In the Middle of the Night

This is a great audio lecture, by Ustadh Muhammad Alshareef, about the sleeping patterns of the Prophet (asws)

Summary

1. Make the 'Ishaa prayer the last thing you do, before you go to bed, talk should be discouraged after the 'Isha prayer has been made
2. Never go to sleep later than half through the night (between 'Ishaa and Fajr)
3. Delay witr if you know you will wake up for qiyam al-layl, if not, pray witr before bed
4. Make ablution (wudu) before going to bed, even if you already have wudu
5. Read ayat al-Kursi before falling asleep
6. Do the mas7 (spitting/blowing thrice in ones hands and reading the "three quls" and wipe the whole body, repeating it three times)
7. Lie down on ones right side, hand under head or pillow, and do tasbeeh (say SubhaanAllah), tahmeed (say Alhamdu lillah), and takbir (say Allahu akbar) - and really mean it (thinking of the things one is grateful for while saying tahmeed for example)
8. Do not talk after you've gone to bed, the last thing you say should be the du'aa (supplication)
9. Do not sleep after Fajr
10. Take a power nap (short siesta) during the day

Inspired by forest schools

“Must we always teach our children with books? Let them look at the mountains and the stars up above. Let them look at the beauty of the waters and the trees and flowers on earth. They will then begin to think, and to think is the beginning of a real education.” David Polis

Rain or Shine schools Report part 1
Rain or Shine schools Report part 2

"Scare City"

THE DAILY GROOVE ~ by Scott Noelle
www.enjoyparenting.com/dailygroove

    Get ABUNDANT support for YOUR parenting
    style: www.enjoyparenting.com/path/info

:: "Scare City" ::

When you buy into the *scarcity* principle, you live
in "Scare City": a place where you're always afraid of
coming up short.

In Scare City, you can't enjoy what you have -- you're
too busy worrying about what you *don't* have. All the
cups in Scare City are half empty.

Somehow, young children are largely immune to the
distressing effects of living in Scare City...

* They enjoy the abundant *now* while their
parents worry about the lack of time.

* They transform their homes into magical
worlds while their parents worry about the
lack of order.

* They give and receive love endlessly while
their parents carefully ration their limited
supply.

To live the Good Life, you have to leave Scare City
and go to a *dance* -- a joyful, magical, healing
dance where you release your fears and *shake your
booty* like nobody's watching: a-BUN-dance!

Are you willing to do A BUN DANCE with your child? :-)

Sound Advice

Hasan Basri advised some of his students admonishing them about avoiding the state of being proud. He said:

1. Do not deceive yourself into becoming too proud because you are in a good or righteous environment, for there is no place that is better than Paradise, and our father, Adam (as), experienced there what is known to all.

2. Do not become proud merely because you worship often, for consider what happened to Iblis (satan) after he spent a great deal of time worshipping.

3. Do not think yourself great because you have met with righteous people, for there is no man more righteous than the Prophet (pbuh), yet the disbelievers and hypocrites did not benefit by simply knowing him.

Reference: Gems and Jewels, Compiled by Abdul-Malik Mujahid.

Received in an e-mail.

An interesting quote

"A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects."

-Robert A. Heinlein