer continued hesitantly:

• “There are forbidden practices in the work: usury, fraud, bribes, tampering with meters… I’m not willing to keep doing all of this.”

The teacher smirked:

• “Forbidden? Sameer, it seems you’ve been hit with some ‘spiritual awakening’ after your problems with Ashraf and Hanan.”

Sameer was tense because he was using words he had never dared to say to the teacher since they met. He was also speaking about sins he himself had been part of for twenty years. But he gathered his strength and said:

• “Teacher, it’s not called ‘spiritual awakening.’ It’s my religion. In the end, I fear God, and I think we’ve strayed too far. This is destroying my life.”

The teacher lit a cigarette and took a few puffs before saying:

• “I like these conscience awakenings. But I wonder: where was your fear of God the day I explained the nature of our work to you from the beginning?”

Sameer replied:

• “At the beginning, you gave me the example of the wood scattered by the waves and told me you carried the wood that could bear your values and principles. Could you tell me where the values and principles are in our work?”

The teacher spoke angrily and firmly:

• “No one is allowed to hold me accountable… Sameer, if the work doesn’t suit you, leave it.”

Sameer composed himself and replied firmly as well:

• “Just like that? Fine. Then where is my compensation for my efforts in your investments? The car dealership I dedicated my life to until it became one of the largest and most famous. Isn’t it fair that I get 40% of its profits? And I paid a quarter of a million dinars from my own money to compensate for the cars damaged in the nighttime attack using other cars. You told me back then, ‘Your right is preserved,’ and forced me to register them under the dealership’s name. Where is my preserved right?”

The teacher took a piece of paper and a pen, looked Sameer in the eye, and said, “Of course your right is preserved.” He then tore the paper lengthwise and wrote at the top of the right section: (For Sameer), then said:

• “250,000 dinars—you bought cars with this,” and wrote it on the first line.
• “And your efforts in the dealership… you’re right. Let’s value them at 100,000 dinars.”
• “Your efforts in the restaurant chain, poultry farm, and contracting company… of course, it’s no secret that you failed to solve many of their problems, but I won’t wrong you. After all, injustice is one of the forbidden things you mentioned! I’ll estimate your efforts in them conservatively at 30,000 dinars.”
• “Let’s add it up: 250,000 + 100,000 + 30,000 = 380,000 dinars… correct?”

At the top of the left section of the paper, the teacher wrote: (Sameer owes), then said:

• “Let’s calculate what you owe:
  • Twenty years of living in a villa with an annual rent of no less than 10,000 dinars… (20 × 10) = 200,000 dinars.
  • The oil cans, meat, and fruit you sent to me and my family—I calculated them a few weeks ago: about 7,000 dinars.
  • The travel tickets for you and your children to tourist destinations… I won’t count Hanan’s tickets… wait…”

The teacher turned to his computer, opened a file, calculated quickly, and said, “15,000 dinars.”

• “The costs of Ashraf and Sadiq’s births and your daughters… I still remember: 4,000 dinars that I paid.”
• “The reputation I built for you in the market and introduced you to businessmen’s networks so you could exploit that to start a new business… I value this at 150,000 dinars.”
• “Ah, I just remembered: the wedding party cost 7,500 dinars.”

The teacher paused, scratched his head, and said:

• “Alright, I’ll consider this a gift to my daughter Hanan. After all, you’re my son-in-law, and I should be lenient with you.”

The teacher brought over a calculator, started adding the numbers seriously, and said:

• “The total you owe is 376,000 dinars… correct.”
• “What you have minus what you owe = 4,000 dinars.”

The teacher took out his checkbook, wrote a check for 4,000 dinars for Sameer, and said:

• “Here, place the dealership key, the restaurant management office key, and the farm key on the desk. And don’t forget the villa key, first of all. Place the keys and take the check—it’s your right.”

Sameer listened to all of this in shock! He stood up and left the teacher’s office silently, without taking the check. He was so stunned by the shock that he couldn’t go to the dealership, so he headed to the villa… On the way, he vented his frustration by cursing the teacher under his breath: “The traitor! The swindler! He wants to pay me 4,000 dinars for a life I dedicated to serving him! He’s holding me accountable for the villa I live in with my daughter and grandchildren! He’s holding me accountable for the birth costs of his grandchildren he traded under their names: ‘Ashraf to hold onto honor,’ ‘Sadiq to be honest in a time of lies’… You liar!!! I can’t even stand being called ‘Father of Ashraf’ by anyone… Of course, if I told him, ‘They’re your grandchildren,’ he’d say, ‘No, they’re your children whose upbringing you ruined until Ashraf tarnished our reputation as I said before!’ And if I told him, ‘No, it was your daughter who neglected them while I was busy with your interests,’ he’d defend his daughter and bring up the day my mother died, just like he did that day!”

Lost in thought, Sameer nearly collided with a car. The driver honked angrily at him, snapping him out of it. He parked his car on the side of the road, put his hand on his forehead, and said with deep regret:

• “Am I crazy?! How did I agree to register the cars under the dealership’s name when I bought them with my own money?! How, when I know this man has no fear of God or morality?! Maybe because I never imagined I’d be one of his victims one day! After all, I was his ‘partner’ in fraud and manipulation. I should have expected this and protected my rights on paper. But it was as if I was drugged!”

Sameer continued walking, arrived at the villa, and went to his room to sleep. Hanan came to him and said coldly:

• “Where’s Inas?”
• “She’s sleeping at her uncle Amjad’s house.”
• “That’s not your right. I know my daughter’s etiquette, and I don’t want her picking up habits from an environment I don’t know. It’s enough that you moved her to a school we didn’t approve of, me and my mother. Go and bring her back.”

Sameer remained silent.

• “I’m telling you to go and bring her back. Now.”

• “I want to sleep. I’m not bringing anyone.”

Hanan left angrily, and her mother, Susan, started calling repeatedly within minutes while Sameer kept hanging up. He then turned off his phone and went to sleep.

Sameer, who had slept for a long time after the shock from Abu Azzam, woke up in the middle of the night… He lay there thinking about what he could do after Abu Azzam’s betrayal. He tossed and turned, got up, and went to drink water, still thinking…

• “Should I surrender to Abu Azzam and go back to what I was? No! It’s not reasonable… Should I forget Amjad’s advice so quickly?!”
• “Then what about the money Abu Azzam the swindler stole from me? The quarter of a million I paid?! Should I leave it to him and hand over the keys? Impossible!”
• “I have to work on recovering my money, even if it’s secretly from the dealership’s funds and Abu Azzam’s other interests.”
• “But that means staying with him and returning to all the forbidden practices I used to do.”
• “I have no choice!”
• “But this ‘no choice’ is what I’ve used to justify myself for so long until I reached where I am now.”

Sameer kept checking his phone, scrolling through WhatsApp messages to distract himself from the whirlwind of thoughts, and replying to messages from some customers and employees of Abu Azzam’s businesses. He wanted to check on Inas, so he almost called Amjad… But it was late, and he was afraid Amjad would ask him what had happened.

He went out to the villa’s garden and walked for about an hour, thinking… Finally, he decided:

• “The wolf won’t die, and the sheep won’t perish! I’ll go back to working with Abu Azzam, avoid the forbidden practices as much as possible, and start secretly recovering my money from him. In the meantime, I’ll establish my own business to become independent from him.”

He performed the missed prayers so as not to leave the mosque immediately after Amjad had inspired him, then he had dinner and went to sleep. During that day, after Samir had left Abu ‘Izzam’s office stunned, Abu ‘Izzam himself was also thinking and planning... He summoned Zuhayr:

— “Zuhayr, Samir was given a spiritual awakening! He tells me: ‘There are “forbidden matters” in our work...’ What! He said forbidden matters! Ha.”

— “He finally woke up! But why did conscience strike him now, teacher?”

— “I don’t know. Perhaps after what happened with his son Ashraf.”

Zuhayr said cunningly:

— “Fine, get rid of him, teacher... We serve you and serve the ‘forbidden matters’ before your eyes... Hmm... Or maybe it’s difficult because he’s your son-in-law.”

— “It no longer matters that he’s my son-in-law... But don’t forget that Samir is privy to the details. I don’t want him to reach the stage: ‘Me and my enemies.’”

— “So what’s the plan, teacher?”

— “A containment plan: I’ll assign him transactions involving embezzlement or ‘forbidden matters’ in his view! And I’ll entrust you with these tasks until his spiritual awakening passes.”

— “At your service, teacher.”

— “Also: I’ll expand the ‘charitable work’ and give Samir responsibility for it. You take over the task of using these activities for our benefit.”

— “On my head, teacher.”

— “The most important thing, Zuhayr: keep a very close eye on Samir! There’s no doubt he’ll try in the next stage to embezzle from my money, thinking I wronged him. This wretch I made from nothing thinks I wronged him! Watch him closely and catch him red-handed.”

At this point, Zuhayr’s eyes gleamed:

— “Fine, this requires your help, teacher.”

— “What do you want?”

— “Give me a copy of the keys so I can install a monitoring program on his computer at the exhibition and in the restaurant management office tonight.”

— “That’s easy.”

— “And I have a young man I want you to employ, teacher, as an employee at the exhibition under Samir... I want him there for just a few months.”

The teacher understood Zuhayr’s intention... and agreed.

And indeed, Zuhayr immediately began implementing the plan and set off that very night, installing spyware on the computers, while Samir walked in the villa’s garden, pondering what to do about Abu ‘Izzam. What shocking message did Samir receive from Abu ‘Izzam the next morning, which reignited his resolve?

Let us continue...

Inas (18)

Samir woke up the next morning, still stunned by the revelation about Abu Azzam’s account... He lay in bed for a while, lost in thought, then got up and ate breakfast alone. He decided not to speak to the teacher yet and went to work as usual, intending to avoid forbidden practices as much as possible and to begin trying to recover at least some of his money gradually.

Minutes after entering the showroom office, a strange, shocking message from Abu Azzam arrived:

— "Samir... yesterday I thought long and hard about what you told me... and I saw that you were right. ‘Whoever fears Allah, He will make a way out for him and provide for him from where he never expected.’ I’ve allocated five thousand dinars from my share in the showroom to charitable workers to purify our money. We’ll work together to do what pleases Allah. Also, a friend of mine asked me to arrange a job for his son. I’ll send him to you today to hire him at the showroom."

Samir checked the sender’s name repeatedly to be sure!

— "Is this really Abu Azzam? Unbelievable! Has Abu Azzam’s WhatsApp account been hacked? Who else would know about yesterday’s meeting and what happened there to tell me, ‘You were right’ and ‘We’ll do what pleases Allah’? What’s going on here?! Has Abu Azzam really changed?! Impossible!"

Then he thought to himself: "Why did I rule out the possibility of his guidance? Maybe he was influenced by my stance and my readiness to leave the ill-gotten money."

Samir gathered his courage and called Abu Azzam:

— "Uncle, did you send me a message about three minutes ago?" — "Yes, my son, I did."

Samir swallowed hard.

— "Uncle Abu Azzam, you have no idea how happy I was to receive that message! As for the charitable funds, I suggest we start by returning the rights to their owners first, and..."

Abu Azzam interrupted him immediately:

— "Samir, we don’t deal in rights here, uncle. If you have any suggestions, come visit me at the office."

Samir thought to himself: "Yes, it’s probably not appropriate to discuss this over the phone, especially since it might expose fraud and forgery. This could be evidence against Abu Azzam." He ended the call and headed toward the teacher’s office.

On the way, Samir considered broaching the topic of his own rights:

"Since Abu Azzam was influenced by my words, there’s no doubt he’s also realized he wronged me in the calculation he did with me yesterday... Should I bring it up with him? Or wait for him to bring it up himself? But did Abu Azzam really change, or is he after something with this message? What does he want when he says, ‘You were right’ and ‘I’m ready to pay five thousand for charity’? But he’s always done so-called charitable work for publicity and investment propaganda... Is he doing the same thing this time? I’ll see through it if he tries. So what does Abu Azzam really want?!"

He thought again: "Why did I rule out the possibility of his guidance? Allah guides whom He wills... But is it possible for someone to change so easily?!"

Lost in thought, Samir arrived and entered Abu Azzam’s office. Abu Azzam tried to put on a "pleasant" face, marked by signs of emotion, while maintaining an air of dignity to keep a distance between him and Samir.

— "Please, my son-in-law." — "Uncle Abu Azzam, to be honest, I’m surprised by your message."

— "Don’t be surprised... After all, we’re Muslims... And I’m almost seventy, Samir. As for what you said about ‘returning rights to their owners’... listen carefully! I never said we’d change the entire nature of our business overnight. We’ll adjust our course gradually and work step by step to compensate those we may have wronged by mistake... but not abruptly, or we’ll open a can of worms."

Samir felt Abu Azzam’s tone shifting... "He said, ‘those we may have wronged by mistake’?! He knows how much he’s deceived and cheated—including me, one of his victims! What does this man want?!"

Abu Azzam broke Samir’s silence:

— "As I told you... you can spend the five thousand dinars however you see fit for charity and just let me know what you did with it for my records only. You can consult Abu Ahmad, the meat supplier, about the best ways to give charity—he’s a generous man. Tell him Abu Azzam seeks his advice on the first charitable causes we can support."

This Abu Ahmad was a righteous, wealthy man Abu Azzam had recently been dealing with, and he wanted to appear as a charitable businessman to benefit from the association.

Abu Azzam continued:

— "And if, uncle, there are things you believe are forbidden and you’d like to avoid them, tell me so we can try to steer clear of them as much as possible... Now, a friend is coming to meet me... Do you need anything, Samir?"

Samir was flustered and thought to himself: "So there are things I believe are forbidden?! We’re drowning in forbidden practices in every form!" Then he said to Abu Azzam:

— "For example, teacher, what about the cars with tampered odometers? We have more than thirty cars like that. What should we do with them?"

