"Ding dong", rang the door bell. Ayesha jumped out of bed terrified, knowing that it must be some random aunty from the neighbourhood. She looked around and couldn't decide if she should change first (as usual, she was wearing some old t-shirt with a hot pink shalwar and the duppata was no where to be seen. It must have been buried under the mountain, soon to be avalanche, of clothes in her closet) or run down and fix up the living room (you know how it is, weekly cleaning is different than "guest cleaning"). Little did she know, her mom had already opened the door...
Aunty Museebta had already hopped inside happily to hug Ayesha's mom and she didn't come alone. By the time Ayesha conjured up strength to peek downstairs, her mom was already under attack by the army of kids Aunty Museebta had brought along! Bunty was pulling her hijab, Chotu was trying to wear her chappal, Chipku jumped on her back (not planning to get off until Aunty Museebta yells "Beta hatto, aunty ko tang mat karo! Hut tay ho ya abhi sab ke saamne pitaie lagaoon tumharie?"), and Bubblu... oh man, Bubblu was the bacha don of his neighbourhood! Ayesha always wondered where he stored all that energy in his tiny existence. He was ready to shoot with his fully loaded water gun...
"Arrghhhh, could this get any worse? I just hope ammi doesn't call me to make chai," thought Ayesha, "Maybe I should pretend to be asleep... Yea! That's what I'll do!" Hopeful that her plan might actually work, she reunited with her beloved comforter and comfy pillow. Seconds later, Bubblu's tiny hand holding the water gun pierced through the door slit and...
You can guess the rest!
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Dear sisters,
Asalamoalaikum!
For those of you who are like Aunty Museebta:
Please call before going to someone's house and seek their permission first. Some people are quite busy, even on weekends, and going to their house unannounced means more work/trouble for them. In the story above, Aunty Museebta ruined Ayesha's plans of relaxing, her mom's plan of getting groceries and getting household chores done, and even added extra cleaning work for the family by bringing her battameez and messy kids. The story sounds funny, but people who have to put up with unexpected guests can tell you how awkward the whole situation gets. This is particularly common among desies.
Allah (swt) says in the Quran, "Do not enter houses other than your own until you have asked permission and greeted their inhabitants" (24:27)
Next time you think about going to someone's house unannounced (and that includes: "Hum aapke ghar ke paas aaey huway thay, bus paanch minute mein pohonch rahe hain"), please think twice.
For those of you who are like Ayesha:
I've gotta hand it to Ayesha for not thinking badly of Aunty Museebta (she was just annoyed by the kids), but her attitude wasn't the best. If someone comes to your house like that, as awkward as it is, please don't make it worse by stirring hatred and backbiting into the mixture. We are taught to respect and honour our guests.
Allah (swt) says, "Has the story reached you of the honoured guests of Ibrahim? When they entered his dwelling and said, 'Peace! 'He said, 'Peace! O people unknown to us.' So he slipped off to his household and brought a fattened calf. He offered it to them. He exclaimed, 'Do you not then eat?'" (51:24-27)
Abu Hurayra (ra) reported that the Prophet (saw) said, "Anyone who believes in Allah and the Last Day should honour his guest. Anyone who believes in Allah and the Last Day, should maintain ties of kinship. Anyone who believes in Allah and the Last Day, should speak well or be silent." [Agreed upon]
Please comment and share this post if you found it helpful (I hope you did!).
Sincerely,
D.M.
