Seven Months...

Dearest Jude,

This month's entry is a few days late. I apologize. It is Christmas time :)
We do not celebrate it, however, your sister Rachel, grammie, auntie Lynne and cousins celebrate it.
On your "birthday", you and I took a trip to Wolfville to drive your sissy Rachel home. She had spent a couple of days with us. She came late in the night when baba came home from work. You woke up in the middle of the night and she got you out of your crib. She said that your were pleasantly surprised to see her. And I absolutely am certain that is true. You get so excited whenever she is around. Maybe it is because the age difference between the two of you is just enough for Rachel and you to appreciate one another and have fun together. And that you do. You are always playing around with one another and showing her new tricks. This time you were leaning against her while she had you in her lap, with your back to her face. She would move her legs back and forth, and you would try to bite her knee wherever it was supposed to be. It was the cutest thing mashallah.
I don't have an update on your length or weight. All I know is that I am having a hard time finding clothing in your dresser in the 6 month category that actually fits you. We needed to get you a couple of onsies and shirts and ended up buying sizes 9-12 months, mashallah.

I wanted to take the opportunity to explain  something about Christmas to you. I was privileged enough to be born to Muslim parents. Your tete and jiddo tried their best to teach your uncle and I the right way of doing things, of living. They exposed us to as much religion education as possible. My real education, however, came when I was at university. I learned a lot about my religion and beliefs, and was made aware of the difference between cultural and religious beliefs. Your dad was born Christian, and became Muslim before him and I got married. His family is still up to this point Christian.
With regards to Christmas, some Christians believe that Jesus Peace Be Upon Him, was born on December, 25th. However, that date was chosen, I believe to coincide with a pagan festival to try and attract as many pagans to Christianity as possible, when Christianity was still a new religion. You can make up your mind about this and research this yourself, if you would like. This brings me to an important point. As Muslims, we believe that there is only one God. The individuals who were given the message from God, are prophets and messengers from God. We have faith in God and his infinite power and wisdom. Faith dictates that what might seem as impossible, can actually be possible. The stories from the Quran of the prophets, to me, represent examples of how we should behave. Also, the stories of who we believe as the last prophet, Muhammed, Peace Be Upon Him, are also supposed to be an example of how we are striving to be in this world. The Quran, provides history, stories, education on this world, as well as rules for us to follow, among many other things. It is a blessing for us to have this Holy Book as it has not and never will be altered like many other Holy Books. The Sirah (سيرة) or the story of Muhammad PBUH, provides an interpretation of the Quran, as well as an example for us to strive to follow, from Muhammad PBUH's own life and practices. Again, this is just an interpretation of my own understanding. You can research what you hopefully would have grown up with.
For us to be Muslims, we must believe in one God, his prophets (including Moses and Jesus, without any one prophet being "extra special"),  the Holy Books, angels, heaven and hell, and the judgment day.
So, celebrating Christmas, to us, is idolizing a human being, which goes against our faith. Here's a Surah from the Quran. It is called "Al-Ikhlas" or the "sincerity". It is very important to really understand what this surah is saying.

This does not mean that we are better than anyone. This does not mean that they are wrong and we are right. We believe in one God. Some Christians believe in Jesus PBUH as the son of God.  To each their own is what I hope you will get out of all of this. I know I will be contradicting myself when I say this, but I must say it. I truly believe that we are on the right path. Not because that is how I was raised. But because to me islam is the right way of life. It is based on fairness, forgiveness, showing mercy to the living as well as the dead. Islam is truly peace, as the name suggests (اسلام). Whenever I am "away" from God, I feel alone. Not because of some manifestation, but because we as humans need faith in something. We have too many questions that just can not be answered. Science can only explain so much, before we run out of theories and possibilities. There is a higher power, and we are all trying to find it in our own ways. Also, we are sometimes too smart for our own good. These days, if you look back to the period of 2000 and 2014, you will see that Islam does not have the best reputation. Some individuals and groups, who are truly misguided, unfortunately have done many ugly things and used islam as an excuse for their actions. This is not isolated to Islam. If  you look back at history, a lot of heinous crimes were committed in the name of ideology and religion. So please don't base beliefs on the actions of human beings, as humans do not form the faith, but the teachings do. The religion just like God, I'd perfect, but humans are not and will never be. 

So, be strong little man, and stick to your beliefs and values. Be sure that you are on the right path at all times. Do not be too lenient or too strict. It is like climbing a hill. If you rush too far up the hill, you will fall off the other side. If you go too slow, you will fall down and end up at the starting point again. So be moderate my son. Do not follow blindly what one imam or minister says. Do your own research. Use your brain, and let youd hrart lead you to the right path inshallah. After all, that is what your heart is there for. Trust in God and inshallah you will have a wonderful life. There will be challenges, and that is ok. Good things and bad things come from God. There is a reason for all of it. Thank God for everything that comes your way. Thank Him for sickness, for health, for sadness, for happiness. They are all blessings in disguise, to show yourself and God, what you are capable of. Have passion for God and for your faith, because no matter what happens, that is all you will be left with. We don't meet our Maker with pockets full of money, or with certificates of good behavior from this person or that. All we have is our deeds to back us up. No matter what happens, God is the All Merciful, All Malefisent.

I apologize for the long post, the opportunity just presented itself. I love you with all my heart my darling. My heart aches for you because you are in pain now. You have your two bottom teeth, but we think that more teeth are coming up. So now you are sleeping in our bed with baba. We secretly love having you with us. We are fighting within ourselves between keeping you with us,  and for you to sleep in your crib. The former is winning now, because of your pain and suffering with your teeth, of course.

Happy seven months my darling. I hope you are happy with us. I also hope you know just how special you are and what a blessing you are to us. Alhamdellah for you.

Mama