— "Samir, don’t ask me for details... use your intelligence in these matters. We can’t fix the odometers again, and we can’t just throw the cars away! Sell them at a reduced price... but not so low that it raises suspicion... ‘The wolf doesn’t die, and the sheep don’t all perish.’"

— "‘The wolf doesn’t die, and the sheep don’t all perish’... That’s the same phrase I said to myself yesterday! What a strange coincidence! Maybe the teacher is right after all."

Samir used this to justify to himself "reducing" the cheating instead of stopping it altogether. He had to apply this "rule" to all forbidden practices.

The teacher’s friend arrived, and the teacher had deliberately scheduled the meeting at this time to avoid prolonging his conversation with Samir. Samir greeted him and left.

On his way back to the showroom, Samir thought: "In this case, when will it be my turn to get my rights back from Abu Azzam if he’s going to adjust the course ‘gradually,’ as he says? And if he’s going to compensate those he ‘may have wronged by mistake’ ‘step by step’?! It seems your rope is long, Abu Azzam... I’ll work to recover my rights myself and won’t wait for a turn that may never come! At least I’ve gotten a promise from him that we won’t engage in new forbidden practices beyond what we’re already drowning in."

Hamed, the new employee Samir had hired for the showroom, arrived—a smart young man in his mid-twenties with an innocent "baby face" who was skilled at acting and evasion. Samir trusted him and began to rely on him.

Three months passed... during which Samir sold most of the tampered cars! At slightly reduced prices, recording the sale price lower than the actual amount. "Abu Azzam will believe they were sold at this price because their odometers were tampered with," and Samir would pocket the difference. "If Abu Azzam is surprised by the selling price, I’ll tell him, ‘You told me to sell them at a reduced price... not this low!’ He’ll say, ‘I told you not to go that far!’ I’ll reply, ‘I thought this was an appropriate price. I also told customers our policy is small profits but high volume, so no one was surprised.’"

Samir was also creating invoices with prices different from the actual sale prices for Abu Azzam’s review.

Hamed was secretly monitoring all of this without Samir’s knowledge. He collected information from buyers and, hours after they left the showroom, would call them:

"Sir, our policy is to keep shared electronic copies between us and the customer. If you don’t mind, please send a photo of the invoice you received from the showroom to the WhatsApp number that just called you."

All of this was happening without Samir’s knowledge.

During this period, Zuhair uncovered other forms of Samir’s deception through the program he had planted on Samir’s computer in the exhibition office. He then sent two buyers on Samir’s behalf to further document the forgery against him. Meanwhile, Samir continued his charitable work, both on Abu ‘Izzam’s account and his own, convincing himself that this eased the burden of the forbidden transactions still lingering in Abu ‘Izzam’s dealings.

Samir’s morale improved over these three months, and he maintained his stall to some extent, with Amjad overseeing it. Hanan fell ill, giving Samir a chance to rekindle some connection with her, much to Inas’s delight. After that wonderful visit, Inas continued to visit her uncle Amjad’s house.

At the end of these three months, Abu ‘Izzam called Samir and Zuhair to a meeting. During it, Abu ‘Izzam deliberately did not scrutinize Samir’s files, instead spending most of the time reviewing Zuhair’s achievements. Zuhair’s accomplishments had been deliberately exaggerated, with Abu ‘Izzam’s prior knowledge. This made Samir feel envy and resentment toward his bitter rival, Zuhair! He left the meeting determined not to fail in the competition.

What did this mean for Samir? A slight relaxation regarding the forbidden dealings, so he could earn higher profits and not fall behind Zuhair in the competition!

Samir indeed began to slacken, and Abu ‘Izzam did not intervene in any way, nor did he impose anything on Samir. Two more months passed in this state, with Zuhair and Hamid devising more schemes and gathering further evidence of Samir’s forgeries to reclaim their money.

Then came the long-awaited moment! The teacher summoned all three of them to his palace: Samir, Zuhair... and Hamid.

Now, what happened in this meeting? Let’s continue.

Inas (19)

Samir was surprised by Hamid’s presence at the meeting—Hamid, the simple employee—and he noticed Zuhair’s smug grin. The four of them were sitting around an oval hospitality table. Abu ‘Azzam was holding a large file, which he placed in front of Samir and said:

“Samir, I told you to alert me if you find anything unlawful in our work so we can avoid it. Take a look at this file and tell me if there’s anything ‘unlawful’ in it.”

Samir opened the file: documentation of the difference between the actual selling price of cars and the price recorded in the dealership’s accounts… salaries recorded for months for an employee who had been let go, with Samir taking that salary for himself… hidden files on the dealership’s computer where Samir inflated the costs of food items purchased for a restaurant chain and a poultry farm by a factor of 1.2, presenting them to Abu ‘Azzam as if they had been bought at that price so he could pocket the difference… and other things!

Samir’s face paled as he read it all. Zuhair watched him with a smile, Hamid’s eyes darting between Samir and Abu ‘Azzam, while Abu ‘Azzam leaned his chair back slightly from the table, crossed his legs, and smoked a cigar, gazing at the ceiling. Samir closed the file and sat staring at the table, frowning, his mouth slightly open as if deep in thought. Abu ‘Azzam said:

“Well… are there any unlawful things? And what do you advise we do about them?”

Samir replied in a low voice:

“You forced me into this.”

“Forced you into what, exactly?”

Samir felt that Abu ‘Azzam might be recording their conversation to use against him later. Indeed, Zuhair was already recording everything on a hidden recorder. So Samir answered:

“I was forced into what I saw.”

“Did you see, Samir, what happens when we load wood beyond what it can bear? How the structure collapses—and you collapse with it?”

Samir remembered the conversation that had taken place more than twenty years ago… the conversation about “the burden of responsibility” that Abu ‘Azzam had taught him before revealing his corrupt world to him:

“One learns from life, Samir, things you can’t learn in university or courses or conferences… and what you learn is that ideals and values are undoubtedly important—they’re essential for a healthy psychological life and for feeling satisfied with yourself. But if you let them interfere too much in your life, they’ll restrict you, and everyone else will overtake you on the track. And whoever falls behind in the race doesn’t just lose the prize—he’s swept away by the flood. We live in a world without mercy… Imagine these pieces, Samir, as wood, and imagine the office as a sea where the winds stir its waves, and the pieces drift back and forth, drawing near and moving away… Can I build a tall structure on them? Just like ideals and values…

In our world: society is the sea, circumstances, changes, and problems are the winds, and the pieces of wood are our opportunities in this life… the foothold that may be available to us. If the wind dies down one day and the pieces of wood draw close, and we try to build high ideals and noble values on top of them, what will happen at the first gust of wind and the first wave of the sea? They’ll collapse—and you’ll collapse with them! And the higher the ideals, the faster the collapse. So, after more than a quarter of a century in the workforce, I’ve learned that religious values and moral ideals are beautiful things, but I’m the one who allows them to interfere in my life only to the extent that reality permits. In other words, I load each piece of wood with only what it can bear and what it can hold onto, no matter how hard the wind blows or how high the waves rise. That way, I reconcile my spiritual needs with reality at the same time. Others may insist on building high, but when it collapses, they’ll be ready to abandon all their values and ethics and cling to the planks just to avoid drowning! No, my dear, a little that lasts is better than a lot that’s cut short. The wolf doesn’t die, and the sheep don’t perish.”

Samir felt that he was the one who would “be ready to abandon all his values and ethics and cling to the planks just to avoid drowning!” And that he would have to make even more concessions under the slogan, “The wolf doesn’t die, and the sheep don’t perish!”

Throughout all this, Samir didn’t lift his gaze from the table, like a punished student. He asked to leave, and Abu ‘Azzam allowed it. He left.

He arrived home, but this time he didn’t feel like he’d arrived—he felt a sense of “betrayal” and a touch of resentment toward fate.

Samir had expected God to help him since he’d “improved” compared to before, and that He would open more doors for him in the world, even if he was still involved in many unlawful dealings with Abu ‘Azzam…

Samir wasn’t used to taking responsibility for his own actions. He always found excuses for them as long as he was “better than others” and as long as he was “doing good deeds,” and because “if someone else were in his place, they’d do worse!” So he blamed fate for not giving him what he felt he deserved.

But the reverence he held for God Almighty in his heart put a limit to that… True, his perception of God’s rights over him was weak, and he resented fate for not giving him what he felt he deserved. Yet, he still told himself:

“God is Wise in what He does; He is not asked about what He does… Even if I lose everything, I don’t want to lose my faith.”

Inas was waiting for her father to have dinner with her… Samir always made sure to eat with her. If he was late one day and found her asleep, he would make sure to have breakfast with her before she left for school. He couldn’t bear to go a day and night without seeing Inas, the only person he loved deeply and sincerely.

Inas greeted her father warmly, but he responded dryly:

“Inas, sorry, my dear, I’m very tired tonight. Have dinner by yourself…”

And he went to sleep.

Inas was stunned. She went to pray and then went to bed without eating, lying in bed for a while thinking: What happened to my father? Why did his mood suddenly change like this after improving for months?

They woke up the next morning… sitting together for breakfast.

“Dad, what’s wrong with you? Why are you sad?”

“Nothing, my dear. Just some work problems.”

Inas sensed that there was more to it, so she insisted gently, trying to find out the reason for his sadness and tension.

Samir thought about confiding in his daughter, sharing some secrets—he needed someone to listen to him. He certainly wouldn’t go back to Majid after what had happened! Majid’s answer would be clear and decisive: (I told you: leave Abu ‘Azzam and his world, and stop drowning in his quicksand!)

And indeed, Samir decided to tell his daughter “something” about what was happening to him, in a way that suited her understanding, without completely losing her respect for him.

“Okay, I’ll tell you after breakfast, my dear…”

They went out to the garden, and Samir began cautiously telling his daughter about what he was going through with her grandfather, Abu ‘Azzam… watching her expressions to gauge how much shock she could take, so he wouldn’t overload her with bitter truths.

Inas, for her part, sensed that her father was hiding things and was embarrassed by what he was saying. So she forced herself to freeze her expression and maintain a faint smile, even as she absorbed the blows.

After ten minutes of explanation, with Inas silent, Samir asked her:

“What would you do if you were in my place, Inas?”

Inas replied immediately after a long pause:

“I would leave the job with my grandfather, Abu ‘Azzam, and look for a lawful job.”

Samir was surprised by her quick, confident response. He thought: Which is truer? “The wolf doesn’t die, and the sheep don’t perish,” or Inas’s pure instinct—which completely aligns with Majid’s advice?

“But, Dad, that means we’d have to leave the villa with all its contents and live a very simple life…”

“It doesn’t matter,” Inas replied quickly.

“No more trips, no more outings, no more restaurants.”

“And are you happy with all of this now, Dad?”

Samir was stunned by the question! It was as if a deep voice inside him had taken shape in Inas! He wasn’t happy with all of this, yet he felt he couldn’t let it go.

Samir fell silent, but after sensing that he had trapped himself by damaging his image in front of his daughter without any real preparation to respond to her advice, he said:

"Come, prepare for the school bus, my dear."

Inas left for school, and Samir went to the exhibition, worried about what Abu Azzam would do: "Will he submit the file to the judiciary? It will be a disaster! No... he won’t do that... he knows where I can harm him... maybe he will just ask for the money I took secretly."

Strangely, days passed, and Abu Azzam did not demand anything from Samir, not even the return of the money he had taken! For Abu Azzam, the "lesson" he had taught Samir, and Samir’s conviction in the "rule" of the sea and timber, along with Samir’s readiness to follow orders without reopening the topic of "prohibitions," were enough!

Unfortunately, Samir gradually returned to his old self before Amjad’s advice. He also reverted to neglecting his prayers and strained his relationship with Hanan—"the daughter of the teacher who humiliated me in front of Zuhair and the deceitful employee!"

Meanwhile, a wound deepened within Inas. It was the wound of what she had discovered about her father’s and grandfather’s world when her father had revealed "part" of the truth to her. A voice began to echo within her: "Is all this luxury we live in mixed with deception, injustice, and the forbidden?" She began to feel that she wanted to distance herself from this tainted situation and differentiate herself from this environment, but she didn’t know how.

Inas’s relationship with her brother Sadiq grew stronger. He had reached high school and was spending more time at home under his parents’ pressure, and Samir had hired private tutors for him. Though Sadiq felt jealous of Inas, her kindness left no room for anyone to hate her. She would bring him a cup of coffee, place it on his desk, and ask him with her gentle smile:

"How are your studies? Can I help you with anything?" "No, thank you, Anus." "Excuse me... May God grant you success."

Their affection grew over time. Sadiq had some of Inas’s gentleness, but he lacked guidance... Despite the seven-year age gap between them, he found comfort in talking to her, as he found in her the sincere care he had never received from his spiritually distant parents.

Similarly, Ashraf eagerly awaited visits from Inas. Fatima, under her father’s guidance, would share verses or hadiths about patience and God’s mercy with Inas, along with some brief, impactful phrases. Inas would then share these with her brother to ease his difficult circumstances.

During this time, Hanan also made sure to spend time with Inas, taking her on visits with her friends and her mother’s friends (Suzan). But they began to notice a certain withdrawal in Inas... She herself felt a growing sense of alienation and aversion toward this environment and the nature of the topics discussed—filled with trivialities and devoid of any benefit.

Hanan, during the hours she spent at home, often watched TV and enjoyed Inas’s presence beside her, but Inas frequently withdrew when she saw something that offended her modesty. Her mother noticed but did not want to change! Though it bothered her that Inas distanced herself so much... She felt her daughter was "exaggerating" her aversion to things Hanan considered "normal."

Hanan resumed her resistance to Inas visiting her uncle Amjad’s house... She begged her daughter earnestly, but to no avail, and Samir, preoccupied with his problems, did not intervene. And if he did, Hanan would retort sharply: "Inas is picking up traits from her uncle’s house that distance her from us!"

Hanan tried to occupy her daughter by taking her on weekend trips to stay at her grandfather Abu Azzam’s palace, which boasted a gym, a garden with various games, bird cages of different shapes, a massive fish tank, and other luxuries. But none of this equaled the beautiful moments Inas spent at her uncle Amjad’s house with his warm family.

