Naima B. Robert – Muslim Women Children’s Book Reading Muslimah Author Summit 2022

Naima B. Robert
AI: Summary ©
The Musimaela Summit 2022 series is designed to encourage writing and sharing of words with others. The event is a way for people to learn about writing and share their own books. Al Wahhab's dedication to his mother and his sister's book led to a book about diversity and a woman who wants to be proud of her mother and her family. The community is part of a Muslim reading and writing community, as well as a parent's guide for teaching children about writing. The community is also part of a Muslim reading and writing community.
AI: Transcript ©
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Okay. It's going up live.

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Welcome everyone to this wonderful session,

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in the Musima Writers Summit

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2022.

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So excited to have a wonderful group of

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sisters coming,

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to read to you from their children's books,

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and we haven't done something like that before.

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So super, super excited to hear these wonderful

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stories, to be able to see these gorgeous

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books, I'm sure that these are there are

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going to

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be some surprises in here. Books that you

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haven't seen, books you're not familiar with, which

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is fantastic, right? Because getting to know about

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new books

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and new authors is definitely one of my

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favorite things to do. So

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what I've got is I've got a beautiful

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group of sisters who are all children's book

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authors

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and they are all going to us from

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their books so it's like a story time.

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Right?

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And we're gonna get to meet each one

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of them, find out more about why they

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wrote the story, what the book is about,

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and then they're going to read for us.

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So those of you who are online now,

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feel free to take a screenshot. Let everybody

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know where you are. We can also take

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a little screenshot. I wanna take a screenshot.

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Yeah. Look. Come on, ladies. Let's do this.

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And, yeah. We're just gonna have fun with

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it. And this is something that I was

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saying yesterday

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in in of several presentations

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which is that, you know writing is fun.

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You know writing is fun. It's it's an

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honor and a privilege you know to get

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to write to get to share our words

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with others. And sometimes we make it so

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serious we make it so hard and heavy

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and there's no need masha'Allah. So one of

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the themes that I set for myself for

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this summer is that we're just gonna relax

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and we're gonna have fun and we're going

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to enjoy each other and we're going to

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enjoy each other's words inshallah. Okay? So with

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that being said, I will take a little

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screenshot. Yay.

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Alright. I'll tag you guys inshallah. Make sure

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that you guys tag us. Tag me on

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instagram so I can share it. And you

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can see that our lovely authors have put

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their Instagram handles

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in their in their, in their, their bios

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right now so that you can follow them

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insha'Allah on Instagram. Make sure that you do,

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follow them, follow their work. Of course, it

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goes without saying buy their books

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and bi'idnila

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you can enjoy some reading from them now

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inshallah. So what we'll do is we will

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come off the gallery

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and we will start with my dear sister,

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Rizaida,

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at Noor Nursery Books. So introduce yourself. Tell

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us who you are,

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what book is it you're gonna share with

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us, and why you wrote this book, and

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then take it away. Bismillah.

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Assalamu alaikum.

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I know you said to relax, but I

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mean, right now, I think my heart's fluttering.

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But

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So, I'm Rose De Baro,

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author and founder of Non Nursery Books, which

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is an indie publishing house based in London,

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United Kingdom.

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And I started off when,

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my daughter was born 7 years ago, and

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I wrote my first book, I Love My

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Barber.

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And my journey just sort of started from

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there.

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I couldn't find a illustrator so it took

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me a few years to actually find someone

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to illustrate the book. But I got there

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eventually.

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And I self published in,

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2019

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for Amazon.

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And just quickly, just so I can show

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you guys where I started and where I

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am.

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So this is,

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if I can get it out. Should've got

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it out before.

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So this is

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I Love My Barber that I self published

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in 2019.

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And I'm not ashamed of it. It doesn't

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look great, and I'm aware.

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But this is where I am now with

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it.

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So

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super pleased.

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And the story I'm gonna read today is

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called Dare All Locks,

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which is a lift the flap book.

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It won the Daybreak press awards 2021.

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So I'm super pleased, super proud of this

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little babe here. And I've just got it

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published in the second edition

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in, as a board book. We actually sold

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out over a 1,000 copies in less than

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a year, so super proud of this.

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And I wrote Deir Allah because growing up,

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my parents always encouraged us to make dua.

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We speak bashdaw at home, which is my

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mother tongue, And whenever it came to a

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gathering of any sort, it was my my

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parents would always say the phrase,

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which translate to raise your hands

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raise your hands in dua.

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And we spent

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I spent my whole childhood like that. I've

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been raised like that. That's all I've heard.

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And what I what I wanted to do

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with this book was to teach children to

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turn to Allah by default. If you want

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something, you ask Allah alone,

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and he is who we turn to and

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nobody else, and he's the only one

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who can come to our rescue.

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So

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I'm gonna actually read it from here. And

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I've got a hadith in this book, which

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is what the first page, and it means

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a lot to me because I just feel

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like it's such a powerful hadith.

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And it says,

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narrated Mu'ad bin Jabal

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Allah's messenger

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told me, oh Mu'ad, I will give you

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some advice. Never leave the recitation of this

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supplication after every prayer.

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Oh, Allah, help me to remember you, thank

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you, and worship you perfectly.

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And this is the hadith, which obviously is

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not for children. This is for the reader.

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This is for the parent, the carer, this

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older sister, the older brother, whoever's reading,

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whoever's reading to the child,

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this is for them really, a reminder to

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the parents

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to only remember Allah.

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So we'll start off

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we'll

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start off with the book.

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I made du'a to Allah to send me

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his blessings.

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He blessed me with

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the bright yellow sun. It makes me all

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warm and fuzzy inside,

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so I thanked Allah in return.

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Then Allah blessed me with

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the dazzling blue ocean.

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I love playing in the water with Baba,

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so I thanked Allah in return.

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Then Allah blessed me with

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lush green trees.

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I love playing in the park with my

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friends, so I thanked Allah in return.

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Then Allah blessed me with

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white fluffy clouds.

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I love imagining shapes in the sky, so

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I thanked a lot in return.

