Wait for Me

I recently learned that on the Day of Judgment the Prophet Muhammad Peace Be Upon Him is to be found one of three places. One of these is at the place where the actual reckoning will occur- the weighing of the good and bad deeds, in case there is a need for intercession. The following is a reflection on that.

Wait for Me

Wait for me, Beloved Rasul

You are my teacher,my preacher,

Lifelong spiritual guide

Wait for me at the final weighing station.

Hear my pitiful cries.

You turned down a gilded, brocaded lifestyle 

Preferring hardship over ease.

So how can I ignore the poor and needy

Daring to call myself one of your devotees?

Your hadiths calm my wretched heart

Your seerah shimmers and glistens like gold 

The stories of your bravery and adhab

Constantly comfort and console.

Yet these stories cannot stay academic.

Or static and stagnant in my soul

Your humility I admire

But your life must inspire.

Set me on fire.

And emulating you becomes the goal.

So, wait for me,

For there is work to be done.

The battered wife nurses crimson bruises,

Broken,alone and afraid.

The homeless man huddles under a doorway 

Dejected, rejected and betrayed.

I toss out pennies and sympathy

Interrupting my busy, important life

When I should internalize your glorious example

Become compassion personified.

How long will the mendicant wait

For shoes or soup or good will

How much time does the injured wife have

Till bones are crushed again or finally heal

You said:

 "Paradise lies at the feet of the mother."

"Even a smile is charity don't you know"?

"Love thy neighbor, Forgive thy brother"

"Save yourself from the hell-fire with half a date"

If that is all that you own.

These are the words you taught me.

Your trials and struggles haunt me,

Taif, Uhud and Badr,

The very words make me shiver

With awe and appreciation

At you, the Best of Creation,

You were orphaned, tried, tormented,

Tested throughout your arduous existence

Yet unless I can make you proud,

Live up to a tiny fraction of your shining exemplification..

Why oh why

should you... wait for me?