The Lord is Not Cruel - Prose of Ramadhan Part 15

52. The hard road

Forgive me, my Lord,

For taking the hard road,

When You have made an easy one,

For making the hard choice,

When You have given an easy one,

For being ever so hard,

When You wanted me to be soft.

For being cruel to myself,

When You are not cruel at all.

I do not think that the Lord is cruel. But I often make mistakes and fall into some appalling circumstances, only to suddenly turn to God and foolishly say, "Why are You so cruel..." But of course, many, many things happen for all sorts of reasons. So what about 'bad things' that happen without your knowledge or neglect.

I have a cousin who must be in her 60s. A decade or more ago, she lost her eldest son to an illness. A year after that, her second eldest son also passed away. Both deaths occurred with no warning nor any symptoms of a serious sickness whatsoever. Today, my cousin and her husband, whom I love dearly, are still living and loving. Their four living children all grown up, two married already and one already blessed with a child.

I asked her how was her life nowadays. "Well, you know, with the kids all grown up, they are away most of the time. So on weekdays, me and my hubby are Romeo and Juliet again, but on weekends they will come back to visit and sometimes stay."

During the two eventful years which shocked the rest of the family, one and all, we were full of admiration and respect as to how this loving couple was able to soak up the knock that Fate had delivered them to bury two of their own children, both of whom were in the cusp of their life, full of beauty and promise. How did she do it? I asked her and this was her reply. "Nobody can understand. But it was not easy."

Life is often not easy. But not giving up, and remembering our responsibilities for others who still live and depend on us, is the mark of a good person. And I am deeply honoured to know this lady and her charming husband. They have been a constant source of happiness and comfort for so many people. So you see, I know God is not cruel, because of such people who is able to overcome the most saddest of slight of fate. You must know people like my two relatives here. We must cherish them for the strength that they show, and the hope that they inspire in us.

Pax Taufiqa.