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Then Allah blessed me with

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pretty pink flowers.

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I love picking them for my mama, so

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I thanked Allah in return.

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So then I made the word to Allah

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for something very special,

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and he blessed me with

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a beautiful rainbow.

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Allah is Al Wahhab, the giver of gifts,

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and I love the colors he's blessed me

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with.

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And then at the end of the book,

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there's this dedication, which is also really special

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to me. When I published this book last

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year,

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20 no. The year before, actually, now, 2020,

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It was when I lost my mother, Rahimullah.

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So, in the end, it's just a dedication

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to my mom who's always taught me to

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look on the brighter side, to always thank

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Allah, to always remember Allah, and to always

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have a positive mentality.

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Wonderful. And we will put the links to

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all the authors

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and their books in the description inshallah once

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the video has finished, guys. So not to

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worry. If you see any books that you

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like, which I'm sure you will, and you

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want to get yourself your copy, the links

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will be in the description inshallah. Okay? So

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let's move on inshallah with sister Farah a

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second. Bismillah Fadar Isis. Go ahead.

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Assalamu alaikum.

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JazakAllah for having me.

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Like, like the system before me, I'm a

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little bit nervous, but alhamdulillah I'll get through.

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I'm a teacher support worker and I started

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my book in 20

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19 and I got it published,

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last year in 2021,

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through a

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independent self publisher. So this is a self

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published book.

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Obviously I started this book with my daughters

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in mind.

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It's a book about diversity. So it's a

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book for all, so for Muslims and non

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Muslim, but the main character obviously is a

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Muslim. Who's just navigating her way,

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trying to find herself

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and her parents teach her that it's good

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to be, and you should be a proud

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Muslim. So,

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you know, don't shy away from showing your

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faith, whether it's time to pray or it's

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fasting and so on.

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And so Duha, the main character does, alhamdulillah,

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at the end, come

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to do that.

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I'll just read a little short segment from

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it. This is the part where they've come

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to pray.

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Stop.

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Come to prayer, come to success, dad calls

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out as the whole family comes together in

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the back garden to pray.

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Dad gets my grandmother a chair to sit

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on while the rest of us run inside

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to grab some prayer clothes or make.

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We all then spread out our different colored

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prayer mats onto the grass.

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Dad stands

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at the front to lead and we form

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unified rows behind him, shoulder to shoulder, squished

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up close to one another.

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As we're about to begin, I hear my

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cousins rushing to make it in time for

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prayer.

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Macy quickly stands next to me pulling her

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prayer clothes over her head, accidentally elbowing me

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in my face. While Ali, Daha and Jalil

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come running out after making.

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Ali trips before standing in line and a

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and a little giggle, I giggle a

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little. I'm not the only one who finds

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it funny. So does my cousin Musa, who

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was my age. He lets out a loud

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laugh. My uncle nudges him to be quiet.

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Once everyone is silent, we raise our hands

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putting the words of the world behind us

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for now as mom always says, and we

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begin our prayer.

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It's just a small segment with the long

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chapter.

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That's the illustration.

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Yeah. So I just I've got book 2

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coming out as well, which is a continuation

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for this book and it's about the month

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of Ramadan. So I just wanted to make

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all this stuff very,

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normal for non Muslims mainly, but for also

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for Muslims to also be proud of who

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they are, to not to shy away from

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their faith or feel uncomfortable.

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So, yeah, that was just a little bit

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about myself and my book and my little

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journey.

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We

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love it. JazakAllah Khayram.

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What age group would you say that the

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book is written for? 7 to 10.

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Masha'Allah.

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Middle grade. Wonderful. We need so many middle

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grade books. We have hardly any.

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So well done you, my brook, I like

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you for taking the initiative and writing for

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that age group. A lot of authors shy

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away from that age group,

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because it is a bit more taxing than

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writing picture books, Masha'Allah. So may Allah bless

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you and allow that book to go far

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and wide throughout all the communities.

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Thank you so much for sharing that.

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Wonderful.

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Give it a whoop whoop in the chat,

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guys.

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The people on YouTube are really, really enjoying

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these, by the way.

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I love. I'm looking at the chat. Alright.

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Let's keep it moving. Author Wendy

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Diaz.

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Please take it away, sis.

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Such a pleasure to be here.

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So I've been writing for a while. One

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of the reasons I got into it was

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because,

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I'm Puerto Rican and,

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and my husband and I were both Latinos.

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Our first language is Spanish.

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So we started when we were raising our

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children, we started wanting to introduce Islam to

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them in their native language,

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in our native language.

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And there weren't many books available in Spanish.

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So I started off writing bilingual children's books.

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And, now I'm kind of more going into

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the realm of rep,

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increasing representation

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in bilingual literature, but also just

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literature in English. So the book I wanted

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to share with you today

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is, based on my daughter's experience

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in public school here in the US, in

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the US, by the way,

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wearing hijab.

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And she's she started off

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in Islamic school. And in Islamic school, the

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uniform,

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that she was using also required her to

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wear hijab.

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So then when she

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transferred into a public school, she was, only

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in 2nd grade at the time, but she

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still wanted to continue wearing hijab.

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So she told me, mom, when I go

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to school, the kids and the teachers are

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asking me about the hijab. They asked me,

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why do I wear it?

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Do I have hair under there?

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What does my hair look like? And all

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of these things. So she was telling me

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about all these questions that she was getting,

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and it kind of inspired me to write

00:14:16 --> 00:14:18

this little poem for her for her to

00:14:18 --> 00:14:21

kind of when people are asking her questions,

00:14:21 --> 00:14:22

not to feel shy and to give her

00:14:22 --> 00:14:25

confidence about why she wears hijab. So it's

00:14:25 --> 00:14:26

called the secret of my hijab.

00:14:27 --> 00:14:27

And,

00:14:29 --> 00:14:30

my son who's

00:14:30 --> 00:14:32

he was 12 at the time when we

00:14:32 --> 00:14:35

post a book. He did the illustrations, so

00:14:35 --> 00:14:37

I feel like the the illustrations are very

00:14:37 --> 00:14:39

special. This book is kinda like a whole

00:14:39 --> 00:14:39

family

00:14:40 --> 00:14:41

affair here.

