Adventure Filled Day

 

As I walked to the train station on a cold sunny Wednesday morning, I kept wondering how I was going to spend the rest of the day outdoors but the sun eased my worries by warming my soul with it's rays of sunshine. I hurriedly walked to the train station although I was not late to any particular place. It was a self-imposed hurry because I didn't want my day to be a lazy day. It was meant to be an adventure filled day and that is how it would remain so. I was bursting with energy as I threw away my smartphone a week earlier and picked up a flip phone. 

You see, the phone was like a slow moving cloud of sadness that would creep into my soul and suck the joy out of it. As I waited for the train which was 2 minutes away, I had ample time to be present and observe the other passengers on the platform. They were all fixed on their phones texting, scrolling watching whatever content the Algorithm sent their way. The ones who did not have a phone on hand had headphones on which meant they too were shutting themselves off from the world around them. I was once like them , I thought as the train pulled into the station. It's been a week but it felt like eternity. I was able to journal as the train sped from one station to the other, something this particular line was not known for. 

The train pulled into Downtown Boston where I couldn't help but wonder that the people i'll see today will most likely never appear in my life again. This weird city fact made me appreciate the Greatness of Allah and the Vastness of His creation. How He provides and protects always without tiring. SubhanAllah. Such thoughts are my favorite as they remind me of Allah always which in turn increases my worship. 

Have you ever had a detour and hated it? Am here to tell you to never hate detours. One of the most important principles in my life that I adhere to is to not hate detours but rather look forward to as to where it might lead me to. This is what happened on this day on more than 1 occasion. Venturing into new territory comes with the risk of getting lost. I was supposed to go to Manchester and in order to get there,I had to take the Commuter Rail from North Station. I found myself in South Station where I was directed to take the Silver Line to Chelsea then either take the train to North Station or go from Chelsea Station itself. After a bumpy ride on the bus underneath the river, I was at the airport from which I came to my temporary destination. 

The MBTA employees were helpful in directing me as I eventually found my train, I felt a lightness that came from being relieved in finding what I was looking for. When I finally got on my train, calmness set in which in turn led me to self reflect. What was I looking forward to today? Did I just want to shoot a couple of pictures and that’s it? Or be grateful and use this opportunity to further connect with Allah? As the train zipped away from the city and it’s suburbs so did my thoughts. As the outside of the train was filled with vast fields of marshes and trees so did my journal get filled. 

This I thought was how I would have spent my childhood if given the opportunity to have the knowledge, wisdom, experiences and resources I have now.