wednesday
9th december 2020
1:35 am

you know, sometimes you meet someone who may choose to gracefully stay out of your life, as in not disturb or distract you while you do your thing. they'll keep to the sidelines, yet keep an eye on you, query your wellbeing and offering to be around when you need them.

and at first, you won't think much of them. they'll just be there. nothing extraordinarily special about that, haina? you don't really talk to them, don't really spend long hours on phone calls with them, and there's nothing normal about your friendship.

you know why? because there isn't supposed to be anything normal. because this friendship is special.

TRA came as a huge opportunity for me. i was excited to have been featured in an all-Muslim awards, and even more so for the Reader's Choice category. i'd never won a Reader's Choice before, and i always dreamt of winning the Fiction Awards someday. success is in the Hands of Allah.

however, not all heroes wear capes, and mine definitely didn't. all she wore was her heart on her sleeve. for me.

when adropofhumanity noticed i was falling behind in the competition, she, along with her mother AND siblings came to my rescue. there came the friend who kept her distance yet when my numbers distressed me, came to my rescue. there came the friend who stayed up night to vote for me, who only took breaks for her salah, who gave up her household duties to cater to a wish of mine i had never expressed to her. there came the friend who merged night and day into one to get me to the top positions. at this point, it wasn't even about the awards. it was about her. it was about her mother who helped her vote, her siblings who offered to vote while she took rest.

it was about her heart that moved me to tears, that made me marvel over how a creation of Allah's could possibly possess such beauty and grace. my heart is swelling in my chest even as i type this. how could someone give up everything for a loved friend? how could they forget themselves in an aim to make someone else remembered?

only adropofhumanity could.

when voting ended, me and her cried to each other on call because we belonged to different countries and were of different nationalities, and we weren't there to cry in each other's arms. i still don't know if we won, but we still shed tears for the victory she handed over to me through her bruised wrists and swollen, numb fingers. for the happiness she gave me in just a matter of days, that no one else was able to give me except my parents. for the success that her mother's prayers made possible for me.

there are only a handful of people in this world who despite being let down so ruthlessly, aim to bring others up. who will empty their heart of love and give it all to you. and i'm so, so, so blessed to have crossed paths with her.

i may not talk to her as much as i do to other friends of mine, but she lives in my heart.

having a loyal and truthful friend is one of the biggest blessings one could possess. never turn away their offers to help you, never shun them. because nobody will want your success more than them. if they help you, they do it out of the goodness of their heart. your 'morals' and 'self-respect' mean nothing to them, because there is NO shame in having a friend who stays by your side. friends do this for each other. it is not a favor on either of them.

i wanted to post this on my board, but i figured it would just get drowned under recent messages. so i wrote it here, in a place where both and i and her could come back to read this, and remember the few days of a lifetime. ♥

[if you've read this till the end, please take out a minute to sincerely make du'a for adropofhumanity, that Allah compensate her for her sacrifices in the best way possible, and grant her more strength and persistence, more of His Love. she deserves every bit of it.]