00:14:41 --> 00:14:43

So just to read you a little bit.

00:14:46 --> 00:14:48

If you see me with hijab at school,

00:14:49 --> 00:14:51

you might think it's something strange.

00:14:53 --> 00:14:56

But if you knew the things that it

00:14:56 --> 00:14:56

can do,

00:14:57 --> 00:14:58

you would be so amazed.

00:15:00 --> 00:15:02

While it may not seem like nothing more

00:15:02 --> 00:15:05

than a piece of cloth on my head,

00:15:08 --> 00:15:11

This scarf has special powers built into every

00:15:11 --> 00:15:12

single thread.

00:15:14 --> 00:15:16

It is like a mutant superhero's

00:15:17 --> 00:15:18

powerful force field,

00:15:21 --> 00:15:24

protecting me from harm like a brave knight's

00:15:24 --> 00:15:25

metal shield.

00:15:26 --> 00:15:29

But all the while, it's soft as silk

00:15:29 --> 00:15:31

and light just like a feather.

00:15:34 --> 00:15:36

It is made for all situations

00:15:36 --> 00:15:39

and can withstand any weather.

00:15:41 --> 00:15:44

My hijab defends me from the elements like

00:15:44 --> 00:15:45

the sun's bright hot rays.

00:15:49 --> 00:15:51

And I never need to use an umbrella

00:15:51 --> 00:15:53

when there's pouring, pouring rain.

00:15:54 --> 00:15:56

It keeps my forehead dry.

00:15:57 --> 00:15:59

And if there's ever a winter storm,

00:15:59 --> 00:16:02

who needs a hat or earmuffs

00:16:02 --> 00:16:04

when my scarf can keep me warm?

00:16:06 --> 00:16:09

I can stick a flower into the side

00:16:09 --> 00:16:11

or even a whole big bunch.

00:16:14 --> 00:16:16

It gives me a place to hold supplies

00:16:16 --> 00:16:18

while I eat my lunch.

00:16:19 --> 00:16:20

If someone

00:16:21 --> 00:16:23

takes off their shoes and they have stinky

00:16:24 --> 00:16:25

smelly toes

00:16:28 --> 00:16:30

why? I don't have to smell a thing.

00:16:30 --> 00:16:31

I just

00:16:32 --> 00:16:34

pull it right over my nose.

00:16:36 --> 00:16:39

Whether I am running in the gym or

00:16:39 --> 00:16:41

kicking a soccer ball outside,

00:16:44 --> 00:16:46

I never worry about sweat dripping down

00:16:47 --> 00:16:49

or hair going into my eyes.

00:16:51 --> 00:16:53

I can put my headphones on on top

00:16:53 --> 00:16:55

or earbuds underneath.

00:16:59 --> 00:17:02

Shades and glasses fit into the sides like

00:17:02 --> 00:17:03

a sword into its sheath.

00:17:05 --> 00:17:06

My hijab

00:17:07 --> 00:17:08

can change colors

00:17:09 --> 00:17:10

to match the clothes I wear.

00:17:13 --> 00:17:15

And no one would ever know

00:17:16 --> 00:17:17

if I didn't comb my hair.

00:17:20 --> 00:17:22

Don't worry if I'm ever lost in a

00:17:22 --> 00:17:24

huge crowded place.

00:17:29 --> 00:17:31

I'm sure that you can find me. Just

00:17:31 --> 00:17:33

look for a wrapped up face.

00:17:37 --> 00:17:39

When I'm playing superhero,

00:17:39 --> 00:17:42

it can be my mask or a cake.

00:17:45 --> 00:17:47

During a game of hide and seek, I

00:17:47 --> 00:17:49

can easily escape.

00:17:51 --> 00:17:53

If I'm in a fairy tale, I would

00:17:53 --> 00:17:54

be the princess

00:17:54 --> 00:17:55

or the

00:17:58 --> 00:18:01

queen. My hijab would be the most beautiful

00:18:01 --> 00:18:03

crown the world has ever seen.

00:18:05 --> 00:18:08

It can hold my lollipop for me while

00:18:08 --> 00:18:10

I finish tying my shoes,

00:18:13 --> 00:18:15

or put a cell phone on hands free

00:18:15 --> 00:18:17

like I've seen my mother do,

00:18:19 --> 00:18:21

when the school bully

00:18:21 --> 00:18:23

tries to put gum in all of the

00:18:23 --> 00:18:24

girls' hair,

00:18:27 --> 00:18:29

he looks at me with my hijab and

00:18:29 --> 00:18:31

thinks I would never dare.

00:18:34 --> 00:18:37

I'll stop there, but there's a little bit

00:18:37 --> 00:18:39

more about why the hijab is part of

00:18:39 --> 00:18:40

a

00:18:40 --> 00:18:41

secret society.

00:18:43 --> 00:18:45

But so you can get the whole the

00:18:45 --> 00:18:47

whole book Insha'Allah and

00:18:47 --> 00:18:48

see how it ends.

00:18:51 --> 00:18:53

I love it. I can't believe you outed

00:18:53 --> 00:18:56

us, sis, with the hijabi Bluetooth and panelized.

00:18:56 --> 00:18:59

You guys That's right. All our secrets out

00:18:59 --> 00:19:00

there. What is happening?

00:19:02 --> 00:19:04

That was such a joy. We I was

00:19:04 --> 00:19:06

laughing literally LOL.

00:19:06 --> 00:19:07

No laughing.

