Safa put her pencil down and followed the delicious aromas coming from downstairs. She found her mother in the kitchen, with her sleeves rolled up, stirring a big pot of food. Safa also noticed a couple of other pots simmering away on the stove. There were bags of groceries on the counters as well.
Her mother noticed Safa standing by the door. ‘ Hey honey, all done with your project already? That was quick!’
‘No not yet, Mama. Are we having a party?, Safa asked excitedly. Safa loved parties – especially spur of the moment ones! Her mom hadn’t mentioned anything about guests an hour ago when she’d started studying.
‘Oh no sweety. This food is all for Aunty Saima. Both your cousins are down with the flu, and Aunty Saima’s voice didn’t sound right either. We’ll go over and drop some food off at their house as soon as I’m done cooking. ‘
‘ That’s nice of you Mama. I hope they feel better soon. But that sure looks like a lot of food. How come you’re cooking so much stuff?’, inquired Safa.
‘Well, I thought I’d make enough for at least two or three meals. That way your poor aunt can get a bit of a break – at least from the kitchen.’, answered her mother.
‘Hmm, that makes sense. Do you need any help Mama?’, Safa asked.
‘Not just yet honey, thanks though. Why don’t you finish your project work for now? Maybe I could use your help packing everything up once its cooked and cooled.’, her mom said distractedly.
Suddenly Safa had a really good idea.‘Hey Mama, can I make a quick phone call to Yusra and Adam? I need to talk to them about my project.’, Safa asked.
‘Sure thing love’, her mom replied.
Safa ran up to her parents’ room and grabbed the phone. She double checked Yusra’s number and called her. She talked with Yusra for five minutes, outlining her plan. Next she called Adam and explained her idea to him. He was on board too. All three of them had agreed on the best course of action. Safa smiled to herself and went to work in her room.
A little while later she heard her mother calling for her. She came into the kitchen and saw that her mom was just finishing filling up all the containers.
“Here honey, you can help me label the dishes’, said her mom handing Safa the pen, paper and tape.
Once everything was packed and labeled they loaded the food into the car and drove to Aunty Saima’s house. She lived two streets down – not far at all, but with the heavy food her mom thought it best to take the car.
Safa was so excited. Her idea must be working already. She couldn’t wait to see Aunty Saima’s reaction to her surprise plan.
They were unloading the dishes when Aunty Saima came out through the front door to greet them. She looked at Safa and hugged her tight. ‘Thankyou thankyou thankyou sweetheart!’, said her aunt. ‘I’ve been getting calls for offers of food, laundry and babysitting for the past hour. You don’t know how much I appreciate what you did for us!’. Her aunt had tears in her eyes.
Her mother looked quite baffled.‘What are you talking about Saima?, her mom asked her sister. Has Safa offered to do your laundry and watch the baby??’
Aunty Saima laughed. ‘No, she did something even better. She rallied the troops for me. Safa and her classmates came up with a plan to help us out. They told all our friends my kids were sick, and that I needed help. Now I have someone helping me with food or chores everyday for the rest of the week!’
Safa smiled shyly. Her mother beamed at her proudly. They both said goodbye to Aunty Saima and got back in the car. ‘That was a wonderful thing you did back there Safa. It makes me so proud! What made you come up with your idea?’, asked her mother.
‘It’s my project mom, explained Safa. We had to do it on kindness and being good to our families. Adam, Yusra and I have partnered up. The teacher’s given us a hadith that we have to try to explain. Let me see if I’ve memorized it right. Bismillah’, Safa started as she cleared her throat :
Narrated by Abdullah bin Omar: The Holy Prophet (pbuh) said, “’One who helps someone in his need, Allah helps him in his work, and one who removes any worry or trouble of any Muslim, Allah, in return, removes anyone of his worries on the Day of Judgment’. (Narrated in Abu Dawud)
Tadaa ! ‘, she finished grinning widely.
‘Wow honey, I sure love how you turned your project into practice and helped out your aunt. I’m pretty certain your teacher will think so too. I can’t wait to tell your dad and brother all about it!, her mother exclaimed. She turned the car into their driveway and they went into the house.
Safa felt pretty good about how well her plan had worked – she couldn’t wait to tell her teacher and friends all about it.