Our kind-hearted girl is now eleven years old... One Friday, after they had finished breakfast (while Samir ate alone and Hanan was still asleep), Inas entered her father’s office with a cup of coffee she had made herself. She stood before him, her face glowing like the moon with the morning sun’s rays streaming through the window, and said with a smile:

"Dad." "Yes, my life." "I want to wear the hijab."

Now, what was Samir’s response? And what new test did our girl present to her father with these words? Let us continue.

Inas (20)

— "I will wear the hijab"... a statement Samir had never expected to hear from Inas!

Samir lifted his eyes from the laptop he was holding, looking at Inas in surprise and bewilderment. He said: — "Inas, you're still little, my child." — "No, Baba, Fatima is the same age as me, and we agreed together to go to school the day after tomorrow wearing the hijab." — "You're different from Fatima, my child. I'm happy that Fatima wore the hijab; it's wonderful... but you're different from her. We have our environment and our acquaintances, my child, and if you wear the hijab, you'll be different from those around you." — "Okay, when I grow up more, I'll also be different from them if I wear it. So when will you let me wear it?"

Samir was flustered and confused, noticing the contradiction in his own words. His daughter's words had taken him by surprise; he hadn't expected them and hadn't prepared a response.

Over the past years, Samir had been lost in his own world, but he hadn't interfered to prevent anyone from doing something that brought them closer to God. He had been negligent in raising his children, letting them be swept along by their surroundings, yet he hadn't stood in the way of anyone who wanted to change their path or turn to their Lord... So Inas's words were a new kind of test for Samir!

Samir avoided thinking about what stance he would take when Inas reached the age of obligation for the hijab. He said: — "My child, let's stop talking about the future. You're still little now." — "And is Mama still little too?!" — "You know that Mama doesn't listen to me." — "Then when did she ever listen to you?!"

Samir felt both embarrassed and provoked. In all his life with Inas, he had never been harsh with her or reprimanded her.

And Inas had never spoken to her father in this manner before. In this argument, her smile vanished, and she began speaking with some agitation, responding to her father's words quickly.

In reality, Inas was expressing the accumulated questions in her heart that had begun to trouble her: "Why, Baba? Why aren't you like Uncle Amjad? Why don't I see the same affection between you and Mama as between Uncle and his wife? Why don't you learn from what happened to Ashraf? Why don't you remain steadfast in prayer for days, only to later grow lazy and neglect it? How did you allow yourself all these years to obey Grandfather Abu Azzam in these forbidden practices he enforces here? Will you be with me in Paradise, Baba? Is Allah pleased with you while you are in this state? How will I bear being distant from you if you're not with me in Paradise? I love you, Baba, and I know you love me... but do you love Allah? If you love Him, why don't you obey Him?!"

All these questions surged within Inas when her father argued with her, refusing her request to wear the hijab. His argument had ignited the volcano that had been building up within her over the years. Her pure heart began to race, and her tone grew increasingly tense.

She thought to herself: "If you don't want to change your life, Baba, then let me do it..."

For Inas, the hijab was a shield against the corrupt world she had discovered in her father and grandfather. It was also a form of distinction from them...

It was a shield against the environment her mother and grandmother Susan had thrust her into—a world that cared only for materialism and never remembered that there was a soul and an Afterlife...

Samir barely managed to control himself from being harsh with the only flower in the desert of his life. He looked back down at his laptop and said: — "Okay, Baba, we'll discuss this later." — "When later, Baba? Fatima gave me a hijab, and we agreed I would wear it to school the day after Sunday." — "We'll talk tomorrow, Baba... tomorrow is a holiday; you're not going to school."

Inas calmed herself, approached her father, kissed his cheek, and left silently.

Samir remained motionless for a few minutes... unwilling to think about the matter. Then he returned to the calculations related to the exhibition on his laptop.

Inas knew she was still little and wouldn't be held accountable for not wearing the hijab yet. But to her, it represented so much: it symbolized innate feminine modesty she didn't want to lose. It represented remembering Allah and realizing she existed in this life to worship Him out of love and reverence. It represented sincerity, spontaneity, and tranquility she had found in her uncle Amjad's family... It was a shield against her surroundings, so it wouldn't drag her into the whirlpool of heedlessness. She wasn't impressed by this life as she saw it in the arid luxury of the villa and the loss of her parents and siblings... Inas didn't hate a life of comfort, academic success, or professional achievement—she had seen this in her uncles, but they had dedicated it to pleasing Allah. What she hated was her parents' and her environment's immersion in worldly matters, their enslavement to it, and their forgetting of their Lord and the Hereafter... To Inas, the hijab was a shield to protect her wings, with which she could soar in the sky of faith and the happiness of this world and the Hereafter.

Inas had told her mother yesterday about her decision to wear the hijab, expecting opposition... but what she found wasn't just opposition—it was almost hysteria! Her mother looked at her aggressively: — "A hijab?! At this age?! This is all we needed for the upcoming party! For my friends to see you in a hijab... I was stupid to let you go to your uncle's house. Don't say this word again... pray as you wish... read the Quran as you wish... but don't talk about the hijab. It's all from my stupidity and foolishness for allowing you to go to your uncle's house."

Inas was shocked by her mother's harsh response... so she said to her: — "Do you hate the hijab that much?!" — "I don't hate it... I'm a Muslim even if I don't wear the hijab... You're little; don't talk about the hijab now."

So Inas turned to her father for support... but his response the following Friday morning was disappointing...

Inas let that day pass... and Samir and Inas went to sleep that night...

The next day, the first thing that crossed Samir's mind when he woke up was: "What will I say to Inas if she brings up the topic?"

Then he answered himself: "I don't think she will... maybe it's just a passing idea to imitate Fatima... children imitate each other... she won't like it if I bother her again."

They had breakfast in silence this time... As soon as they finished, Inas forced a smile to hide the worry behind it and said: — "Baba, I have great news; bless me." — "Blessings, what is it, my dear?" — "God willing, I will go to school tomorrow wearing the hijab... here it is... Fatima gave it to me."

Samir smiled, surprised by her approach, then resumed eating, avoiding eye contact with Inas. He thought for a moment and then said: — "My dear child, we have the party in two months, and you know how beautiful it is. You'll stand out from everyone else if you go wearing the hijab, and you won't fit in with them."

Samir didn't mention to his daughter the truth—that he would be embarrassed if she appeared like that at a party attended by his acquaintances, Abu Azzam's family, and their friends.

Inas surprised her father with her response: — "Baba, I don't even want to go to the party anymore... there are things there that Allah doesn't like."

Samir was disturbed and then said: — "Baba, we maintain a distance from things we disagree with, but we can't isolate ourselves from society. I'm happy that you pray and I want you to continue. But if we burden ourselves beyond our capacity in an environment that doesn't support us, we'll break."

What was strange was that Samir, despite hating Abu Azzam intensely at that stage, had absorbed many of his traits and began speaking with the same "logic"—the logic of "the sea and the wood"! Just as the teacher Ustaz Ashraf and Sadiq had adopted part of his prestige, Samir unconsciously began to take Inas as part of his prestige and the "decoration" of his personality!

Of course, Samir’s words held no power to convince Inas, nor could they sway her pure nature. The idea of duality he wanted her to embrace weighed heavily on her heart, and his words left her feeling diminished. She withdrew silently and went to her room in tears, disappointed in her father.

This time, she left without kissing his cheek, leaving him stunned by her swift, unchallenged withdrawal. Samir felt humiliated, as if the little girl had slapped him across the face. It was as though she had forced him to confront himself—even to despise himself.

The "easy" task of neglecting his duty had been simple for Samir, but resisting the innate goodness of his child’s pure nature and stifling the call to guidance within her proved far more difficult.

Did his sense of humiliation and self-loathing drive him to compromise with his daughter and abandon the party? No! Why? Was it because the party brought him joy? No, but he feared giving it up! Samir had reached a stage similar to that of a drug addict. He no longer took pleasure in the entertainment he was immersed in, yet he dreaded the "withdrawal symptoms" he would suffer if he let it go.

Meanwhile, Inas meant everything to Samir, yet he began to "grow accustomed" to the blessing of her presence in his life... He did not prioritize her well-being and happiness over his concern about appearing embarrassed in front of his acquaintances.

The next day, Inas went to school with a heavy heart. Fatima wore the hijab, which gave her a special elegance, and her classmates congratulated her. Inas looked at her with longing and wished she were in her place. She told Fatima what had happened, and Fatima consoled her, saying, "The holiday is just around the corner... Let’s try again with him in the next term, God willing."

The two girls were unaware of what awaited them in the next term!

Hanan spoke to her mother, Susan, about the situation between her and Inas regarding the hijab. Susan herself had noticed that Inas had been withdrawn lately and unresponsive to the environment around her. They made a harsh decision...

What was it? And what was Samir’s reaction to it? And how would it affect Inas’s life? Let’s continue.

Inas (21)

Suzan, Hanan’s mother, called Samir:

• “Samir, we’re going to enroll Inas in the international schools next to Mall of the Stars. It’s the right school for our social class. I justified enrolling her in her current school with her illness. Her illness is now gone and her condition has stabilized. Transfer her.”
• “She won’t bear being separated from her cousin.”
• “Actually, Hanan and I aren’t happy with her relationship with her cousin. Inas has become excessively spiritual, which embarrasses me in front of my friends and Hanan’s. I brought her a designer dress from France on the last trip, and she refused to wear it, claiming it wasn’t appropriate! Fatima has a strong influence on her, and I don’t like it. I don’t mind if Fatima comes to the villa and visits Inas occasionally under Hanan’s supervision, but she shouldn’t stay at the school. Transfer her.”
• “If Inas agrees to the transfer, I’ll transfer her.”
• “You know she won’t agree… Tell me, will you transfer her?”
• “It’s still too early; the school year isn’t over yet. We’ll discuss the topic for next year.”
• “I won’t wait until the end of the year, and I won’t leave her in this school for the second term. If you won’t transfer her, I know how to do it myself.” She hung up without a farewell.

Indeed, Abu ‘Izzam handled the matter through his connections, and Inas was transferred during the break between terms without needing her father’s signature as her legal guardian.

Neither Inas nor Fatima knew about the transfer yet. Hanan and her mother began spending more time with Inas and showered her with many gifts: makeup palettes, gold jewelry, dresses, an iPad… In an electronics store, Suzan asked her granddaughter:

• “My dear, should I buy you a phone?” She innocently replied:
• “Yes, so I can call Fatima and Zaynab.” Inas didn’t understand the reason for this sudden excessive attention until her mother took her to the new school to collect her uniform and books.

They got out of the car:

• “Come on, Mama…”
• “What is this place?!”
• “Your new school.”
• “What school?! I don’t want to leave my school.”
• “Yes, you do… It’s better for you.”
• “And Fatima?”
• “She has nothing to do with it… She’s in her school, and you’re in yours.”

Inas was shocked… She begged her mother in vain… She refused to try on the uniform or take the books.

As soon as they returned home, Inas rushed to her father, who was preparing to leave for the exhibition:

• “Baba, I don’t want to leave my school. Mama wants to transfer me against my will… I don’t want it, Baba, I don’t want it! Please, bring me back to Fatima’s school.”
• “It’s not me transferring you, Baba… I told them to leave Inas alone.”
• “They didn’t listen to me. You can bring me back, Baba. Please.”

Inas looked at her father with tension and fear, and he couldn’t bear to see her like this.

In reality, Samir could have brought Inas back if he wanted to, and he would have done so if it had been about her health, as he insisted the first time. But now, he was torn between two sides: on one hand, he didn’t want to upset Inas and was even happy—within limits—with her attachment to Fatima, and he wanted his daughter to be better than he was.

On the other hand, he began to feel that Inas was growing distant from him because of her attachment to Fatima and her uncle’s family! He hadn’t forgotten when she had put him in front of his own truth… Before, she would call him often, ask him questions, or enthusiastically start conversations with him… Now, she was less cheerful in her talks with him, less inclined to initiate topics, forcing a smile, and there was something in her heart toward him! Samir couldn’t bear it—he couldn’t stand feeling that his daughter was different from him and growing distant from him… One of them had to change to restore harmony.

But he didn’t want to change! In his attention to the Friday Fajr prayer sermon of the imam, where he had first met Abu ‘Izzam, Samir had set a deadline for his immersion in worldly life: to achieve success, accumulate wealth, and live in luxury… with the justification that this would stabilize his psyche so he could turn to God with a clear mind.

Now all of that had been achieved, yet his psyche wasn’t stable—he had only grown thirstier for worldly pleasures!

And with that, he lost the motivation to change himself. So, Inas had to change. She wanted to soar in the sky of a righteous life, while he wanted to remain stuck to the clay of the earth. The solution was to clip her wings!

Samir realized how ugly it was to clip the wings of an innocent girl with a pure nature and to stand in her way as she sought to fly. So, he justified to himself that he wasn’t the one doing this—Hanan and her mother were. He convinced himself that his “neutrality” in the matter absolved him of responsibility. He didn’t want to bear the burden of this act, yet he was satisfied with its results!

Finally, Samir spoke, with Inas’s eyes fixed on him and her hands clutching his shirt as she begged:

• “It has nothing to do with me, Baba. I’m not the one who transferred you.”

Inas felt a wave of disappointment. She couldn’t say anything… She let go of her father’s shirt and went to her room, crying over her father’s betrayal once again.

The second term began… Fatima missed Inas… She told her father, who called Samir:

• “Samir, is Inas alright? School started two days ago, and she hasn’t come?!”
• “She’s fine… She transferred to the international schools next to Mall of the Stars.” Amjad was stunned:
• “But Samir, Inas and Fatima benefited greatly from being together—they were like sisters.”
• “I know. It wasn’t me who transferred her… Her mother and grandmother insisted on it.”
• “Why?”
• “I don’t know. Ask her mother.”
• “I have nothing to do with her mother! You’re her father and responsible for her.”
• “The transfer has been done, Amjad. Anyway, Fatima can see Inas at our house. This is her uncle’s home, so she’s welcome anytime.”