00:19:09 --> 00:19:10

About what a cute

00:19:10 --> 00:19:12

buttsey look at the hijab mashaAllah

00:19:13 --> 00:19:16

definitely definitely guide links in the description as

00:19:16 --> 00:19:18

soon as this is you know up and

00:19:18 --> 00:19:20

and and running inshallah thank you so much

00:19:20 --> 00:19:22

Wendy we love that and may Allah continue

00:19:22 --> 00:19:24

to bless you in your writing and allow

00:19:24 --> 00:19:25

you to continue

00:19:26 --> 00:19:28

writing and publishing more and more books

00:19:28 --> 00:19:31

in your mother tongue and in English for,

00:19:31 --> 00:19:33

you know, everyone to enjoy, Insha'Allah. Thank you

00:19:33 --> 00:19:35

so much. That was so cool I was

00:19:35 --> 00:19:36

just laughing out loud

00:19:37 --> 00:19:38

hallelujah

00:19:39 --> 00:19:39

all right

00:19:40 --> 00:19:41

what are we who we got next Let

00:19:41 --> 00:19:42

me see.

00:19:43 --> 00:19:45

I am going to pass it over to,

00:19:46 --> 00:19:49

Aisha. Aisha Kadoor, if would you like to

00:19:49 --> 00:19:51

take it away, sis? It's Badri.

00:19:52 --> 00:19:55

Assalamu alaikum, everyone. So lovely to be here.

00:19:55 --> 00:19:56

So I run,

00:19:57 --> 00:20:00

a farm in Australia, and my book is

00:20:00 --> 00:20:01

My Horse, Junaid,

00:20:02 --> 00:20:03

and I self published as well.

00:20:04 --> 00:20:06

The reason I did this book was because

00:20:07 --> 00:20:09

I run a mini Muslim playgroup. So for,

00:20:09 --> 00:20:10

you know,

00:20:10 --> 00:20:12

0 to 6 years old.

00:20:12 --> 00:20:15

And basically, I was finding it really hard

00:20:15 --> 00:20:17

at story time in this playgroup

00:20:17 --> 00:20:20

to find books that were engaging for the

00:20:20 --> 00:20:21

the little attendees.

00:20:22 --> 00:20:25

And I would always source Muslim authored books,

00:20:25 --> 00:20:27

but I found, there was a gap in

00:20:27 --> 00:20:29

the market there for something just bright and

00:20:29 --> 00:20:30

colorful

00:20:30 --> 00:20:34

and really engaging and very short, very short.

00:20:34 --> 00:20:37

Because they weren't able to sit long and

00:20:37 --> 00:20:39

their attention span was so little, But I

00:20:39 --> 00:20:40

also wanted to,

00:20:42 --> 00:20:45

connect their hearts with the beauty of this

00:20:45 --> 00:20:47

blessed animal. This book also comes with a

00:20:47 --> 00:20:49

little hadith about,

00:20:50 --> 00:20:50

horses

00:20:51 --> 00:20:52

and how they make a dua. And it

00:20:52 --> 00:20:54

starts off with a little girl. So it's

00:20:54 --> 00:20:56

a real life account of me actually,

00:20:57 --> 00:20:58

making dua for a horse

00:20:59 --> 00:20:59

And

00:21:00 --> 00:21:03

the connection with dua and how important it

00:21:03 --> 00:21:05

is in our life. And my parents always

00:21:05 --> 00:21:07

taught me to make dua, turn every worry

00:21:07 --> 00:21:10

into a dua, every concern into a dua.

00:21:10 --> 00:21:11

So basically,

00:21:12 --> 00:21:13

this little girl makes dua

00:21:14 --> 00:21:15

and then she,

00:21:16 --> 00:21:18

it ends with a horse making a dua

00:21:19 --> 00:21:21

for that little girl. And it's actually based

00:21:21 --> 00:21:22

on the true Haggis

00:21:23 --> 00:21:24

where I can read it.

00:21:26 --> 00:21:26

Mawawiya

00:21:27 --> 00:21:29

reports that that he once passed Abu Dhar,

00:21:30 --> 00:21:32

Allah be pleased with him. While the latter

00:21:32 --> 00:21:34

was standing with a horse of his, he

00:21:34 --> 00:21:34

asked,

00:21:35 --> 00:21:37

what are you doing with this horse of

00:21:37 --> 00:21:39

yours, Abu Dhar? Replied,

00:21:39 --> 00:21:42

I think this horse has made a supplication

00:21:42 --> 00:21:44

and has been answered.

00:21:44 --> 00:21:47

Mawawiya asked, and what supplication

00:21:47 --> 00:21:50

does a beast have? He replied, by him

00:21:50 --> 00:21:53

in whose hand is my soul. There is

00:21:53 --> 00:21:55

no horse except that it supplicates

00:21:55 --> 00:21:56

every

00:21:57 --> 00:22:00

every twilight before dawn. Oh, Allah, you have

00:22:00 --> 00:22:02

given me to given to me a servant

00:22:02 --> 00:22:05

of yours and put my provision at his

00:22:05 --> 00:22:07

hands. So make me more beloved to him

00:22:07 --> 00:22:09

than his wife, his property, and his children.

00:22:10 --> 00:22:10

SubhanAllah.

00:22:11 --> 00:22:12

So Iman Ahmed.

00:22:13 --> 00:22:16

Yeah. So SubhanAllah. So horses make a beautiful

00:22:16 --> 00:22:17

du'a for their owner

00:22:17 --> 00:22:18

And,

00:22:18 --> 00:22:20

I found there was a gap in the

00:22:20 --> 00:22:21

market for representation

00:22:22 --> 00:22:24

of farm life, of horses,

00:22:24 --> 00:22:26

love for horses. And all little girls love

00:22:26 --> 00:22:27

horses.

00:22:27 --> 00:22:28

So,

00:22:28 --> 00:22:29

yeah.

00:22:30 --> 00:22:32

I had time in lockdown in Australia to

00:22:32 --> 00:22:34

finally sit down and write it. I self

00:22:34 --> 00:22:36

published which was a huge journey. I had

00:22:36 --> 00:22:38

to be really motivated to do that.

00:22:39 --> 00:22:41

But alhamdulillah, like I was able to do

00:22:41 --> 00:22:42

it and

00:22:42 --> 00:22:45

show that, you know, horses are so special

00:22:45 --> 00:22:48

and to connect them, you know. Connect little

00:22:48 --> 00:22:49

hearts with,

00:22:50 --> 00:22:52

this sunnah as well of looking after horses.

