No, Sister, I am at the Hospital

“Sister, the doctor is here. Can I please put you on hold? Don’t hang up!”

“Sure...”, I said hesitantly, not comprehending in which situation I had caught my client. All I knew about her was that she was expecting, and that she had recently landed in Canada, but her husband was still back home, waiting for his papers.

I heard some mumbling in the background - a conversation between her and the doctor perhaps. In a few moments she was back on the line: “Hello Sister, are you still there?”

“Yes I am here." I quickly responded. "What happened Sister? Are you at your doctor’s appointment?”

“No, sister, I am at the hospital. The baby is coming! The doctor said the baby will be here in a couple of hours!”

Did I hear that right?

Heba had reached out to us earlier that week to apply for Zakat. She was going through a very stressful time. Today was the first time I was able to get her on the phone, and she was in the middle of having a baby? Rather, she was choosing to talk to me, a complete stranger, while going through her first childbirth!!

I took a couple of deep breaths to calmed myself down, and spoke: “Sister Heba, are you sure this is a good time to talk? I can call you back some other time."

“No, Sister, I have no one with me." Heba responded anxiously. "Your call is from Allah right now, assuring me that I am not alone. Thank you so much for calling me!”

At that moment I was reminded yet again that Allah is the best of planners. He had made me call her at that exact time, to give her comfort and to teach me a life lesson.

We talked for a few minutes. She told me how she had no family here in Canada. Her husband was still back home, struggling to come join her. She expressed her worries about a loan she had taken from a friend. She shared her fear of giving birth and raising a baby all alone within her limited means, in a new place, which will soon become a new home for herself and her baby.

I reassured her that everything will turn out okay. "Allah doesn't task us with anything more than what we can handle." Suddenly it felt as if I was speaking with a friend. I was there for her in her most sensitive moments, all according to Allah’s plans, and in return, she had taught me what strength and belief in Allah’s plan truly meant.