Amjad understood what was happening and began to seethe. He said angrily:

• “You saw how Inas was influenced by Fatima, but instead of rejoicing in that, you want to put an end to her influence and separate them to suit yourselves! I won’t bring Fatima to your house.”
• “Amjad, the transfer is done and over with. She’s my daughter, and I have the right to decide for her.”

Amjad raised his voice:

• “This daughter of yours… You don’t deserve her!… Peace be upon you.” He hung up.
• “I don’t deserve her?! How could I not deserve her?! If I didn’t deserve her, God wouldn’t have given her to me. How could Amjad say such a thing when he’s a religious man who carefully chooses his words?!”

Samir didn’t realize that it wasn’t just Inas he didn’t deserve—none of the blessings he was enjoying at that moment did he deserve! He wasn’t grateful for them. He didn’t realize that God Almighty bestows countless blessings upon both the righteous and the wicked in this world, which is not the abode of recompense, and then He will hold them accountable for these blessings in the Hereafter. Not to mention that they may be stripped of these blessings—or their blessings may be removed—in this world if they are ungrateful. At this stage, Samir had been stripped of the joy of comfortably enjoying his blessings, even if their structures remained: a home, a wife, a profitable job, money, children… In fact, they now tormented him! Yet the presence of Inas in his life was a source of reassurance that made him feel, “God loves me. I have flaws, but I have much good in me, and I do many good deeds. If someone else were in my circumstances and environment, they would be more lax. If I didn’t deserve Inas, God wouldn’t have given her to me.”

So, Samir dismissed Amjad’s words as a slip of anger… even though those words would one day resurface in his mind!

Inas never settled into her new school… an environment that didn’t remind her of God but rather of her father’s duality. She found no role models among the teachers like before, nor companions like Fatima…

There was something hurting her. Innas had loved her new classmates with a tender, gentle heart and pitied them because she felt their "feathers were being plucked," just as her own wings had been. She longed to lift them up with her into the paradise of this world she had glimpsed in her uncle Amjad’s home. Yet at this young age, Innas needed to soar first before she could raise others with her. It pained the kind-hearted Innas to be withdrawn from her classmates, unable to greet them with her usual open face, innocent laughter, and cheerful conversations—the way she had at Fatima’s school. She wished she could, but she couldn’t. For the first time, she felt a breaking inside her.

Hanan came to her daughter with a gift: a prayer set and prayer mat, both made of expensive silk, and in return, she took away the hijab that Fatima had recently given to Innas. She kept an old prayer set from Fatima as well, since it would only be used at home.

Innas did not use any of the silk items and kept wearing Fatima’s old prayer set.

Innas began spending long hours in her room—thinking, sometimes reading a storybook that Zaynab, Fatima’s older sister, had given her.

Sadiq missed her and missed her promise to him of a cup of coffee and kind, encouraging words.

He came to her and saw her holding her doll (Huda), a gift from her uncle Amjad. Innas had outgrown playing with dolls like Huda, who were meant for younger girls, but Huda reminded her of her uncle Amjad’s world, of Fatima, and the wonderful days she had spent in her uncle’s home.

Sadiq saw her with Huda dressed in a prayer outfit, lost in thought.

He broke the silence:

— “Innas, what’s wrong with you?” — “I want to go back to Fatima’s school.”

Sadiq tried to comfort her, but he wasn’t used to this role. Usually, it was she who lifted his spirits.

After these developments, Innas went with her father to visit Ashraf. Ashraf noticed a change in her features. She said something to him that Samir overheard: — “Ashraf, you’re not the only one who’s suffering.” Ashraf and his father thought she meant someone in a similar situation, but she actually meant something else entirely!

Hanan and her mother noticed Innas’s sadness and never imagined that transferring her from Fatima’s school was the cause, especially since the new school was “more beautiful,” “more luxurious,” and “more prestigious.” They assumed it was psychological changes signaling puberty in this eleven-year-old girl. So they took her to a psychiatrist…

The idea upset Innas, and she apologized to the doctor for not answering his questions.

Finally, the party arrived. In the last hour before leaving, Hanan’s shouts rose: “You’ll wear this dress.” — “No, Mama.” — “You will wear it.” — “I can’t.” — “Teta brought it specially for you from France. You’ll be the most beautiful girl there.”

— “It’s not appropriate. It’s not modest.” — “How about this one?” — “Not this one either. I don’t want to go to the party at all.” — “You’re crazy! You’re going. It’s the party we’ve been waiting for for so long.”

Hanan didn’t realize that what Innas was resisting wasn’t “strange behaviors she picked up from Fatima,” but rather an innate feminine modesty rooted in her nature, which hadn’t been corrupted.

After a long argument, Innas reluctantly went out in a long dress like the dresses of little princesses, and she left in her mother’s car. As usual, they met Samir at the hall entrance. The couple (frozen in their marital state!) entered proudly, with Innas between them.

She was truly beautiful! With a childlike innocence… but one thing was missing: the smile that had faded recently and that she couldn’t fake that day.

Samir made sure to take Innas to one of the tables. He came to take her from Hanan, who refused because she was showing her off to her friends to hear their compliments on Innas’s beauty.

The couple nearly argued in front of everyone, but they controlled themselves to preserve appearances. So Hanan took her around for a while, then handed her over to Samir.

Samir went to a table where a prominent businessman was sitting. Samir was trying to persuade him to establish a business relationship with him, hoping to start his own venture away from Abu ‘Izzam’s system. Samir proudly introduced his daughter to the businessman: — “My daughter, Innas.” — “What God wills! How are you, Uncle?” — “Praise God.” — “What beauty, Mr. Samir! Like a little princess.”

Samir was elated! These were the words he wanted to hear and the impression he wanted to leave: that he was a refined, dignified man who had inherited glory from generation to generation, and the proof was Innas!

Samir made sure to keep Innas by his side throughout the conversation with the businessman, even though the topics were commercial and irrelevant to her. But Samir wanted her as a decoration in the background of his image, to create a sense of grandeur in the eyes of the “new master!”

Innas felt humiliated and disgusted by her parents’ shallowness throughout it all. She didn’t enjoy or take pride in the compliments on her beauty from the partygoers, because their opinion of her no longer mattered to her. She remembered a comment she had heard from Juman, her uncle Amjad’s wife, discussing with her daughter Zaynab in a friendly manner when she said, “You’re beautiful, and all righteous girls are beautiful through their modesty, faith, and morals. We don’t make external beauty the standard by which we judge people… Girls who think this way may end up hating their appearance and losing their self-worth over something they have no control over.”

Innas had heard these words while playing with Fatima, but they had settled in her heart and shaped her own “standard” for judging people. Zaynab was “ordinary” by the standards of external beauty, and so was Fatima… yet Innas had seen in them a beauty of spirit and heart that she didn’t see in anyone at the party! She pitied those who praised only her outward beauty and felt they were blind to the world of beauty she had known!

The party ended, and the three returned to the villa. Samir went to his room to sleep, Hanan went to her room, and Innas went to hers. She prayed the evening prayer, then couldn’t sleep from overthinking. She made her decision.

So, what decision did she make? And what fate awaited her that neither Innas nor her parents expected? Let’s continue…

Inas (22)

Samir woke up the next morning... preparing to go to the exhibition... he hadn’t had dinner with Inas yesterday, so he must have breakfast with her today... he stood at the door of her room. She was holding Hudha and looking at her, and beside her was her school bag, which she was starting to pack for her twentieth day at her new school...

Samir called out to her with a smile:

• "Inas, come have breakfast with me, my dear." Inas raised her eyes to meet his—without a smile!—for a few seconds... an unusual look, one of anger restrained by politeness, on her beautiful childlike face... then she said:
• "I’m not hungry." She sat Hudha in front of her and went back to arranging her books in the bag. Samir understood that his little girl was upset by his recent failure to respond to her demands and by his going out to the party yesterday... he thought about sitting beside her on the floor to appease her, but he restrained his fatherly affection and said to himself: "She has to get used to it. I want her to fit in with me and my environment so she stays close to me. I can’t bear it if she’s different from me. It’s just a matter of time, and she’ll get used to it." So he left and had breakfast alone, and Inas did not eat.

The school bus arrived, and Inas left in it. Then Samir went out to the exhibition. A normal day at the exhibition, and a normal day for Hanan, who woke up late and also had breakfast alone, until a call from the school roused her anger at Inas! She left early for the garden and sat facing the gate, waiting for the school bus, lighting a cigarette—she had started smoking recently—and tapping her foot nervously on the ground.

Half an hour after the school’s call to Hanan, Samir received a call from an unknown number... he was busy with a customer, so he hung up. The call came again, then a third time... Samir answered irritably:

• "Yes?!"
• "Mr. Samir, Inas’s father?"
• "Yes, who is this?"
• "The school’s parent liaison officer... Mr. Samir, the bus Inas was on... um..." Samir began to feel uneasy. "What about it?"
• "It was in an accident, and some students were taken to the Mercy Hospital."
• "Was Inas among them?"
• "Yes, unfortunately."
• "What happened to her?"
• "I don’t know, Mr. Samir." Samir hung up, said to the customer:
• "Sorry, I have an urgent matter," and rushed in panic to Mercy Hospital.

Some parents were in the waiting area, their children’s injuries ranging from minor to moderate... he asked about Inas:

• "She’s in the intensive care unit!" He rushed toward her but was stopped from entering... a few minutes later, the doctor came out, looking exhausted...
• "Doctor, please, how is Inas?"
• "Who are you?"
• "Her father." The doctor fell silent, his expression frozen. Samir’s face paled, his mouth went dry, and his heart nearly leapt from his chest with the intensity of his pounding! The doctor couldn’t bring himself to look at him, so he looked at the ground and said:
• "My dear brother, be patient... it pains me to tell you: Inas has passed away."

Samir rushed toward the room... he entered... a doctor was writing the death report with sorrow, and two nurses were crying... and Inas was on the bed, as if asleep peacefully. A brain hemorrhage with superficial wounds on the side of her head, and beside her chair was her school bag and her yans prayer garment, stained with blood...

Samir couldn’t comprehend the situation... he felt as though he were watching something happening to someone else, not to him! He approached Inas and said:

• "Inas, wake up, my dear." Inas did not wake up.

He gently shook her, kissed her forehead, where dried blood remained:

• "Inas, wake up, Papa... wake up." The doctor came over, deeply moved:
• "Be patient, my brother... may God have mercy on her." Samir turned, pushed the doctor’s hand from his shoulder, and said irritably:
• "She hasn’t died! She’s only eleven years old, man! She hasn’t died," and he laughed hysterically before returning to Inas... he took her hand in his... it was still warm and soft:
• "Inas, my life, wake up, Papa."

A few minutes passed before Samir began to grasp what was happening, though he still couldn’t believe it! Inas was alive within him. He started calling those connected to her:

• "Inas is unwell... at Mercy Hospital." He called Hanan, who had been calling the school repeatedly, puzzled by the school bus’s delay and no one answering her.

What was the call Hanan had received an hour earlier that made her leave in anger, waiting for Inas? It was a call from Inas’s class supervisor, who told her:

• "Madame, Inas was positive today and more in harmony with her classmates. Her mood had improved, and we’re happy about that, but she was wearing her yans prayer garment. We justified that by the presence of male teachers and students! As you know, Madame, this makes her ‘odd’ compared to the others."

Inas had been happy and positive that day because she had decided to become a "new Fatima" for the "Inasats" of her school! She had decided that no one would prevent her from striving for perfection, and no one would take away her natural disposition. The meanings represented by the hijab were not something she could postpone, and she didn’t want to get used to forgetting them or living without them. Her mother had taken her hijab (the gift from Fatima) from her, so Inas had no way to live out these meanings except through her yans prayer garment, so she wore it even though she was young. Her classmates had laughed at first when they saw her in the outfit, thinking she was joking with them, but later they heard her speak words that addressed something deep within their souls.

Hanan understood none of this! All that mattered to her was that her daughter’s appearance had been "odd" that day. How shameful it would be if her friends found out! So she had been waiting to see her daughter in that "shameless" appearance when she got off the bus! To scold her and warn her again about "imitating Fatima"!

Rest in peace, Hanan! Inas is dead, and there will never be another "again"!

Hanan came to the hospital and was overcome with panic when she learned of her daughter’s death. Then Abu Azzam came with his wife, and Samir’s siblings: Amjad, Saeed, Asim, and Tala, and their children... they were all shocked! Inas had been beloved by everyone, despite her limited interaction with her father’s family, which was imposed by her mother and grandmother.

Samir was frozen, neither crying nor speaking, holding Inas’s bag and her bloodstained yans. His siblings took charge of preparing Inas for burial... At the farewell look, the most painful scene was Fatima’s: she wasn’t afraid like the other children. Instead, she sat at Inas’s head, kissing her, then raising her head as tears streamed from her reddened eyes. She bent over her again, kissing her, then raised her head, murmuring words and crying. Inas was beautiful, as if asleep peacefully, her whiteness contrasting with the shroud wrapping her... beautiful, but... lifeless!

Her father, uncles, and even her maternal uncles prayed over her, except for Abu Azzam and Zuhayra, who remained outside the mosque.

Inas was buried... her uncle Amjad and her brother Saeed lowered her into the grave beside her grandmother’s... then Saeed remained by her grave, crying silently, until Amjad urged him to stand and leave with Samir. Throughout it all, Samir showed no signs of pity! He was frozen and silent, responding to those offering condolences with brief, detached words.

Yet he felt a strange sensation! He wished the sun of that day would never set... its setting meant the file of that day was closed, and Inas was written among the dead, gone forever. Samir still harbored a faint hope that a voice would say: "There’s been a mistake! The one who died isn’t Inas... we’ve found Inas."

The sun was setting over the cemetery, and darkness was gradually descending, bringing with it a darkness that engulfed Samir’s heart and killed his hope of hearing that voice! His tension and anxiety grew even more...