00:22:52 --> 00:22:53

They have physical,

00:22:54 --> 00:22:55

spiritual,

00:22:56 --> 00:22:58

benefits of looking after horses as well. So

00:22:58 --> 00:22:59

this is my book.

00:23:00 --> 00:23:02

And I'll read a little bit here.

00:23:03 --> 00:23:05

So sometimes we ride Junaid.

00:23:05 --> 00:23:08

He is so far years fast, so fast

00:23:08 --> 00:23:10

that he won lots of races when he

00:23:10 --> 00:23:11

was young.

00:23:12 --> 00:23:14

But now he is on our farm.

00:23:15 --> 00:23:18

Most of the time, he moves slowly, plodding

00:23:18 --> 00:23:18

along.

00:23:21 --> 00:23:24

Did you know horses can swim?

00:23:24 --> 00:23:27

Junaid is an excellent swimmer. We take him

00:23:27 --> 00:23:29

to the beach and he loves to splash

00:23:29 --> 00:23:31

in the water, especially on hot days.

00:23:33 --> 00:23:35

Do you like going to the beach too?

00:23:38 --> 00:23:40

Allah loves it

00:23:40 --> 00:23:42

when we take care and be kind to

00:23:42 --> 00:23:42

animals.

00:23:43 --> 00:23:46

Horses are extra special because Allah talks about

00:23:46 --> 00:23:48

them in the Quran saying that they are

00:23:48 --> 00:23:48

blessed.

00:23:49 --> 00:23:51

Did you know horses make du'a to Allah

00:23:51 --> 00:23:54

for their owner to love them? I think

00:23:54 --> 00:23:56

Allah answered Junaid's du'a. Do you think so

00:23:56 --> 00:23:57

too?

00:23:58 --> 00:24:00

And that's just a little bit of my

00:24:00 --> 00:24:00

book,

00:24:01 --> 00:24:01

Andu'a.

00:24:03 --> 00:24:04

Thank you.

00:24:06 --> 00:24:07

A sweet, sweet story.

00:24:09 --> 00:24:11

We love it. Thank you so much. And,

00:24:12 --> 00:24:14

you know, the chat in amongst the authors

00:24:14 --> 00:24:16

is going a bit mad, guys. I just

00:24:16 --> 00:24:18

wanna let you know because everybody is going,

00:24:18 --> 00:24:21

oh, horses, horses, farms. I love it So,

00:24:21 --> 00:24:25

masha'Allah, definitely there are not many books including

00:24:25 --> 00:24:26

some characters,

00:24:26 --> 00:24:28

which have any any animals,

00:24:28 --> 00:24:31

or certainly not sort of farm life and,

00:24:31 --> 00:24:33

you know, farm animals. There's a there's there's

00:24:33 --> 00:24:34

a big shortage there.

00:24:34 --> 00:24:36

So may Allah bless you and your book

00:24:36 --> 00:24:39

and your farm, sis. We want to know

00:24:39 --> 00:24:39

more about that. Maybe we'll have to revisit

00:24:39 --> 00:24:40

this. Maybe we'll have to do like a

00:24:40 --> 00:24:41

writer's retreat or something there. Mhmm. Hold that

00:24:41 --> 00:24:42

thought.

00:24:45 --> 00:24:47

There are lots of Australians on this panel,

00:24:47 --> 00:24:49

so I'm looking at you guys. Right? I'm

00:24:49 --> 00:24:50

looking at you.

00:24:50 --> 00:24:51

I'm doing that.

00:24:52 --> 00:24:55

Right. Let's transition now inshallah. Let's go to

00:24:55 --> 00:24:56

sister

00:24:56 --> 00:24:58

I'm gonna go with sister Amel.

00:24:59 --> 00:25:01

Sister Amel, you wanna take it away inshallah?

00:25:04 --> 00:25:06

And sister Naima. Assalamu alaikum, everybody.

00:25:07 --> 00:25:09

I started writing about 5 years ago.

00:25:10 --> 00:25:12

Most like, you know, like most people here

00:25:12 --> 00:25:14

for their children, we've got all got our

00:25:14 --> 00:25:14

own inspiration.

00:25:16 --> 00:25:18

I wanted also to showcase,

00:25:18 --> 00:25:20

the Muslim life, you know, particularly for non

00:25:20 --> 00:25:22

Muslim kids, but also to help Muslim children

00:25:22 --> 00:25:24

feel, represented,

00:25:25 --> 00:25:26

in in the books that they read. And

00:25:26 --> 00:25:28

so I started writing, I wrote,

00:25:29 --> 00:25:30

My Muslim Make First,

00:25:30 --> 00:25:32

and finally enough, somebody

00:25:33 --> 00:25:34

is in the publishing industry told me or

00:25:34 --> 00:25:36

suggested that I change the name

00:25:36 --> 00:25:38

to My Muslim Friend so that it could

00:25:38 --> 00:25:40

appeal to a wider market. I wanted the

00:25:40 --> 00:25:42

Aussie kids to relate to this book. And

00:25:42 --> 00:25:44

if you know anything about down under,

00:25:44 --> 00:25:46

the word mate is very, very popular here.

00:25:46 --> 00:25:48

So I stuck to my guns and I

00:25:48 --> 00:25:49

stuck to the word mate. And I think

00:25:49 --> 00:25:52

it's very important that we write from from

00:25:52 --> 00:25:53

our heart. You know? I think it's it's

00:25:53 --> 00:25:55

wonderful to be able to sell books and

00:25:55 --> 00:25:56

promote books internationally.

