I m asad sheikh a 19-years old from queen newyork my parents are from pkaistan and islam is a central part of my life me strength through challenges
Praying has tremendously helped me throughout my whole life. When I had surgeries and I wasn’t able to move, I would pray while laying. When I struggled in my classes, I prayed. Even when life was going great, I still prayed. Praying was a medicine for me and it helped me through a lot. I gained hope by communicating with Allah.
I was born with heart condition and underwent three surgeries early on after a fall i faced challenges with my legs but stayed active and let obstacles stop me.
When I first started sixth grade, everyone was so nice and I immediately made a lot of friends. They would always help me out and they wouldn’t bully me for being in a wheelchair. Throughout middle school, I was known as an easy, ‘go-to person’ so it wasn’t hard for me to make friends.
Even though I love being an independent person, I do still need help at times with minor things, such as picking up something I dropped. And everyone in my middle school was so nice to me and they would always help me out a lot.
I remember one time in seventh grade, we had to write a poem and present it in front of the whole class in the school’s garden. I presented my poem while on my knees and during that time, I felt great. My teacher came up to me and told me, ‘You just going up there on your knees to present has inspired all of the other kids.’ She continued, ‘If you can do it, then nobody has any excuse for not being able to.’
I used to do a lot of boxing in middle school and when I went to high school. I did a lot of weight training, especially during my senior year. I had the best P.E. teacher, named Mrs. Fig, and she has helped me become stronger, both physically and mentally. She has also helped me achieve my goals and gain strength by advising ways to change my diet routine and by making sure I was healthy.
Mrs. Fig would also post videos of me working out, on her Instagram account, in order to encourage me to do better and better each day. I was really surprised and proud of myself after seeing the results of working out for 8 months straight.
Even though this year we weren’t really able to go out anywhere, I still had some equipment to use in order to keep my strength and make sure I worked out every day. My friend and I also made an Instagram account where we post videos of us working out. And even though I haven’t really posted anything because of college, I have still been getting those gains.
Life sends a lot of problems toward you. The only thing that matters is the way you react and how much faith you have. He is never going to abandon you and He has brought you so far, for a reason. I also learned if you keep holding onto your past, it’s going to keep bringing you down. So that is why, from the beginning of my life, I have kept moving on and pushing through. There are so many great things out there.
Despite my fear and pain i learned not to dwell on the past pushing myself forward no matter how tough life gets is key to achieving great things
In the Quran, it says, ‘Surely with that hardship comes more ease,’ (Inshirah verse 6). What that means is after every difficulty, you will find so much comfort that will make you forget about all of your problems. I recite and think about that line a lot because of the powerful meaning behind it and the strength it gives me every day.