That hope was completely shattered when the teacher announced in front of the gathering that a condolence house would be opened in his palace... Yet, Samir remained silent, his emotions frozen... He then got into his car with Sadiq and went to the condolence house.

The mourners were received. Hanan stayed in her father’s palace, while Samir and Sadiq returned to the villa. Sadiq went to sleep from sheer exhaustion, but Samir remained, the events of that day flashing through his mind so quickly—all he had returned from Inas with was her bag and her bloodstained clothes.

What was that fateful night like in Samir’s life? Let us continue...

Inas (23)

Samir stood at the door of Inas’s room (may God have mercy on her!)... He looked at the spot where she had been that morning when their eyes met, unaware that it would be the last time. He entered her room with a sense of dread. He placed the bag where it had been in the morning, then began searching through Inas’s closets, her makeup boxes, the corners of her bed, under her pillow—even under the bed itself. What was he searching for? He remembered the day her mother had left a note in the closet beside her bed before she died. Samir couldn’t bear the thought that Inas’s last look at him that morning would be her final memory of him. He was searching for any scrap of paper with the words "You’ve hurt me, Papa, but I still love you!" written on it. He recalled the hearts she used to draw as a child, with "Papa" written inside them...

Samir searched for a long time but found nothing. Nor did he find any similar note, though he had once searched her mother’s room for one.

He was forced to read the message written in Inas’s blood on the pillow, imagining her face as she had looked at him with resolute eyes when she said, "I’m not hungry." The message read:

---

*"Papa, you’ve disappointed me. I’m not hungry for the servant’s breakfast—I’m hungry for the joys of my soul, for a home shaded by faith, affection, and mercy. Your life doesn’t appeal to me. Your boasts and acquaintances mean nothing to me. Your silk feels rough to the touch. Your lights darken my chest... Let me go. If you won’t fly with me, then let me go. You’re not happy—why do you want to drag me into your world of misery? I am a human being, honored by my Creator. I am not a decoration for anyone, nor a part of anyone’s prestige. No one has the right to clip my wings when I long to soar in the orbit of my Lord’s love. No one has the right to impose on me what contradicts my nature and the yearnings of my soul.

Papa, haven’t you yet realized that there is a life within this life? I tried to guide you to it, to pull you toward it, to share it with you so that you might find peace in it... ‘Papa, come pray with me.’ ‘Papa, our home is unbearable. Put aside your preoccupations for a moment and turn to mend your crumbling family.’ ‘Papa, leave your grandfather’s world and come, let us begin a good life, the halal way.’ And you refused—you remained trapped in your grave of heedlessness... So let me go. Don’t chain me to you!

I beg you: Papa, return me to Fatima’s school. Keep me connected to the world of my uncle Amjad and his family, where I found what you and my mother failed to give me... And you refused to fulfill your role and return me to Fatima’s school because you wanted me to be like you, to suffocate the goodness within me until it exceeded the limits of your desires!

Papa, my dignity silences my tongue, but my eyes cannot prevent them from saying to you: You’ve disappointed me."*

Samir read the message, signed in Inas’s blood and sealed with the stamp of fate, with the words beneath it: "For this... you do not deserve her."

Amjad’s phrase echoed in his mind, terrifying him. Samir shook his head in denial. "No, no..." He couldn’t believe the message. He couldn’t accept that Inas had been taken from him because he didn’t deserve her. He couldn’t accept that his daughter had died wounded by him, just as his mother had died before her, and that in twenty-two years of heedlessness, he had learned nothing from her death—he had even wounded his daughter! He couldn’t accept it, yet he still clutched the bloodstained pillow in his hands...

He took a sedative to sleep, exhausted both physically and mentally. He went to his bed, lay down, and placed the pillow beside him. He turned off the light. No sooner had his eyes begun to close than he heard Inas’s voice: "Papa, Mama, wake up—let’s pray Fajr together." He jolted upright. "Inas?! Where are you, Papa?" He turned on the light. "It’s Inas—I heard her!" He wandered through the house searching for her. "Perhaps all of this is just a nightmare." "I’ll wake up from my sleep and find Inas." He didn’t find her. He returned to his room, trying to sleep, but couldn’t. He picked up the pillow, went into Inas’s room, and wished that when she had looked at him that morning, he had sat beside her on the floor, appeased her, and promised to do what she wanted—so that at least she would have died content with him, not as his mother had.

He remembered when she had told Ashraf, "You’re not the only one suffering," and now, for the first time, he understood that she had been speaking of herself and her own suffering with this ungrateful father!

He recalled Ala’a’s message (the counterfeit buyer) from twenty-two years ago: "May God avenge you." Now he understood why Inas had placed the pillow on Huda’s doll when they returned from visiting her nephew (Abdul Rahman)... Samir bent down, picked up Huda, and placed the pillow on her as Inas used to do. He remembered the most beautiful moments, when she would come to him in the morning, holding Huda, surprising him as he worked. He would look up to see a face like the moon, with a captivating childlike smile. Huda’s smile had resembled Inas’s, but without life. When he saw the bloodstained pillow on the lifeless doll, he finally faced the bitter truth: the only flower in the desert of his life had suddenly vanished from the scene, and his life had become—simply—without Inas.

At that moment, Samir’s emotions erupted. He wept bitterly, his mind replaying her childhood days as he looked at Huda and the bloodstained pillow. He remembered the day they had all gathered with their parents around the souba (hearth) on a cold winter day, roasting chestnuts. He recalled taking Tala’s doll and bringing it close to the fire, causing her to cry out. His father had said, "Samir, enough nonsense." He remembered his pious merchant father, who had always insisted on halal sustenance and reminded Samir of his prayers. He recalled the day Tala had worn a shawl and jallabiya for the first time, entering their father’s presence with a smile, and how Abu Sa’id had embraced her and kissed her head. He remembered their simple, clean home, filled with faith and their mother’s beautiful recitation of the Quran. How had he forgotten this pure, good environment that had shaped him and then led him into the mire?

For the first time, Samir felt that, for more than twenty years, he had been running the wrong race, and he had kept running until he crushed Inas—and crushed himself with her. More than twenty years had passed since his mother’s death, during which he had been immersed in worldly pursuits, seeking the support of Abu Azzam. It had ended with his daughter’s death, while he was still immersed in worldly affairs, selling in his shop... In both cases, he had been too busy to answer the call. Two similar events, even in the same hospital! Two events that seemed like witnesses on either side of a grave... The one buried was Samir himself. It was as if that period had never happened, as if the day he had rushed to the hospital and failed to reach his mother was just yesterday.

Inas had been like the staff of Solomon, the support Samir had leaned on, convincing himself through her that there was good in him, that God favored him, and that he was "better than others." When she died, everything collapsed. He couldn’t sleep. He heard the Fajr call to prayer, performed ablution, and drove to the mosque where he knew Amjad prayed. He prayed, barely holding back his tears. Then he waited for his brother at the mosque gate. Amjad came out, saw Samir—broken, his eyes dull, like a plucked bird—and knew he had wept through the night. Amjad’s anger toward him melted, and he sensed that Samir was going through a different, merciful moment.

Samir extended his hand to shake Amjad’s and said: "Could I have a little of your time?"

Amjad replied: "All of it is yours, my brother."

Samir trembled inside. No one had ever loved him deeply or cared for him as sincerely as Inas had. He hadn’t expected to hear such a warm phrase after her death. The two men went to Amjad’s house... Umm Umar and the children were praying... Samir waited in the guest room until Amjad brought two cups of coffee. He stood, looking at the spot where he had sat before, seeking Amjad’s advice after visiting his nephew, the day Inas and Fatima had come to him, pleading for Inas to stay at her uncle’s house... He remembered Inas’s pleading expression as she said, "Oh, Papa, Papa, let me go!" He remembered her sweet tone... It had all been about a year ago.

Amjad entered with the coffee... they sat down... their eyes met... Samir lowered his head and shook it as if saying, "No."

Amjad said to him:

• "Pour out your heart, my brother."

With a choked and weary voice, Samir said:

• "I don’t know where to begin." He raised his head, leaning it against the back of the chair, taking a deep breath and exhaling it heavily. He struggled to compose himself so as not to cry in front of Amjad, then said:
• "I feel like my life ended with Inas’s departure."
• "Rather, it will begin anew."
• "What kind of beginning?! I died with her."
• "Rather, you were dead, and by God’s permission, you will live to be among those whom God describes: ‘Is one who was dead and We gave him life and made for him a light by which he walks among the people?’" [Quran 6:122]
• "Beautiful meanings, but I don’t think I’m among them... I feel like I won’t change."
• "That is despair of God’s mercy."
• "It’s not despair... I know God is Merciful, but..."
• "But Satan is despairing you in another way, telling you: ‘Without a doubt, God is Merciful, but you are not among those deserving of His mercy, and He will not guide you to reform yourself.’"
• "Amjad, you can’t imagine the scale of the problem. For more than twenty years, I was like someone drugged... like someone struck on the head... as if I only woke up tonight! I couldn’t believe what I was doing! I couldn’t believe how I laughed at myself and deceived myself all this time! And yet... I can’t imagine someone in this state for so long will truly change."

Samir said this as he recalled how his brother had advised him the last time, only to return to his old ways with Abu ‘Azam over the past few months.

Amjad replied:

• "Twenty years? You were no worse than people who fought against the Prophet’s call for nearly twenty years as well, then believed after the Conquest of Mecca, transforming so greatly that they sacrificed their lives and wealth for the sake of spreading the religion they loved."

Samir fell silent... he knew this fact, but now he marveled at how it could truly be! He spoke again:

• "Those people had a veil between them and faith... the veil was lifted, and faith entered their hearts and illuminated them, transforming them completely. But I believed in all the truths long ago, yet my faith didn’t affect me—or if it did, it didn’t last. There’s nothing new I don’t know that could change me from within."

• "Dry information in your heart—God is capable of infusing life into it, just as He revives the earth after its death."

• "Everything has its beginnings and signs... I don’t see any spark of hope for real, lasting change within me."

• "Samir, you used to look at yourself with arrogance, impressed by some of your good deeds and downplaying your flaws. Now you look at yourself with extreme negativity and feel unworthy of guidance! Don’t you realize that Satan is shifting you between arrogance and despair, distancing you from God in both cases?!"

• "My mother died angry at me, Amjad. Tonight, I remembered how I neglected her in her final days... I recalled her will, in which she didn’t mention my name... ‘The one who wrongs his parents will not be guided.’ I thought I was an exception to this rule—until I was deprived of Inas. There’s something I didn’t tell you: Do you know what I was doing the day you were calling me to come to the hospital while my mother was dying? I was with the teacher, seeking his approval, listening to the stupid jokes of his secretary’s son, and carelessly hanging up on your calls!"

Samir smiled with a mix of sarcasm and self-loathing, continuing:

• "While you were around my mother, earning her approval before she died. I never told you this... the one whose mother dies in this state... is deprived."

Here, despair settled heavily in Samir’s heart, and he felt that Inas’s death was the beginning of severe punishment... his features hardened, and he lost the urge to cry. Instead, he was annoyed with himself for showing weakness in front of his brother and almost withdrew from the session.

Amjad approached him, held his hand, and smiled, saying:

• "And I also have something about our mother that I never told you since the day she passed away—something related to you."

Samir turned to him with interest:

• "Did she say something about me?"
• "Yes."
• "What did she say?" Samir felt he would find with Amjad a substitute for the "note" he had searched for in his mother’s room the day she died...

Amjad said:

• "It would suffice to say that God forgives whoever repents from associating partners with Him—so how could He not forgive disobedience to parents? But glory be to God! It’s as if He is facilitating the means to corner you with His mercy, leaving you with no choice but to repent!"

• "What happened? Tell me!"

What is the matter that Amjad has been hiding from Samir since their mother’s death, which he is revealing to him today?

Let’s continue.

Inas (24)

Samir fixed his gaze on his brother Amjad:

• "What happened? Tell me!" Amjad remained silent, smiling as he examined Samir's eyes to see if the time was right to tell him what their mother had said before her death.

• "Speak... What did our mother say?"

• "That morning, before our mother's condition worsened and our siblings arrived, I was reciting the Quran to her with my hand on her forehead. Shortly after I finished, she said to me: (Amjad, do not abandon your brother Samir.)"

Samir stared in disbelief:

• "She said that to you?!"
• "Yes. I said to her: 'Mother, please do not be angry with Samir...' She sighed and said: (Yes... he is still my son in the end... May God guide him and be pleased with him.)"

Samir's lips trembled. A shiver ran through him, and he burst into tears like a small child. Despite the hardness of his heart during that time, the memory of his neglect of his mother until her death was a deep wound in his soul that he avoided and ignored, yet it still lingered. It still distorted his self-perception, even if he seemed to have forgotten his mother and his shortcomings toward her on the morning he read her will at Saeed’s house. He had woken up to a call from the teacher’s secretary and rushed to prepare for the exhibition... but her wound was still deeply embedded in his heart.

Samir was a man of contradictions! He felt that God loved him—evidenced by the blessings He had bestowed upon him—and that he deserved God’s guidance because he was better than others. Yet in another corner of his being, there was the wound of his mother and the sense of deprivation he felt because of it.

Now, when he heard "He is still my son in the end... May God guide him and be pleased with him," feelings of love, gratitude, and longing for his mother welled up within him... and the nightmare of deprivation began to fade.

• "Swear to me that she said that."
• "By the Almighty, she did say that..." Amjad had sworn truthfully... but he had not told Samir everything that had happened in that moment! He had only shared part of the story, not all of it.

What had actually happened?

After Amjad finished reciting the Quran to his mother, she asked:

• "Where is your brother?"

• "Which brother?"

• "The older one."

• "I have three brothers older than me..." Umm al-Sa’eed deliberately avoided mentioning Samir’s name in anger toward him, and Amjad wanted to avoid even saying his name in front of her.

• "Samir, my son, Samir..."