00:25:57 --> 00:25:58

But if we don't write from here,

00:25:59 --> 00:26:00

it becomes a product,

00:26:01 --> 00:26:02

more than just, you know, speaking from the

00:26:02 --> 00:26:04

heart, and for the heart, and all of

00:26:04 --> 00:26:05

that sort of thing. So I think it's

00:26:05 --> 00:26:08

very important as writers that we we often

00:26:08 --> 00:26:11

ask ourselves why we're writing and who we're

00:26:11 --> 00:26:13

writing for. And inshallah, if we have that

00:26:13 --> 00:26:15

pure intention for the the the reason for

00:26:15 --> 00:26:16

why we write, I think

00:26:18 --> 00:26:20

make it easy for us. So I started

00:26:20 --> 00:26:22

off writing Islamic books, and then I delved

00:26:22 --> 00:26:25

a little bit, deeper into my cultural books.

00:26:25 --> 00:26:27

So I read Teta remembers as well. So

00:26:27 --> 00:26:29

this isn't, in particular, an Islamic book, but

00:26:29 --> 00:26:31

you can see that, obviously, the grandmother, the

00:26:31 --> 00:26:34

Teta on the cover, she is wearing hijab.

00:26:35 --> 00:26:37

So I wanted to showcase that as well,

00:26:37 --> 00:26:39

that, you know, not all Muslims have the

00:26:39 --> 00:26:41

same culture, you know, that we are a

00:26:41 --> 00:26:43

mixed bag of people. We come from different

00:26:43 --> 00:26:45

countries. We speak different languages.

00:26:46 --> 00:26:46

But, ultimately,

00:26:47 --> 00:26:48

our Islam is the same. So these are

00:26:48 --> 00:26:51

the sort of, the themes that I I

00:26:51 --> 00:26:53

like to sort of tackle, both faith and

00:26:53 --> 00:26:55

culture. Because I think, in particular here in

00:26:55 --> 00:26:56

Australia,

00:26:57 --> 00:26:58

we're so multicultural,

00:26:59 --> 00:27:01

and we all deserve to see ourselves in

00:27:01 --> 00:27:03

books. And our children deserve to be proud

00:27:03 --> 00:27:04

of who they are,

00:27:05 --> 00:27:06

and not to shy away from that. And

00:27:06 --> 00:27:08

I think when they see themselves represented,

00:27:09 --> 00:27:10

that really,

00:27:10 --> 00:27:12

gives them that encouragement that they need to

00:27:12 --> 00:27:14

be proud of their identity

00:27:14 --> 00:27:16

and to to go forth with with their

00:27:16 --> 00:27:18

comfort knowing that they're doing okay. There's nothing

00:27:18 --> 00:27:21

wrong with wearing hijab, or there's nothing wrong

00:27:21 --> 00:27:22

with bringing food that smells a little bit

00:27:22 --> 00:27:25

different to school, or, speak a language that

00:27:25 --> 00:27:26

sounds a bit throatier

00:27:26 --> 00:27:28

than the the common English.

00:27:29 --> 00:27:31

So with that, I'll talk I'll read a

00:27:31 --> 00:27:32

little bit about, a little bit of it

00:27:32 --> 00:27:35

from my book, Ramadan Rule. This was my

00:27:35 --> 00:27:37

4th book that I self published. I am

00:27:37 --> 00:27:38

a self published author.

00:27:39 --> 00:27:40

And because Ramadan's coming up,

00:27:41 --> 00:27:42

I'll read a little bit about that. I

00:27:42 --> 00:27:44

was going to read from why does mum

00:27:44 --> 00:27:45

wear hijab,

00:27:45 --> 00:27:47

but sister Wendy, had a beautiful reading of

00:27:47 --> 00:27:49

her book about hijab. So I'll leave you

00:27:49 --> 00:27:51

with that in your minds, and I'll read

00:27:51 --> 00:27:52

a little bit

00:27:52 --> 00:27:53

from Ramadan

00:27:54 --> 00:27:56

rules. Basically, this is a book that has

00:27:56 --> 00:27:58

questions and answers about Ramadan. So as a

00:27:58 --> 00:28:01

teacher, I write from an education background, and

00:28:01 --> 00:28:03

I try to use my books as resources

00:28:03 --> 00:28:05

to educate both Muslims and non Muslims.

00:28:06 --> 00:28:06

So.

00:28:09 --> 00:28:11

I'll just start from the beginning, I suppose.

00:28:12 --> 00:28:14

A new moon has been sighted. Tomorrow will

00:28:14 --> 00:28:17

be the first day of Ramadan, inshallah, announce

00:28:17 --> 00:28:18

the voice on the radio.

00:28:18 --> 00:28:20

Mohammed looked out the window at the Ramadan

00:28:20 --> 00:28:22

moon. It was time for him to go

00:28:22 --> 00:28:24

to bed, but he wasn't ready to sleep.

00:28:24 --> 00:28:26

He wanted to know more about Ramadan.

00:28:30 --> 00:28:31

Why do Muslims look for the moon before

00:28:31 --> 00:28:33

Ramadan, Mohammed asked?

00:28:33 --> 00:28:36

The Islamic calendar is a lunar calendar. It

00:28:36 --> 00:28:38

follows the cycles of the moon.

00:28:38 --> 00:28:40

A new moon means a new Islamic month

00:28:40 --> 00:28:41

has started.

00:28:42 --> 00:28:43

My sister's my illustrator.

00:28:45 --> 00:28:46

Are the Islamic months different to the months

00:28:46 --> 00:28:48

I learned about at school? 1 did Muhammad.

00:28:49 --> 00:28:51

Yes. The Islamic months have their own special

00:28:51 --> 00:28:52

days and events.

00:28:53 --> 00:28:55

They have different names too. You can see

00:28:55 --> 00:28:57

the names of this right there. So it

00:28:57 --> 00:28:58

goes on and on, and he keeps asking

00:28:58 --> 00:28:59

questions,

00:29:00 --> 00:29:02

as his dad's taking him to bed. And

00:29:02 --> 00:29:04

this talk about iftar and support,

00:29:04 --> 00:29:06

and what we do on our eve day.

00:29:06 --> 00:29:08

So when I read this to children, I'll

00:29:08 --> 00:29:10

just show you their favorite page quickly.

