Dear God,⁣
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It’s incredible how opportunities work. One moment you’ll be in dire need and attempting to figure things out. The next moment you’re drowning in options and unable to figure out which steps to take.⁣
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The problem is when things are complicated, and the opportunities are limited, we don’t realize that this is a time of preparation. All we see is that you’ve not given us what we deserve. That we’ve done so much and you aren’t opening the doors, and so we curse and become ungrateful.⁣
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We forget that gratitude isn’t something we do only in the good times, but also during the difficult ones. When things are difficult, we should ask for guidance, recognize our blessings, and thank you for it all.⁣
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A year ago today, I didn’t think I’d make it, just thinking about it scares me. I cried; I was afraid, I lost hope. Then one night, amid all the tears, I decided that I could either continue crying over what I have no control over or be content with the position you placed me. It didn’t matter how difficult it was.⁣
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When it was all said and done, my Shaykh told me, “May it be an opening akin to the opening of Sayyiduna Yusuf.”⁣
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“With hardship comes ease” is what you told us. I genuinely believe in it.⁣
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It doesn’t matter whether we see it or not, the benefit there.⁣
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It’s just up to us to be grateful. Many of us are like my daughter, continually asking “why” because we can’t make sense out of what you’ve chosen. However, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that you’ve decided it for us, and as such, it is the best choice in existence.⁣
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So God, Thank you for the hard times; it makes these moments all the sweeter.⁣
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Your servant,⁣
Arthur K. Richards