• "Umm al-Sa’eed, you who have the kindest heart on earth, please do not be angry with Samir..."

• "Selfish, emotionally poor, he only thinks of himself," she said painfully, remembering "the guava incident!"

• "He is preoccupied with other things, and he has no excuse for that, but he loves you, by God..."

• "I do not think so."

At this point, Amjad told a white lie to soothe his mother’s heart regarding his brother:

• "Yes, my dear... Yesterday, while you were asleep, he said to me: ‘I am worried about my mother and feel I have fallen short in my duty toward her.’"

• "He said that to you?!"

• "Yes..." Umm al-Sa’eed fell silent, surprised.

• "Samir loves you very much, but he cannot express it, my dear..."

• "Month after month, year after year, and the wretched one cannot express himself?!"

• "Even at school, he got zeros in composition subjects," Amjad said, hoping to make her laugh—but she did not.

• "Umm al-Sa’eed, pray for Samir." She fell silent...

• "Mother, please do not be angry with Samir... Samir needs your pleasure more than any of us... Do not let him face life without it, I beg you... We want to be together in Paradise with Abu al-Sa’eed. We do not want anyone to be left behind."

At this, Umm al-Sa’eed’s eyes softened. Tears welled in them as she imagined the scene of meeting Abu al-Sa’eed and their children in Paradise. Then she sighed and said:

• "Yes... he is still my son in the end... May God guide him and be pleased with him."

Amjad was overjoyed:

• "May God gladden your heart," he said, then knelt to kiss her hands.

In truth, Umm al-Sa’eed had deliberately spoken of Samir in Amjad’s presence... because she harbored a deep resentment toward Samir and feared dying without being reconciled to him. She felt she had been harsh with him in the will she had written two days earlier. So—out of a mother’s mercy—she wanted to vent her feelings and "unburden her heart" to someone who could help her extract a word of acceptance from Samir...

Amjad took from this moment what was needed to soften Samir’s heart and concealed from him anything that might distress him... His own eyes softened at the sight of Samir weeping and reliving his mother’s words: "He is still my son in the end... May God guide him and be pleased with him."

Samir turned to him:

• "Why didn’t you tell me this before, man?!"
• "Honestly, nothing would have reached you while you were drowning in your grief... I could not bear the thought of telling you about this moment only for you to shrug indifferently—as you always do—and react lightly, as if nothing had happened! I saved this as a last rope to pull you from the grip of heedlessness... Do you remember the day I visited you to advise you after your wedding, and I started telling you about the day our mother died? I had intended to give you this news then, but you were closed off and did not give me the chance."
• "So it is not too late?"
• "No, the time is now!"

Samir fell silent, lost in thought. Amjad broke the silence:

• "Samir, do you not wish to see our mother and Inas again?"
• "Yes, of course."
• "Our parents died upon faith, as far as we believe. (And those who believed and whose descendants followed them in faith—We will join their descendants with them.) So if you enter Paradise, God will elevate you to their level—if they were better than you in deeds. And Inas is a child in Paradise, God willing. So roll up your sleeves and race in goodness so you may meet those you love there—a meeting with no parting after."

These words infused Samir’s heart with a great surge of hope... "I will meet my parents, and Inas?! In Paradise?! With no separation?!" Before, words like "the Hereafter" and "Paradise" had meant little to Samir. Now, for the first time, he felt as though their doors had opened for him, and he longed for them!

Amjad saw this in Samir’s eyes and wanted to elevate him further. He said:

• "Samir, there is Someone you should long for even more, Someone whose meeting you should strive for above all... It is God, who has loved goodness for you and wants you to return to Him!"
• "He loves goodness for me?"
• "Yes. He took Inas from you to wake you up, and opened your chest to hear these words. If He had left you as you were, you would meet Him while He is angry with you."
• "So what is happening to me is mercy, not a punishment of hatred from God toward me?!"
• "Of course it is mercy! (So flee to God.) (Indeed, God forgives all sins.) (Indeed, my Lord is Most Merciful, Most Loving.) (And whoever does evil or wrongs himself, then seeks forgiveness from God, will find God Forgiving, Most Merciful.) God said: (If he draws near to Me by a hand’s span, I draw near to him by an arm’s length. If he draws near to Me by an arm’s length, I draw near to him by a fathom’s length. If he comes to Me walking, I come to him running.) Do you not see the mercy in all of this, man?! Your role is to turn this painful event into a new life so that it becomes mercy for you."

Samir had never accepted this kind of talk from Amjad before. He used to find it burdensome and consider it "lecturing," as he had told Amjad when he visited him after the wedding... But after Inas’s death, Samir was a man who had lost his false self-respect and the motivation to live a life he no longer saw as worth living simply because it existed... He no longer accepted personal opinions or suggestions... He wanted something that connected him to the greater truths, giving his life meaning and purpose, and directing his compass toward an unshakable destination where he could feel secure. Only revelation could benefit him now.

And indeed, Samir felt himself surrounded by God’s mercy from every direction. He surrendered with tranquility... He turned to Amjad and said:

• "What is the first step?"
• "Cut ties with Abu ‘Azam completely..." This time, Samir did not resist strongly. He did not say his old phrase "I will lose everything." Instead, he said brokenly:
• "Should I leave him before I at least secure my right to the cars I bought?!"
• "I know this is painful. I am not telling you to give up your rights. But there is no proper way now to claim what you are owed from him. If you do not receive your right from him in this world, you will receive it from the One before whom no one is wronged—Glory be to Him. The important thing now is to escape the shifting sands of Abu ‘Azam."

Samir shook his head and said:

• “Frankly, I’ve come to hate the exhaustion of the markets and all trade.”

Amjad grabbed his hand:

• “No, Samir! Reforming yourself doesn’t mean hating work. You’ve already built a name for yourself in the market. Invest in it and open your own shop.”
• “A shop?! What shop is that compared to the one I’m in now?!”
• “Don’t compare yourself, brother! Where you are now isn’t your right place. Don’t measure yourself against it. Start small with diligence and effort, and ensure your earnings are lawful. God will bless you. Samir, remember: your problem since childhood has been impatience. It made you crave big leaps instead of slow growth, and you’ve seen the result...”

Amjad moved to the edge of the sofa, ready to stand up to fetch something:

• “Listen… I have twenty thousand dinars left over from what I need. Take them and use them for your new business.”
• “No, no… thank you.”
• “You will take them… I don’t need them… you can return them later.”

Samir refused firmly. He knocked on the door… Zainab, Fatimah, Umar, and their mother entered to console Samir. Samir greeted the children… when it was Fatimah’s turn, he looked at her… she bit her lip, trying to stifle her tears. Samir knelt and held her shoulders, saying:

• “Fatimah, your uncle will change… and God willing, we’ll meet Iman again.”

Fatimah nodded, and quiet tears rolled down her cheeks.

Samir left his brother’s house this time determined to truly reform himself, no matter the cost.

He returned to the villa… slept deeply… woke just before Asr, prayed Zuhr, then went to Sadiq’s room:

• “Baba, Sadiq, will you come with me to the mosque?”

Sadiq sensed a change in his father’s expression… he didn’t hesitate… they went in silence. After the prayer, Samir passed by a restaurant, bought two sandwiches for himself and his son, then drove to a high, empty spot overlooking the city. They sat in silence… Sadiq’s eyes welled up at the memory of his sister, so Samir patted his shoulder… he thought about hugging his son, but their relationship was still cold, and Samir wasn’t used to showing affection. The sun was nearing sunset when Samir said:

• “Come, let’s get ready for the condolence gathering.”

They prepared and left.

No words passed between Samir and Abu Azzam until the gathering ended and Samir was leaving.

As Samir left with Sadiq, the teacher said:

• “Hanan is broken. Susan and I will take her on a trip to Europe on Thursday to get her out of this atmosphere… Sadiq, would you like to come with us, grandfather?”

• “No, thank you. The exams are approaching.”

The teacher continued, addressing Samir without looking at him:

• “I’ll go to the office tomorrow morning to arrange things before the trip.”

And he left.

What happened between Samir and Abu Azzam the next day? And what new battle did Satan wage on Samir’s heart? How did Amjad face it? And who ultimately prevailed?

Let’s continue…

Iman (25)

The next day, Samir went to the teacher’s office… he knocked on the door.

— “Come in,” Samir entered without a greeting, walked toward the desk, and stood there. The teacher looked at him in astonishment… looked into Samir’s eyes… Samir’s gaze was firm, challenging, and proud. A sense of awe struck the teacher’s heart!

Suddenly, Samir placed a set of keys in front of Abu ‘Izzam. The teacher looked at them: a key to the car dealership, a key to the restaurant management office, a key to the poultry farm, a key to the villa—and even the key to Samir’s own car, registered under the dealership’s name. The teacher raised his eyes to meet Samir’s, expecting an explanation.

Samir turned his back and walked toward the door…

The teacher was stunned.

— “Samir!” Samir stopped, turned, and smiled a victorious, slightly sarcastic smile. He said nothing; he just continued walking and left the office. He left Abu ‘Izzam and all his attachments behind—even the car he had arrived in, which he left parked in the lot.

As soon as he stepped out onto the street, he felt an overwhelming exhilaration. That morning, he had been anxious before going to the teacher… Samir had thought this step would be too heavy for him, adding to Iman’s sorrow. But, on the contrary, as he threw down the keys, he felt as though he were breaking the shackles around his neck and wrists—shackles he had allowed Abu ‘Izzam to place on him. Now he was breaking them, throwing them in front of this enslaving master, and telling him: “I am not your master, nor are you my slave!”

Samir deliberately walked down the street before hailing a taxi so he could feel the freedom of a liberated slave. He said to himself, “I’m happy… I want to tell someone about my joy… Who? Iman.”

For a moment, Samir forgot that Iman was dead… then he remembered.

He stopped walking, wiped a tear from his eye, and said, “What I just did is making up for my mistake toward you, my dear Iman.” Then he called Amjad, who was overjoyed and encouraged Samir in this pivotal step in his life.

Samir realized he had to move out of Abu ‘Izzam’s villa. He went and rented a furnished apartment to move his belongings there. He sat down to rest for a while… suddenly, he felt as though he had returned to who he was twenty-two years ago, the day they sold their parents’ house after his mother’s death. He had rented an apartment then, living alone as a bachelor.

A lump rose in his throat when he felt that his past life had vanished into nothingness and that he was starting from scratch.

He hesitated to call Amjad, fearing he might burden him. He kept turning the phone in his hand, then finally called.

— “Sorry to disturb you, Amjad.”

— “No disturbance at all. I told you: I’m here for you. Call me whenever you need.”

— “Amjad, I’m forty-five now… I’ve returned to the starting line in both faith and worldly life! Since you and your siblings were children, you’ve been racing on the right path, while I’ve been running on the wrong track. You’ve succeeded in your worldly affairs and saved for the Hereafter… I’m haunted by the sight of you surrounding my mother with your gifts on Eid al-Adha while I stood by, doing nothing like you. You’ve moved forward, and I’m starting from zero?!”

— “You’re not starting from zero, Samir… Have you forgotten God’s words: {Except for those who repent, believe, and do righteous deeds—Allah will replace their evil deeds with good. Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.} (Surah Al-Furqan, 25:70). Look at God’s generosity—how He gives someone like you a great boost in your balance so that you don’t remain a prisoner of regret. Instead, you start with enthusiasm and contentment.”

— “Really? My sins will be turned into good deeds?!”

— “Yes, by God’s will.”

Samir needed to hear reassurance, even if it meant repeating what he already knew and confirming it, to fill the psychological gap he felt. Amjad spoke to him briefly to cheer him up, and then they ended the call. Samir’s spirits settled a little, and he prepared to go to the villa to collect his belongings… he thought, “What will I take from the villa? Iman’s tenderness is with her father now and won’t return to me. Sadiq will undoubtedly choose his grandfather’s palace. His feelings toward me are numb, and there’s nothing to make him embrace this new life with me. Ashraf is in prison, and Iman is in her grave! At best, I’ll take some of my personal belongings and a few memories of Iman… Everything Amjad said is true, but… my life isn’t beautiful.”

Samir’s sense of life’s gloom returned. He let go of the apartment door handle, went back inside, and collapsed onto the couch, trying to sleep at times to escape everything, struggling to go to the villa at others, and replaying memories of the past at others.

Meanwhile, Amjad was preparing to leave for his clinic after days of closure due to his preoccupation with Iman’s death. He thought, “I wonder how Samir’s affairs are going. He told me he returned the villa key… Where will he live? What did he do with his wife and Sadiq?”

Amjad immediately called.

— “Reassure me, Samir. Are things going well for you?”

Samir replied in a weary, dejected tone.

— “To be honest… no.”

Amjad realized his brother needed urgent help and that talking on the phone wasn’t enough.

— “Where are you now, Samir?”

— “In a furnished apartment I rented.”

— “Give me the address.”

— “Don’t trouble yourself. You have your clinic and patients waiting.”

— “I’m telling you—give me the address.”

Samir gave him the address…

Amjad blamed himself: “How did I leave my brother in this situation?! He needs me.” He called his references for the day and apologized to them politely, asking his secretary to reschedule their appointments. Then he set off to his brother.

Meanwhile, Abu ‘Izzam was in a state of extreme confusion. He called his wife.

— “Suzan, take Hanan and go to the villa immediately. Samir is acting strangely… Try to understand what he intends to do.”

On the way to Samir’s apartment, Amjad was deeply concerned for his brother, praying for his grief to be lifted and his heart to be opened. He arrived at the apartment and was greeted by Samir… they sat down.

— “You’ve taken time off from your patients and preoccupied yourself with me too much.”

Amjad replied in a friendly manner: “Oh, stop it! Tell me—what’s bothering you?”

— “You’ll get angry with me.”

— “I won’t get angry… just tell me.”