00:29:12 --> 00:29:15

It talks about who's exempt from fasting. So

00:29:15 --> 00:29:16

you can see the sick, the traveler,

00:29:17 --> 00:29:18

pregnant, and newborn,

00:29:19 --> 00:29:20

mothers

00:29:20 --> 00:29:21

with newborns,

00:29:21 --> 00:29:23

what we do at the mosque. So things

00:29:23 --> 00:29:25

we do during the month and a month.

00:29:26 --> 00:29:27

And aid, of course.

00:29:28 --> 00:29:30

For children, it's really all about the, money,

00:29:30 --> 00:29:32

the presents, and the sweets.

00:29:32 --> 00:29:34

So, that's a little bit about.

00:29:36 --> 00:29:37

Thank you so much for having me.

00:29:38 --> 00:29:39

I was able to be part of this.

00:29:39 --> 00:29:41

I don't know if sister Naima mentioned, but

00:29:41 --> 00:29:42

down here in us, it's very early in

00:29:42 --> 00:29:43

the AM.

00:29:44 --> 00:29:46

So it's beautiful to see my sister's,

00:29:46 --> 00:29:47

joining as well.

00:29:52 --> 00:29:54

No. To you for waking up early and

00:29:54 --> 00:29:56

joining us and sharing your lovely book writing

00:29:56 --> 00:29:59

journey and your book with us. Definitely

00:29:59 --> 00:30:02

an amazing resource for parents and teachers, as

00:30:02 --> 00:30:04

well as the kids. Masha'Allah. Thank you so

00:30:04 --> 00:30:05

much for that.

00:30:06 --> 00:30:07

And yeah, Eid.

00:30:09 --> 00:30:09

It's all about Eid really, isn't it? At

00:30:09 --> 00:30:10

the end of the day, So, you know,

00:30:10 --> 00:30:12

thanks for keeping it real and, and yeah,

00:30:12 --> 00:30:13

lovely to share that.

00:30:16 --> 00:30:18

And as I said guys please do make

00:30:18 --> 00:30:19

sure that you follow every one of these

00:30:19 --> 00:30:21

authors on their Instagram

00:30:21 --> 00:30:22

and other platforms.

00:30:22 --> 00:30:24

The name that you see on the screen

00:30:24 --> 00:30:27

when they come up is their instagram handle.

00:30:27 --> 00:30:28

So you can find them on instagram in

00:30:28 --> 00:30:29

that way.

00:30:30 --> 00:30:31

Follow their work.

00:30:31 --> 00:30:32

Buy their books,

00:30:33 --> 00:30:35

learn from each other, support each other. That's

00:30:35 --> 00:30:38

the way that we grow as a Muslim

00:30:38 --> 00:30:40

reading and writing community inshallah. And I'm glad

00:30:40 --> 00:30:43

you start with Muslim might as well. I

00:30:43 --> 00:30:44

think that was the right call.

00:30:45 --> 00:30:47

Right. I think I have another Aussie

00:30:47 --> 00:30:49

on the panel, sister Iman. Do Do you

00:30:49 --> 00:30:51

wanna take it away inshallah?

00:30:56 --> 00:30:58

Assalamu alaikum sisters inshallah you're well. Thank you,

00:30:58 --> 00:31:01

Naima, for having me. I'm really excited, I'm

00:31:01 --> 00:31:03

very nervous especially I think I'm one of

00:31:03 --> 00:31:05

the the last ones so I've got, big

00:31:05 --> 00:31:07

shoes to fill, inshallah.

00:31:08 --> 00:31:10

I am currently living in Australia. I'm actually

00:31:10 --> 00:31:12

Lebanese background and was born and raised in

00:31:12 --> 00:31:13

South Africa.

00:31:13 --> 00:31:14

I started writing,

00:31:15 --> 00:31:16

just very sporadically.

00:31:17 --> 00:31:17

I noticed,

00:31:18 --> 00:31:20

there was you know, obviously, my my children,

00:31:20 --> 00:31:22

like all of you, were my inspiration. In

00:31:22 --> 00:31:23

particular,

00:31:24 --> 00:31:26

I wanted young Muslim kids to be able

00:31:26 --> 00:31:28

to see books that identify them, especially young

00:31:28 --> 00:31:30

girls. When my daughter was a bit younger,

00:31:30 --> 00:31:32

there was a lot of around the girls

00:31:32 --> 00:31:33

her age and

00:31:34 --> 00:31:38

around her her particular time where the idea

00:31:38 --> 00:31:40

of hijab and wearing hijab was kind of

00:31:40 --> 00:31:42

restrictive to your life and what you were

00:31:42 --> 00:31:43

able to achieve.

00:31:44 --> 00:31:46

So, I wanted to obviously show that that

00:31:46 --> 00:31:48

is not, you know, that is not the

00:31:48 --> 00:31:48

case. And,

00:31:49 --> 00:31:50

obviously,

00:31:50 --> 00:31:52

I wrote a manuscript, and then,

00:31:52 --> 00:31:54

I'd seen a post by by dear sister

00:31:54 --> 00:31:56

Naima about, are you looking to write a

00:31:56 --> 00:31:58

book? And it just, you know, sparkle out

00:31:58 --> 00:32:00

your desire, and I went for it. And

00:32:00 --> 00:32:02

and, Alhamdulillah, little Hibba has published my book.

00:32:03 --> 00:32:05

And, I got it edited. I was very

00:32:05 --> 00:32:06

fortunate that they need to trust in Allah's

00:32:06 --> 00:32:07

plan for them

00:32:08 --> 00:32:10

and always know that whatever we reach is

00:32:10 --> 00:32:11

by the will of Allah, and that is

00:32:11 --> 00:32:13

always best for us. A lot of the

00:32:13 --> 00:32:15

professions used here are very different to what

00:32:15 --> 00:32:16

you would usually see,

00:32:17 --> 00:32:18

and it's more so just to teach children

00:32:18 --> 00:32:20

that, you know, everybody in the world is

00:32:20 --> 00:32:23

unique. And whatever you end up doing, you

00:32:23 --> 00:32:25

have a special place in the world in

00:32:25 --> 00:32:27

order for everything to function the way that

00:32:27 --> 00:32:29

it does. So, I'll just show you, and

00:32:29 --> 00:32:31

the illustrator is Victoria because Allah has a

00:32:31 --> 00:32:33

special plan for me. I wonder what it

00:32:33 --> 00:32:34

could be.

