Love…

A few weeks ago I was at the post office and was pretty much hooded out.  Baggy hoody, baggy jeans and had my hood pulled up on my head.  I was walking out, and there was an elderly couple (they had to be in their mid 80s) that were a few feet behind me.  They were walking incredibly slow (and I mean very slow) but I decided to hold the door open for them.

As the woman saw that I was holding the door open for them, she kind of shook her head ‘no’ and kind of gave me this gesture with her hand as if I should get up on out of there because they were taking so long.  I decided to just stay there a little bit and smiled at her and kept on holding the door open and said that I really didn’t mind.

They got closer, and as they did, she put her hand on my shoulder as if to thank me.  She looked me up and down (and probably thought to herself — my this Puerto Rican chap has some nice manners) and smiled at me.  I stood there and slowly hovered behind them as they walked to their car (just in case they needed any help).  The next thing that I saw really touched my heart.

I wasn’t paying attention, but when I looked towards their car, I saw that they were both on the same side of the car.  The husband had opened the door, and helped his wife in to the car.  He then very slowly, yet surely, walked around the front of this car that he probably bought brand new in 1980, opened his own door and slowly climbed in.

Seeing this made me smile and made me realize something.  In a society where love is based on looks and status, there still is hope.  The more I hear Muslims say “I want to marry her, she’s so fine or something” or “oh my God he’s a doctor/lawyer and so fine, I want to marry him” the more I feel like throwing up.  It seems like we are getting more and more caught up in the physical and not paying any attention to a person’s character, because last time I checked, the beauty of your spouse will not get you in to Heaven.  But their religion, their desire to grow into a better person and willingness to work with you to make both of you a better person will.  Yes, a level of physical attraction has to be there, but I am ashamed to see more and more Muslim guys put all emphasis on the physical and a little on a woman’s character because after all that can always be “worked on”.

But then I see a non-Muslim couple, in their late 80’s, showing love in its purest and most beautiful forms that I have ever seen it.  And I get some reassurance that there still is hope after all.  I just hope and pray that if any of us Muslim men get the opportunity to be with our wife at the age of 80, that we open the door for her and help her get in to the car and seated before taking our place in ours…

-peace-

Tags: love