— “Amjad, I have no objection to God’s wisdom, but there are people worse than me who haven’t lost their children… You’ll tell me the world isn’t the abode of reward… I know, but I can’t stop myself from making comparisons… Amjad, I know I’m asking questions I should answer myself, and I know I’m destroying what you’re building and returning to square one. But you can’t imagine what Iman meant to me… I can’t imagine that I’m the only one losing his child among people who haven’t lost theirs and aren’t better than me. I seek God’s forgiveness, but…”

Samir’s lips trembled. He cried and couldn’t continue.

The Unwearying Struggle

Amjad did not grow weary of his brother Sameer’s many ups and downs that day. He knew he was facing a man who was withdrawing from the life he had long been addicted to, on top of losing Inas. Some of Amjad’s patients also suffered unpleasant symptoms when they stopped medications they had relied on for a long time. Amjad was waging a war against Satan whose battlefield was Sameer’s heart!

Satan was provoked and panicked as he saw himself losing Sameer after years of control. He entered Sameer’s heart through every possible opening, but Amjad pursued him, drove him out, and sealed every breach with the light of Quranic verses that flowed from his tongue.

Sameer said to Amjad:

• “Wait! What do you mean you lost her and they didn’t lose their children?”
• “She died, but their children did not die.”
• “That is not the true loss of the children.”

Sameer fell silent, surprised… Amjad continued:

• “Allah the Exalted has placed a pure innate nature in our children. If we err in their upbringing, we gradually kill that nature… we wrong them and destroy their Hereafter, even if they appear healthy and alive with us in this world. Sameer, imagine if Ashraf—your son—died while lost! That is the true loss of children, one that deserves the greatest sorrow: {Say, ‘Indeed, the losers are those who will lose themselves and their families on the Day of Resurrection.’ Unquestionably, that is the manifest loss.’} (Quran 39:15)… Inas, you lost her in this world—yes, but she was taken with her pure innate nature, by Allah’s mercy. Strive to catch up with her so you do not lose Ashraf, Sadiq, and your wife.”

These words gave Sameer a new perspective indeed. They even filled him suddenly with fear for Ashraf and Sadiq—what if one of them died and he suffered the great loss Amjad had described… He felt responsibility for them and wanted to act quickly to make up for what he had missed. Yet he soon felt the difficulty of the task, for his sons were far from him spiritually.

Amjad broke the silence:

• “When will you go to bring your wife and Sadiq?” Sameer smiled:
• “My wife! Hanan will undoubtedly choose her father, her mother, and their palace. There is nothing left between me and her that would make her stay with me.”
• “Try.”
• “It’s useless… Honestly, I now see Hanan as part of Abu Azzam’s world that I withdrew from, and I don’t want to remember it.”
• “That is not your right!”

Sameer was surprised by these words from his brother, who had been urging him to leave everything related to Abu Azzam behind!

Amjad continued:

• “Sameer, distinguish between Hanan and her father… Is Hanan ‘evil,’ deliberately deceitful and treacherous?” Sameer fell silent, thinking of an answer, then said:
• “No.”
• “Didn’t she love you sincerely?”
• “Yes, in the early days after marriage, but she began to grow restless afterward.”
• “Why?”
• “Honestly, I didn’t give her the time, attention, and care she deserved. My problems with her father affected my relationship with her.” Sameer fell silent, lowered his head, and said, “At first, she reproached me gently and begged me to pay attention to her and keep her away from my problems with her father… I couldn’t, so she started acting irritably, and I reacted with irritation until the affection between us weakened.”
• “So you’ve said it, Sameer! You didn’t give her what she deserved. I ask you: Was there no good in Hanan?”
• “Yes! Hanan still sponsors orphans… In the early days of our marriage, I prayed regularly to some extent. I prayed with her, and she was happy about it because she came from a household that didn’t even know what prayer was! Then I gradually slackened, and so did she…”

Sameer fell silent as if remembering something, smiled, and said:

• “When Anus started praying, Hanan and I prayed together to avoid Anus’s questions: ‘Why don’t you pray?’ But I later slackened again, and so did she.”

Sameer continued:

• “But Amjad, all of this is in the past. Hanan now is not the Hanan of the past. She is no longer that simple girl who could easily change or mimic my behavior… She is now a woman in her forty-second year, with a hardened personality and her own world with her mother and friends. There is no affection between us at all for her to be influenced by me. Besides, it’s not all my fault. From the beginning, her interests were trivial. She neglected raising the children until Ashraf was lost, and—” Amjad interrupted him:
• “Sameer, I know Hanan has hardened into negative traits, but you share some responsibility for that. When you took her from Abu Azzam’s house, she wasn’t like her father… She was naive, as you described, she loved you, and she emulated your good qualities… She gave you a chance to help her grow, but you neglected her upbringing just as you neglected your own. You dragged Hanan into that other environment… Sameer, I’m not saying this to make you regret; I’m saying it so you feel responsible for Hanan. You are the man of the house; you have the responsibility of leadership, and the accountability rests on you: {Each of you is a guardian and is responsible for his subjects.} (Sahih al-Bukhari) Do not wrong Hanan twice—you wronged her before by not giving her the time, kindness, and spiritual growth she deserved, and now you want to wrong her again by abandoning her to Abu Azzam’s world! Reforming yourself does not mean you should look at the past with hostility in every detail; rather, reform it as much as you can: {And do good as Allah has done good to you.} (Quran 28:77)”

Sameer’s heart softened toward Hanan, and he felt responsibility toward her and the desire to make up for what he had missed. He then said:

• “But Amjad, it’s impossible for Hanan to accept my new situation. She doesn’t even love me now to sacrifice her comfort for my sake… You also told me that your new life is based on piety and Allah’s pleasure. That means Hanan would have to change many of her behaviors and outlook on life. She won’t accept that; she’s not prepared for it, and there’s a great distance between her and a life of faith.”
• “I know it won’t be easy, and it may take time before she comes back to you. But you have children and beautiful memories between you. There are things that bind you together. You will have to meet and interact repeatedly. Be careful in these interactions not to offend her in any way, no matter how much she wrongs you. Remember that by doing so, you are making up for some of the shortcomings of the past… And do not lose hope in her potential for righteousness. Inas’s death shook our being as it shook yours. You are now struggling with yourself, dealing with your fluctuations and setbacks, and bearing with her for her own good… because she is your soulmate, and you cannot do without her. Do the same with Hanan! Try with her patiently and persistently, and in your heart, do not want to do without her.”

Sameer nodded in agreement with his brother’s words. Amjad continued:

• “Where is she now?”
• “At her father’s palace.”
• “Fine, come with me so we can bring Sadiq to live with you.” Sameer smiled:
• “That simple?! Sadiq won’t agree.”
• “He will agree; come with me.”
• “Amjad, Sadiq doesn’t like me.”
• “How can you say that, man?! He loves you; you are his father.”
• “Honestly, I neglected him a lot and wasn’t fair between him and Inas.” Sameer remembered flashes from the past. He recalled the day he promised Inas a gift if she showed good signs, and she said, “And Sadiq too, right, Dad?” He replied, “Sadiq is neglectful in his studies,” thinking that this strictness would benefit Sadiq. He then turned his angry gaze to the table around them, and Sadiq looked at them sadly… He remembered the day he and Hanan shifted the responsibility of teaching Sadiq onto each other, and Sadiq looked at them…

Sameer retrieved these stored flashes from his memory and was astonished by the harshness of his heart and his poor conduct toward them.

Amjad interrupted his silence, took his hand, and said:

• “Come, talk to him yourself. If he doesn’t respond, I’ll talk to him… Sadiq listens to me.”
• “What should I say? Where do I begin?”
• “Simply remember that he is your son, and you cannot do without each other. Do not be arrogant toward him… You didn’t give him the affection he deserved in the past, so do not withhold it now.”

They set off in Amjad’s car toward the villa. On the way, Sameer said:

• “Amjad, was Inas punished for my sins?”
• “No, of course not! {No bearer of burdens will bear the burden of another.} (Quran 35:18)… Her death is not a punishment… Allah brought her into this life, she fulfilled her role, and then Allah took back His trust to have mercy on you. She is now in His mercy, exalted be He, a bird among the birds of Paradise by His permission.”

Sameer fell silent, deep in thought…

They arrived at the villa, and Sameer got out. Amjad said to him:

• “I will go to bring the children from school and return to you both, God willing… Have your things ready.”
• “But Sadiq… you said you would talk to him… wait—” Amjad replied with a firm smile:
• “He is your son… Peace be upon you,” and he drove off!

What was Sadiq’s reaction? What was Hanan’s reaction? How did Sameer spend his last moments in the villa filled with memories of Inas? What call did Sameer receive from Inas’s school? Why did they ask him to come to the school? And was he mistaken for a moment when he imagined the school might tell him that Inas had not died and that they had found her?

Let us continue…

Iman (26)

Samir headed to the villa’s door, but this time he didn’t have the key. He rang the bell, and the maid opened it in surprise. He made his way to Sadiq’s room, his heart heavy with fear over his son’s reaction. He knocked and entered.

Sadiq was struggling to control himself, grief weighing on him as he tried to study for his exams in an atmosphere that offered no encouragement: no one lifted his spirits, and there was no Iman to bring him a cup of coffee with a smile, offering kind words.

Samir called to him:

• “Come here, Baba.”

Sadiq stood up and approached his father. He was an eighteen-year-old young man with masculine features, raised in luxury but starved of parental affection. His bad habits came from bad company, yet deep within him lay a childlike goodness, similar to Iman’s, hidden behind rough features and a rigid demeanor he maintained to avoid begging for the affection he lacked.

Samir placed his hands on his son’s head, looked into his eyes, and said:

• “Sadiq, I’m sorry, Baba… forgive me… I didn’t treat you fairly in the past… You are my son, my beloved. I need you, and you need me. We can’t do without each other. I want you to stay with me and be my friend… Please don’t leave me.”

With these words, Samir struck a chord deep within Sadiq, and suddenly, beneath the surface, Iman’s face appeared. Sadiq wept, and Samir embraced him, crying with him. It was a cry of surprise at Sadiq’s spontaneous and overwhelming reaction, a cry of joy at the ease of a task he had feared would be extremely difficult, a cry of gratitude to God as he saw doors of goodness opening for him, a cry of shame for having failed to truly know his son all this time, and a cry of finding a new Iman in Sadiq’s character.

Samir understood his son had given the villa key to Abu Azzam and rented a modest apartment. Then, with fear and anxiety, he said:

• “Now, my son, you have a choice: go to your grandfather’s palace or come with me to our new, simple life.”

Samir’s heart raced as he waited for his son’s answer.

Without hesitation, Sadiq replied:

• “Of course I’ll stay with you.”

Samir joyfully ran his fingers through Sadiq’s hair, kissed him, and embraced him. Then they began preparing their belongings to leave.

Hanan and her mother arrived, surprised to see the luggage gathered at the door. Samir was taken aback when he saw them.

Hanan asked:

• “Where are you going, Samir?”

• “Hanan, I’ve left your father’s business and rented a modest apartment. I’m starting a new job and a new life, one where I’ll strive for lawful earnings, blessings, and God’s pleasure. I’d be happy if you joined me in it.”

Hanan silently shook her head in refusal. She was exhausted and broken. She looked at Sadiq:

• “Sadiq, come with us, Mama. Let’s live in Grandfather’s palace.”
• “I’m staying with Baba.”
• “I want you near me. Your absence is enough of a loss after losing Iman.”

Samir said:

• “God willing, Sadiq will visit you often, and of course, you’re welcome in our apartment.”

Suzan spoke to Sadiq:

• “Sadiq, we’ll reserve the wing that belonged to your uncle Azzam before he married, instead of cramming you into a small apartment.”

Samir restrained himself and didn’t respond to this tactless remark, remembering his brother’s advice to leave a good impression.

All eyes were on Sadiq. He lowered his head slightly, then looked at his mother and said:

• “Mother, the right place for you and me is with Baba. Still, I won’t abandon you. I’ll keep visiting you, and I hope one day you’ll settle in our apartment.”

Hanan and her mother fell silent, unsure of what to say.

Amjad called:

• “Samir, I’m waiting for you outside. When you’re ready with the luggage, call me to help you carry it.”

Amjad was afraid Samir might tell him that Sadiq had refused to move with him, but he was surprised when Samir said over the phone:

• “Sadiq, your uncle Amjad is waiting for us outside. Let’s get ready.”

Amjad smiled brightly, praised God, and began calling his siblings to arrange something.

Samir and Sadiq prepared their belongings. Samir took a final walk through the villa, recalling memories from the twenty-two years he had lived there.

He entered Iman’s room, followed by Hanan and her mother, who feared he might take Iman’s memories. Samir didn’t want to argue. He thought about taking Huda, Iman’s doll, but felt it would bring back too much pain he couldn’t bear. Instead, he took Yansah, still stained with her pure blood, her prayer skirt, a bottle of her favorite perfume that reminded him of her scent, and the pajamas he had bought for her when she was five—she would bring them to him in the morning. He took these belongings, cast a final glance at her room, shivered, and left.

He passed the kitchen: “Her child-sized chair was still in the corner of the table, left there to remind us of the day she was one year old and insisted on eating with a spoon by herself, covering herself and the chair in food while we laughed.”

He stopped in front of the office, remembering Iman standing at the door to stop him from entering, telling him with a childlike smile and strong personality, “No, come play with me.”

He looked at the desk: “That’s where Iman would pull me by the hand to read her a story or play with her.”

He looked at the couch: “That’s where she would sneak up to surprise me with a plate of fruit.”

He passed the bathroom: “Here, Iman would place her child-sized chair, climb onto it, and roll up her sleeves to perform wudu.”

Samir walked to the living room: “Here, on this rug, Iman would scatter puzzle pieces for us to assemble together. ‘Dad, you’re scattered like puzzle pieces,’ she would say, and now he was trying to gather his scattered self and piece himself back together—but this time, she wouldn’t be with him.”

He looked at the space beside the couches: “Here, Iman would spread out her prayer rug and pray in her white prayer clothes. Here, she would sit for the tashahhud and raise her little finger.”

