Beach trip

So it looks like the last time I posted was Thursday... I can't really remember Thursday...

But Friday was Jumma'ah. I tried so hard to get to the khutbah early, and didn't make it before it started... inshaAllah this week, or next. But I didn't miss anything--the imam was giving the khutbah, so it was in Arabic, and then translated afterwards, and I got to hear the translation. The title was Sins of the Ummah. It was a very interesting lecture about what we, as Muslims collectively, were doing wrong in the world--especially the government. He talked about how Islam had been twisted into a political philosophy of sorts, but how real Islam was being oppressed even in Muslim countries! May Allah save us from what we are doing to ourselves.

The Friday night talk was about da'wah, with Brother Ali Aiello talking about da'wah in the Qur'an and sharing some experiences. I don't know that I heard anything "new" but it's always good to hear these things again with a new voice. On Saturday I went back to the masjid for another Da'wah talk, this time with the imam. This is the first activity I had heard about of the da'wah committee, and so I changed my schedule (I was planning to go out of town that morning) to stay for it. It was helpful, I got to see who some of the people active in da'wah are, at that masjid. Some I knew, but most I didn't. The discussion started with talking about people taking shahadah, and not pressuring them to do that, but it sort of gravitated (inevitably, with a certain person present) towards a Muslim state. How it got there: people taking shahadah, answering questions about Islam, answering questions about jihad, what do we say about current events... then a discourse on what would be necessary for things to be better. While I appreciate that discussion, and find it very interesting, I didn't attend to hear that but more about da'wah. Oh well.

After that I tried to pack quickly (quickly didn't happen) and get out of town, but since I was going to visit my brother, my parents had a letter they wanted me to take to him/his girlfriend, so I had to drive 20-30 minutes out of the way and back before I could go. And then I was just running behind, but of course I stopped to talk a little while to my parents--a mistake. First I had to hear the low-down on Brittany's ex-roommate and other nonsense, and then my dad asked the nasty questions--what do they say at your mosque about those plane bombings?

I can't remember his words, but it was something like that, which didn't make sense. I have to ask... what are you talking about!? He apparently meant the terror plots uncovered in Britain about blowing up planes. I tried to be really clear this time when I told him, it's just wrong. I gave him a list of reasons why it's wrong and then I had to explain why some people aren't saying it's wrong. I explained some things I had learned that day and weeks before from the imam (who is very critical of "Muslim" governments, mind you) about how those governments are really oppressing the Muslims, how they can't even practice Islam there, how governments are treating real scholars who disagree with them.

At some point now, he asks me if I can ask the imam to talk to him. I wouldn't do that--I don't even talk to the imam. I just listen. I'd feel out of place asking him that, when my dad can call the mosque himself. Plus, I don't know what he wants to talk about, and he won't tell me, but I know the imam is busy. And on top of that, the imam's English isn't very good and I'm not sure if my dad could even understand him. So I think my dad is asking in a rather rude way, by telling me to ask him even though I don't even get to talk to him myself. He's busy! So I won't be doing it, but I will ask my dad to call, and try to find other people who can talk to him. Right now, I'm too annoyed at his manners to see this as a breakthrough or anything.

But I finally, around 8, made off towards the beach, to visit my brother. I didn't get to spend much time with them that night or the next morning/afternoon. They were working, and I went to buy them some stuff for their place--some kitchen towels, a casserole dish, a clock for the living room and some groceries they needed--and went back to do their dishes. Now, their plumbing was messed up (busted pipe, maybe?) and my brother had spent the last few days trying to fix it, so they didn't have water.. and hadn't done the dishes, therefore, in a few days. So I did their dishes, fixed a casserole for them to make later (so they have more than just junk food to eat) and we went out to dinner.

Dinner was an adventure, we drove up (separately) to Wilmington from Holden Beach (they live right near the island, but work in Shallotte) because Brittany wanted to eat at some floofy places on the water. But because they were crowded, and uppity, we decided to go looking for somewhere else... and drove around Wilmington for a while not getting anywhere until we made it way into town and found a whole slew of them. Then we ate, and they drove back to Shallotte and I went home. It was actually a pretty quick drive. I've been to Wilmington a few times but this time it seemed much shorter... possibly because I was driving 85? Or maybe because I didn't stop in Warsaw for gas or anything else. Who knows. But I got home at about 12:30am, which wasn't too bad considering when I left. That's when I should've gone to bed, and didn't but... it's Monday, and thus begins my very hectic fall semester.

Tomorrow I have a meeting I can't go to because it's during a class I'll have at nights, now. Wednesday is my first official day of classes at State, then I'll work most of the days, Thursday-Friday. I have a meeting Sunday, the MSA shura wants to meet me to talk about their open position... that's not going to happen, I think. They had a retreat they wanted me to go to part of, on Sunday (I was at the beach.) And their first meeting is next monday at 7:30, but I have sorority stuff at 7. I told them I could be there by 8... but this isn't boding too well, and I think it might be better if I just keep my nose out of it for a while. Anway, the following three weeks of recruitment plus classes and work... and the lab still hasn't posted the fall schedule so I don't know when I'll be working there!! Wow, do I seem a little stressed? I have something scheduled, at least one something, every day of the week for 4 weeks. And after that... oh yes, there's more, just too far in advance to have planned stuff yet. Ah, me. Seventeen weeks of this, then vacation. Then GOODBYE AOE!