I'm just feeling grateful

[وَمَن يَتَّقِ اللَّهَ يَجْعَل لَّهُ مَخْرَجاًوَيَرْزُقْهُ مِنْ حَيْثُ لاَ يَحْتَسِبُ]

And whosoever has Taqwa of Allah, He will make a way for him to get out. And He will provide him from where he never could imagine (taken from here)

And yes, the story has something to do with baklava and it comes in two parts (yeah I'm so in the mood to blog today).


The first part

About 4 years ago, a Jordanian man came to see me in my office and introduced himself as a PhD student from another university. He just got started and didn't know where to start, and was almost clueless about the area that he would work in. He needed help badly. I had just finished mine, then. With a reminder that he must returned my things back, I loaded the car boot with some reading material and let him borrowed for as long as he wanted.

There was a silence from him for about a year before he came to return some of my stuffs. After that he tried to get in touch but we just talked for less than 5 times. Early this year, he showed up, annouced that he would finish the PhD soon and offered to work with me. I was a bit surprised but I didn't take him too seriously. But this guy was persistent, I found myself writing for a proposal to get a grant, we got it and work is going on very well.

He always talks about he could not thank me enough, he told his family about me and once he even said he would find a wife like me. I warned him, he would have a hard time as it was not easy to find my kind...hehe.

He went back to Jordan while waiting for his viva, with the main purpose to find a wife and that after a lot of nudges from his mother. Doing it in traditional way, it is all about family match-making. He finally decided on the 15th girl (I said to him "see, I told you!"). He returned last week with a new bride, two days after their wedding. And I got some goodies from his mum and the wife.

He will officially be a postdoctoral researcher in our department right after he passes the viva.

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The second part



(Something I just learned, baklava is actually the one with pastry...one type called "baloria" or bird's nest, I'm sure you know which as it is obvious. The other type is "asyalasfor". Those from Jordan and Iraq are bigger in size and sweeter, pic above shows the ones from Damascus and Lebanon, smaller and less sweet)

In the goodie parcel among other things, I found some baklava and I almost jumped. Well, think I've tasted them somewhere in Arab restaurant but maybe because I was already full, I never really appreciated the taste. Anyway, even if I have not, I could imagine the taste...it is heavenly but I'd been refraining myself from buying as they are just damn too expensive here.

And while he was still in my room, an Iraqi PhD student came in. I'm also currently helping (I use help here, because both are not officially under my supervision) her. Maybe due to the spirit of Ramadhan, she placed a box on my table and said it was something that she really love to have during the month. It's another box of ...yeah, you got it ...baklava!

After two nights of having them, I think I got hooked.

Ok now finally the main point. Rezeki does not necesserily comes in terms of money and material, in my case now a postdoc. that would be working with me, helping me out with the other students etc. He is also a rezeki to me, at the moment when I thought that I had bitten more than I could chew, and when a lot of things just got me overwhelmed. That's what I'd been telling people when I got the most frequently asked question, "How'd you manage?".

I have a endlist list of the things that I'm grateful about: mom and dad are still around (now doing what they love most, umrah in Makkah), understanding and wonderful husband, healthy and beautiful kids, the bestest job in the world, kids school just a stone throw away, so as the babysitter's, the bestest babysitter, friends, my room in the office....and again some baklava for iftar this evening!

Ramadhan Kareem, everyone!