When people make haram as halal, it really causes issues, beyond just for themselves but the fitnah it spreads to others in the community. As many of you know, Le me is currently in search of le job. As you may also know, it has not yet been a successful hunt for various reasons. Today, however, I thought that was about to change.
Yesterday, after Maghrib Salat, I happened to be drawn towards the community advertisements board in the Masjid. I don't know why, because typically it's just people looking for a roomate, looking to sell some sort of food, some marriage workshops, and stuff like that. But nonetheless, yesterday I was drawn towards the board and I saw a post from a brother with a shop looking to hire someone who would be able to work in sales, speak fluent English (lucky me, that's my only language), and be a fast learner. So yeah, that was all it would take.
Alhamdulillah, I felt perfectly qualified, so I decided to call the brother. He was at work and hadn't yet prayed, so he said he would call me after Salat in about 5 mins or so. I hung up, and patiently waited. Five minutes became fiften, fifty, two hours, and eventually, Isha had come and gone and still no word. But I didn't want to lose hope, so I kept on waiting. As I was getting home to do some writing on CD, the brother texted me and asked if I was awake so that he may call me. I said okay, so he calls me Alhamdulillah.
He was continuously interrupted by random customers during our call, but Alhamdulillah it was no issue. We talked briefly and I got the main details of the job and the location and he told me to meet him today. Now, when I googled the location it wasn't too close, in fact it was quite far away and I also got lost a few times trying to find the place, but Alhamdulillah I found it. I parked my car, paid the meter and went to meet him, only to be told I should have parked elsewhwere for free parking which would last nearly 6 times longer with no charge even. So I moved my (grandmother's) car and then rushed back to his shop (which, wasn't even a shop, more like three kiosk stands) and went to Jum'ah together in his car.
We discussed business and such as expected, and when we returned to "shop" he showed me the ropes and how the main things around the place worked. Everything seemed good and well, in fact it was superb actually. Unlike the other jobs that I've been turned away from, I wouldn't have to worry about my beard (seriously, even to push carts/trollies and stack cans on shelves they want you to freakn shave, what the heck??!), I would be afforded breaks for Salat (and Jum'ah on Fridays), and heck, I wouldn't even have to wear a uniform; he told me I was free to wear my thobe and turban as I pleased, Alhamdulillah, and it was also good pay for someone in my position, ($1,800 a month for someone who's main bill is just a $35 phone bill).
Despite the drive being a bit hectic (again, I got lost and admittedly sorta freaked out a bit), it seemed like an excellent job for me. I was on board and the brother was ready to hire me when lo and behold, the discovery of haram! _-_ Since none of you even know the owner it is not as though I am backbiting him by telling, and just as well, this is something he has made open and public, not a hidden sin or anything like a secret that I'm blasting behind his back. That said, I won't go into specifics, but he wanted me to also deal in selling some haram merchandise. Major haram merchandise. Stuff like, if the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) or his companions (may Allah be pleased with them all) or anyone with proper iman would have seen, they would become enraged that a Muslim was involved in its selling. AstaghfirAllah. Yes, it was that bad.
So of course I had to reject the offer and go home (got lost like 3 more times lol, I'm a bad navigator if I'm driving somewhere completely unfamiliar). Oh, yeah, I also almost died on the way home because two huge diesels crashed into each other and one driver flew from his vehicle and it kept speeding down the streets, crashing through telephone poles before it crashed into some metal, got punctured and its gas was pouring into the street whilst the sparks were flying. Subhanallah! And the other diesel was blocking traffic, so were all stuck!
And wouldn't you know it, I was locked in a position directly parallel to the leaking diesel. Subhanallah, I was thinking the worst thoughts as you can imagine, but I tried to remain calm, despite the leaking fuel and flying sparks just waiting to cause a deadly explosion. I called my mother to quickly tell her everything in case something happened to me because no one in my family even knew where I was at at the moment, then I hung up and did some athkar, said my shahadah and kept an eye on the scene. Then, Alhamdulillah traffic managed to get started up and we all left the scene safely.
But yeah, that was my day. I woke up extra early and excited (despite going to sleep late, thanks Ahlaad), drove hours to that place to go for what seemed like a "perfect" job, saw the shameful shirk infested aspect of it, left, nearly died, got lost, and got home tired and exhausted and disappointed. But then again, Allah is the best of providers and He will provide from what is best, so Alhamdulillah I'll remain patient and hopeful. This was just another step in my journey, another tale in my life. Thank you for reading :)
Assalamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh,
-Desert Son
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Desert Son: Tales of Le_Muslim_MAN
Non-FictionIt was a cold, winter night out in the great desert. The winds were howling, the crescent moon rested high in the sky. Out in the dark and desolate desert, a new life had been born into the world. Resting near the light of a fire, a woman sat, holdi...