00:32:36 --> 00:32:38

I could be anything. A parent reading stories

00:32:38 --> 00:32:40

every night and having pillow fights. Fights.

00:32:42 --> 00:32:44

I could have my own family just like

00:32:44 --> 00:32:46

mommy and daddy. I wonder what Allah wants

00:32:46 --> 00:32:47

me to be.

00:32:48 --> 00:32:51

I could be anything, a madrasir teacher helping

00:32:51 --> 00:32:53

students learn the beautiful language of the Quran.

00:32:54 --> 00:32:57

Alif, ba, ta, harf by harf.' They'll be

00:32:57 --> 00:32:59

reading Arabic in no time at all. I

00:32:59 --> 00:33:01

wonder what Allah has decreed for me.

00:33:03 --> 00:33:05

I could be anything, a mechanic repairing broken

00:33:05 --> 00:33:09

cars. Vroom, vroom, vroom. Masha'Allah. It's back up

00:33:09 --> 00:33:11

and running as good as new. I wonder

00:33:11 --> 00:33:12

what Allah wants me to be.

00:33:13 --> 00:33:15

So that's just a little bit of the

00:33:15 --> 00:33:16

book, and at at the end of it,

00:33:16 --> 00:33:18

it's got a bit of a a parent's

00:33:18 --> 00:33:18

guide,

00:33:19 --> 00:33:20

which it's kinda just to,

00:33:21 --> 00:33:23

you know, get conversation going between you and

00:33:23 --> 00:33:25

your child or whoever you're reading the book

00:33:25 --> 00:33:27

to and just get kids thinking a little

00:33:27 --> 00:33:29

bit more and, you know, opening up the

00:33:29 --> 00:33:31

discussion and trusting in my law and instilling

00:33:31 --> 00:33:34

those those values. So I really hope everybody

00:33:34 --> 00:33:36

will like it as much as we enjoyed

00:33:36 --> 00:33:37

putting it together, insha'Allah.

00:33:37 --> 00:33:39

And just thank you all,

00:33:39 --> 00:33:41

for having me today, inshallah.

00:33:43 --> 00:33:44

Yay.

00:33:44 --> 00:33:46

You guys give all yourselves a big round

00:33:46 --> 00:33:48

of applause, a big round.

00:33:49 --> 00:33:50

That was beautiful.

00:33:50 --> 00:33:52

You're all on camera now.

00:33:52 --> 00:33:55

That was lovely. I was so excited because

00:33:55 --> 00:33:56

obviously I know the story and I really

00:33:56 --> 00:33:58

wanted us to get to the end because

00:33:58 --> 00:34:00

of that surprise ending, but never mind. Everybody

00:34:00 --> 00:34:02

has a copy of the book in time.

00:34:03 --> 00:34:04

It's good. No. It's

00:34:05 --> 00:34:07

good. So Spence is good. So Spence is

00:34:07 --> 00:34:10

good. Alright, ladies, it's been absolutely fantastic.

00:34:11 --> 00:34:13

I'm I'm literally fizzing inside

00:34:13 --> 00:34:15

because children's books are just one of my

00:34:15 --> 00:34:18

favorite things. I could literally have book readings

00:34:18 --> 00:34:21

all day long with children's books. So I

00:34:21 --> 00:34:23

just wanna ask every single one of you

00:34:23 --> 00:34:25

to hold up your book, please so we

00:34:25 --> 00:34:27

can see you all with your book. I'm

00:34:27 --> 00:34:29

gonna take a couple of pictures so that

00:34:29 --> 00:34:31

we can have a record of this lovely

00:34:31 --> 00:34:32

meeting.

00:34:33 --> 00:34:35

And yeah. Let's see those beautiful books, Iman.

00:34:35 --> 00:34:37

I need you to yay. Let me see

00:34:37 --> 00:34:39

everyone at once because you're all on camera

00:34:39 --> 00:34:39

right now. Right?

00:34:40 --> 00:34:40

So

00:34:42 --> 00:34:43

yay.

00:34:45 --> 00:34:45

Yay.

00:34:46 --> 00:34:47

Oh, so lovely. Masha'Allah.

00:34:48 --> 00:34:50

Thank you so much, sisters.

00:34:50 --> 00:34:51

May Allah bless you.

00:34:52 --> 00:34:54

May Allah make this, you know, one of

00:34:54 --> 00:34:57

many, many books inshallah before our time here

00:34:57 --> 00:34:59

is done. And I think my dua for

00:34:59 --> 00:35:00

all of you is that Allah

00:35:01 --> 00:35:03

accepts your work and that he makes

00:35:04 --> 00:35:04

your books

00:35:05 --> 00:35:07

the foundations of the next generation,

00:35:07 --> 00:35:09

that you become part of

00:35:09 --> 00:35:10

children's childhoods.

00:35:11 --> 00:35:13

You know, their favorite book that they ask

00:35:13 --> 00:35:13

for at bedtime,

00:35:14 --> 00:35:16

That book that they have to share with

00:35:16 --> 00:35:18

their children when they have their own kids.

00:35:18 --> 00:35:20

You rob, you know, make it so and

00:35:20 --> 00:35:21

accept it from us.

00:35:22 --> 00:35:24

Thank you so much, guys. You can unmute

00:35:24 --> 00:35:26

and give salaam to everybody. Inshallah.

00:35:26 --> 00:35:27

Thank you so much.

00:35:28 --> 00:35:29

Thank you so much.

00:35:30 --> 00:35:31

Thank you so much. Thank you so much.

00:35:31 --> 00:35:32

Thank you so

00:35:32 --> 00:35:33

much.

00:35:35 --> 00:35:37

Have a wonderful day. And You too,

00:35:38 --> 00:35:39

Michael. Michael's here. Bye bye. See you in

00:35:39 --> 00:35:40

the next session.

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