He looked at the bookshelf in the living room, filled with stories, then at the couch beside it: “Here, beside the bookshelf, I would place your head on my chest, my dear, and wrap my arms around you to read you a story.”

Before leaving the villa, Samir stood where he and Iman had sat after Abdul Rahman’s lesson, before sunset. He remembered the moment of awakening he had failed to seize. He wished he could go back in time to be the one to say to Iman, “Come, let’s pray Maghrib, my dear.” He thought to himself, “Waking up late comes at a heavy price—very heavy! But it’s better than never waking up at all.”

He called out:

• “Let’s go, Sadiq.”

He opened the door, and they began carrying the luggage with Amjad’s help.

Hanan and her mother stood at the door. Before leaving, Samir said to them (to leave a good impression):

• “Thank you for everything.”

Sadiq kissed his mother and grandmother, then set off with his father. Hanan wept over the end of her fragile family life and buried her head in her mother’s chest as she tried to comfort her.

In Amjad’s car, Fatima and Omar were waiting for their uncle and cousin. Their warm welcome filled Samir with a sense of belonging.

Amjad set off but didn’t take the route to his brother’s new apartment. Samir said to him:

• “Amjad, not this way.”

Amjad smiled, hiding something, and said:

• “I know the way.”

Samir was surprised. A little later, Amjad returned and said:

• “Amjad, we’re going the wrong way.”

• “You’ll spend the night with us.”

• “No, no, thank you.”

• “Whether you like it or not,” Amjad said in a tone that made it clear he would have his way.

They arrived. Lunch was waiting—simple, spontaneous, and full of the lively atmosphere of a loving family. The warm welcome made Samir understand why Iman’s spirit had been so attached to her uncle’s house.

Before Sunset

Before sunset, Samir’s brothers and their children began to gather—Saeed, Aasim, Tala and her husband, and his cousins—all welcoming Samir warmly. What was happening? It was a joyful celebration! Only two days had passed since the accident that had devastated them all—the death of Ienas—and her loss still weighed heavily on their hearts. Yet at the same time, they were happy about “Samir’s rebirth!” For years, Samir had been buried in grief, but now life had returned to him, and he had come back to them.

Amjad had deliberately created this atmosphere to help his brothers understand and support Samir in his new life, despite their shared pain over losing Ienas. Indeed, Samir felt comforted and at ease, his spirit lifting after days of stumbling and faltering.

Amidst the celebration, Samir looked at Amjad, who was busy reviving the mood with his words and skillfully hosting his family. He glanced at him with gratitude, acknowledging everything Amjad had done—especially for extracting their mother’s words before her death: “He remains my son… may God guide him and be pleased with him.”

The joyful gathering ended without a specific title or declared purpose, and Samir’s brothers prepared to return home.

They stood with him, each saying:

• “Come, spend tonight with us—you and Saadiq.”
• “No, come to our place,” Amjad interjected, shaking hands with each of them one by one and patting their shoulders playfully as he said:
  • “May God make it easy for you. Samir is ours, and none of us will take him away.”

Saeed then turned to Samir:

• “Fine, see you tomorrow morning. Let’s go look for an exhibition space… does nine o’clock suit you?”

Samir’s brothers felt their past neglect and indifference toward him, and they envied Amjad for his patience and for bringing Samir back into their lives.

Samir said:

• “I’d love to, but I don’t want to disrupt your work.”
• “Come on! Just tell me—is nine o’clock okay?”
• “It’s fine.”
• “Great, I’ll be there, God willing. Peace be upon you.”

Samir replied: “Saeed, one moment, please.” Saeed turned.

“I want to cover the cost of my mother’s treatment.” A similar moment to the one between Aasim and Saeed twenty-two years ago, but this time, Samir didn’t just watch his brothers compete in goodness—he joined them. He reflected on the past: Where should he have been? Who had wronged whom? How could he make amends as much as possible? It was a huge task, but he was determined to move forward, seeking God’s help.

Saeed said:

• “Samir, you need the money in your hands for your new business.”
• “Please…”

Saeed understood his brother’s need to do something to honor their mother and make up for lost time. He agreed, and Samir happily paid the full expenses. Then his brothers left for their homes.

Only Amjad, Samir, and Saadiq remained in the room. Samir wanted to thank his brother Amjad. He looked at him and said:

• “Amjad, I don’t know how to express my gratitude… what you’ve done for me…”

Amjad interrupted, as if he hadn’t heard, changing the subject:

• “Would you like to sleep on the couches, or should I bring some mattresses? I’ll bring extra ones,” and he quickly left.

Despite his strong personality, Amjad felt shy about accepting direct thanks. He was a man of pure heart, doing good deeds without seeking recognition.

The next day, Saeed, Samir, and Saadiq set out to find a place to rent for a small exhibition. During their search, Samir received a call. It was the number for Ienas’s school. He was surprised—what could Ienas’s school want with me?

• “Good morning.”
• “Good morning, welcome.”
• “Mr. Samir, we hope you can join us at the school tomorrow at nine in the morning.”
• “Why?”
• “Let it be a surprise.”
• “Fine, God willing,” Samir replied, still puzzled. What surprise could Ienas’s school have prepared? What did they want from him after her death?

They rented a space with a small courtyard barely large enough for five cars, but Samir was overjoyed with it, seeing it as a blessing from God, not owed to Abu Azzam or Zuhair. Saeed stayed with his brother until they bought a simple used car, which they drove back to the furnished apartment.

Saadiq sat studying diligently, and his father encouraged him. Then Samir went to prepare coffee for himself and his son—something he hadn’t done in years. Usually, a maid would bring him his cup. He brewed the coffee, making a mess, but he didn’t mind. He brought a cup to Saadiq—coffee that wasn’t perfectly made, yet Saadiq was overjoyed at having his first cup prepared by his father.

Samir sat down and remembered the first person he had wronged: Alla, the buyer of his first car. He still had Alla’s number—and even a message from him that read: “May God punish you.” Samir sent him a message:

“Dear Alla, I am Samir, the one who sold you the car twenty-five years ago and wronged you. You’ll be surprised by this message, but after many experiences, I’ve woken from my heedlessness and want to return to my Lord. Please let me know where I can meet you so I can compensate you appropriately.”

Samir sent the message with a mix of anxiety: Would Alla reply? Would he call and insult me? Would he curse me again?

He waited. After an hour, Alla replied with a message. Samir opened it eagerly, with a hint of fear. It read:

“My dear brother, if that’s the case, then my right to you will be considered your guidance. I forgive you in this life and the Hereafter.”

Tears welled in Samir’s eyes. Doors of acceptance were opening, and old knots in his soul were unraveling one by one.

That night, Samir lay on his new bed, still wondering about the school’s call: What could it be?

For a moment, he imagined them saying: “We made a mistake… Ienas didn’t die. We found her!” His heart raced, and he smiled unconsciously, but then he reminded himself to accept God’s decree with contentment.

Samir slept, woke for Fajr prayer, and woke Saadiq. The sun rose that day, and Saadiq insisted on preparing breakfast this time. Samir and Saadiq ate breakfast, then headed to Ienas’s school.

Ienas was the only student who had died in the accident, leaving a deep impact.

Samir and Saadiq entered the school. A large banner read: “Ienas, we will not forget you,” and many students wore badges with the same phrase. Ienas’s teacher and her mother were also there.

One of the teachers approached and said:

• “This is an activity organized by the students themselves to honor Ienas’s memory.”

They went up to the stage. Rim, a thirteen-year-old student two years older than Ienas, spoke in English as was customary at the school. She said, translated:

“We are gathered today following the painful accident that our school bus was involved in, to congratulate the survivors on their safety and pray for our classmates who are recovering.

One person is not with us today and will never be again: Ienas. I only knew Ienas for two weeks. I was upset about something that had happened, so I sat alone in the break area, crying. Ienas didn’t know me, but she sat beside me. She remained silent, then said, ‘My dear, don’t cry,’ and stayed with me until I calmed down. A friendship formed quickly between us. I loved her so much! She was kind, gentle, generous, though there was a sadness in her that I didn’t understand.

On the day of the accident, Ienas came wearing something like a hijab. She had a special glow that day, a different kind of beauty. I felt she was at peace, in harmony with herself, satisfied. Before we boarded the buses, she took a notebook from her bag and drew a funny cartoon.”

Rim held up a cardboard with a larger version of Ienas’s drawing, which made the students laugh.

Reem continued:

• "Then Inas nudged me as she stood on the bus stairs with her sweet smile, and I didn’t know it would be the last time I saw her… I’ll never forget that smile." Then Reem fell silent, her eyes welling up with tears, and the students wept with her. She struggled to compose herself and said:
• "When I received the news of her death that day, I couldn’t stop crying… I never imagined that the life of such a young flower like Inas could end so quickly… I wondered to myself: What is the purpose of our lives, then? I tossed and turned all night, unable to sleep. The next morning, I picked up my phone and searched YouTube for 'The Purpose of Life'… and there I found a lecture with that exact title by an American doctor who had been an atheist and then embraced Islam… I listened to the entire lecture, and it turned my world upside down… The school was closed that day in mourning for Inas, so I listened to the lecture a second and third time… Each time, I felt as though there was a world hidden from us, yet right before our eyes, and the veils were gradually lifting… Inas was like a fleeting light that shone brightly and then vanished, but she guided me to the path I now walk toward the world of light!"

I began to read to understand why Inas had been so at peace and content that day… and I found out. I envied her and wished I could be like her—yes, I wished it. But now, I’ve decided to be like her." Reem pulled out a hijab from the bag she was carrying, put it on, and said:

• "Inas has not died among us, and her hijab has not died."

The school erupted in thunderous applause. Reem had not shared her intentions with anyone, nor was her action in line with the school’s usual approach… Yet the magnitude of the moment, the sincerity of her words, and the depth of her emotion moved the students and several teachers to applaud in admiration…

With tear-filled eyes, Samir glanced at Hanan. He saw her crying, but this time, she wept with pride for Inas and longing for her.

Their eyes met. He felt a surge of affection and mercy toward her… and a renewed hope that she might one day return to him, walking with him on the path to God.

Samir’s heart came alive. He looked around and saw Inas’s face in the faces of those around him—in the faces of her classmates, in the faces of his brothers and their children, and in the faces of his friends.

He realized that when he had told himself the night before, "Will the school say to me: We were wrong… Inas has not died; we have found Inas?"—it had not been a fanciful dream, but rather, as Reem had truly said: "Inas has not died among us." And indeed, he had found new "Inases" in those around him!

The disturbing discoveries about Abu Azzam’s schemes and his secretary’s plots had been replaced by the discovery of the goodness and potential for righteousness in the hearts of those around him. Before his daughter’s death, Samir had felt alienated from his entire life—except for Inas. But after learning the lesson of her death, he began to see warmth and companionship in every aspect of his life.

There was one person absent from the whirlwind of events… Who was he? It was Ashraf!

Samir left the school and said to Sadiq:

• "Come, let’s visit Ashraf."

Samir was anxious as he approached this difficult task… How would he tell Ashraf about Inas’s death? He prayed continuously along the way. When they arrived, he noticed a change in Ashraf’s father and brother: a hint of sorrow escaped them as they tried to hide it, yet there was a new freshness and brightness in their demeanor, along with a warmth in their relationship that he wasn’t used to seeing.

Samir began with words of glad tidings and hope, painting a beautiful picture of Ashraf’s future—especially since he only had a few months left before returning to them. Ashraf was taken aback; this was not the father he knew! These were the kinds of words he had only heard from Inas, in her childlike simplicity…

After the warm introduction, Samir delivered the painful news. The weight of it crushed Ashraf. His hands fell to the bars, and he sank to his knees, weeping.

• "Ashraf, my son, my beloved… The world will pass, and we will meet her in Paradise, God willing… All we must do is obey God in the days ahead."

For the first time in years, Samir called Ashraf "my beloved." He said it with difficulty, but afterward, he felt a relief as if he had begun to settle a heavy debt.

Ashraf struggled to compose himself, stood up, wiped his tears, and found comfort in seeing the birth of a new Inas in his father and brother, who had left him with words of patience and good tidings.

Samir prepared his new, modest exhibition. He faced difficulties—the profits were limited, growth was slow, and there were no major leaps as he had once strived for. Many things that had once seemed "necessities" to him had become luxuries he could do without. Yet despite all this, he was content, at peace, and optimistic.

He viewed himself positively, reassured that God was with him, as he felt the bliss in his heart and the tranquility in his soul. No longer did he measure God’s pleasure by the worldly comforts he enjoyed. Instead, he deeply understood that (God gives the worldly life to whom He loves and whom He does not love, but He grants faith only to those He loves).

It was true that Samir had wasted many years in the wrong arena… It was true that he had lost much and paid a heavy price… Yet he turned the page on the past, transformed pain into hope, retreat into momentum, and soared high. He saw the world in its true size… and entered the right arena with determination and strength, embracing the motto: "And in that, let the competitors compete."

All praise is due to God.

Table of Contents

• Introduction 3
• "Where Do I Begin?" 5
• "Bridging the Gap" 18
• "What Ails You, Amjad?" 31
• "My Mother Is Not a Burden" 41
• A Wronged One’s Supplication 51
• "I Am Excused" 60
• A Scrap of My Mother 70
• Ascending to the Palace 79
• "He Grants Me Permission So He Loves Me" 89
• The Wolf Does Not Die 96
• Nor Do the Sheep Perish 96
• Remnants of Fitrah 103
• Water That Does Not Quench! 113
• A Flower That Bloomed in the Desert 121
• Where Is Ashraf? 128
• Torment in the Midst of Bliss! 137
• The Most Beautiful Day! 148
• The Reckoning! 159
• "My Father Azzam’s Repentance!" 167
• "I Will Tell Inas the Truth" 174
• The Difficult Test 183
• False Neutrality 191
• An Extraordinary Day! 202
• "You Have Betrayed My Trust in You!" 209
• Amjad’s Secret 218
• The Shackles 227
• And Inas’s Sin! 239