As always you and Miss Madeline are in my prayers – tell awesome Auntie Deb that we all think she is awesome, too!

Jaimee

You have my deepest sympathy and you’re in my prayers. Take delight in your daughter. She is absolutely, breathtakingly enchanting.

xo
A

In Arab tradition, a dad is addressed by, “Abu,” and then the name of his child comes after that. You are therefore, “AbuMadeline.” It is a new title for your new career.

Mom is “Um.” Liz is then UmMadeline. She remains the titleholder for this, even after it seems like she no longer can be. No past tense.

Maybe it would help to call Liz, “UmMadeline” for a time. See that she exists truly in this new realm of thinking that never dies.

It’s all in re-focusing. We, when we photograph, have to make a choice on what to focus, as it won’t all fit in the viewfinder. Your photographs are awesome. So, your vision of the beauty of life is also awesome. Beauty never dies. It’s always there, but you might have to re-focus in order to capture it.

I agree that life can seem to suck. I’m sitting here after a sum of events that have been a challenge. However, I do my best to keep being thankful for life’s unfolding. Some days are easier than others. Seeing photos of what I thought was a life-time guarantee make any day harder.

Do you remember in the bridge collapse story that there was a young Somali woman and her child that were missing? The woman was pregnant as well. When they found her, we learned that three lives were lost. As another Muslim, I struggled with the “why?” of that moment.

For me, I thought of how many thousands of people who prayed for her and her family, despite differencies of ethnicity, language, and faith. That young woman brought together the world. She never knew how she changed so many lives that needed to be re-focused.

There’s an aspect to the story of UmMadeline is much the same, isn’t it?

The way the universe, or God, or Allah works is truly beyond our thinking. It’s not acutally our job to decipher it. It’s only our duty to keep finding the beauty and being thankful for what we have.

“Alhumdulillah.” Thanks be to God.

May Allah continue to grace you with humor and patience. May the mercy of Allah heal your pain and strengthen your faith. May there be good health for you and Madeline and may she grow tall in your shade. Lastly, may UmMadeline’s beauty live on through you and your daughter.