ON HOLD The perks of being a Hafizah

The knock

Amatullah's POV;

I felt uncomfortable without my Quran in my grasp and so my arms hung unto my body without purpose.

"How is Hifz going habibti?" I turned my gaze towards Zahra's mother. She was smiling at me and I just couldn't figure how where she got all that energy from.

"Alhamdulilah. Alhamdulilah very rewarding and quite well!" I tried to mirror her enthusiasm but I was just too tired.

"You know Yahya, he has done Hifz too but you see Zahra doesn't want to. She thinks it's hard. But you know, I always remind her of you and how you are like. She looks up to you, you know?"

My brother in Islam,Yahya, had done Hifz, Mashallah! May Allah swt bless him in great abundance. Rare it is to find hafiz/hafizahs out there. It made my heart leap and boil up some excitement within me. It was something Allah swt had trusted upon us, an amanah, and so we become part of the oath of Allah to protect the Quran from any changes and alterations. Knowing that there are others, in the same pleasant struggle made me feel so rejuvenated.

But Zahra, I know how she feels. The daunting picture of trying to memorise over 600 pages off by heart can certainly put you off. But if that was the case over millions and millions of people around the globe who have accomplished the memorisation of the Quran could have not done it.

Indeed Allah swt has made the Quran easy to remember.

"Ummmiiiii" whined Zahra when her mom told me that she looked up to me.

I merely giggled. Surely Allah swt has given honour to the ones that have memorised the Qur'an.

"Awww poor Zahra!" I finally spoke.

" be quiet amat" she replied grinning.

"Now Zahra that isn't justified" Zahra's mother said grinning.

Zahra stuck her Tongue at me and within a moment she poked my stomach and ran up the hill to the masjid.

The nerve of the girl. Ya Allah!

I ran as fact as my legs could carry my flabby body laughing manically.

"Wallah when I get to you" I threatened her.

She suddenly halted and twirled around.

"When u get me? Can't you finish your sentences for God's sake."

"When I get you I shall make you into a Kashmiri nan and stick you unto them hooks" I threatened her.

"That's it? Really?"

I was, at this moment a foots length away from her and because of my breathing difficulties, I couldn't run anymore.

"Ok I forgive you" I said.

Ok why did I say that? What was I thinking?

"I didn't ask for forgivenesser"

"Girls! Stop fighting. Ya Rab!"

Behind us in the distance was Zahra's mother jogging towards us.

"Ya Allah what is with you girls? When I was your age I used to treasure my friends not threaten them"

She shot a evil death stare at Zahra but didn't last long. Zahra's mother broke out in laughter at the sight of Zahra's blank face.

"Yeaaaaah ummmiiiii not threaten them into turning then into a Kashmiri nan and sti..Ooooowww that hurt Amat"

"Girls!" Zahra's mother spoke.

At this moment we were outside the masjid and Yahya wasn't in sight.