From my mailbox

Re: Yes, she was here
From Allah we are and surely to HIM is our return. This indeed is a great test from Allah and as Muslims, we have to accept it as part of Qadr. This death is what Allah has destined for them and we have no might nor courage to prevent it because Almighty Allah has appointed their time. May Allah SWT give the entire Muslim Ummah the fortitude to bear this loss, amin. Aunty Bilkisu had been and will always be a role model to our sisters in Islam. She truly showed to us that being a Muslimah, a mother and a wife will not prevent you from contributing to your society and the nation at large. May Allah SWT reward her with  Jannatul firdaus. Yes, indeed she was here.
Rabiata Garga <[email protected]>

Re: All about LB’s safari
Assalam Alaikum,
 Hope the family is doing great and you are recuperating from the accident you wrote about which during Ramadan. Allah Ya sa kaffara ce, amin. I suggest that you try Gembu in Mambila Plateau as your next travel destination with and a stop-over at the new Rockview hotel in Yola on the bank of River Benue. You’ll be on a cliff in a serene environment that replicates most of what you wrote about in ‘Enchanted April’ and other acation spots you have visited and written about.
Musa Muhammad <[email protected]>

Re: My abode of peace
Beyond the habitual human joy over acquisition of what the heart desires, the piece “My abode of peace” brought to fore two important realities of life. The first is how useless a house becomes, however big and beautiful it is, if the occupants fail to live with each other affectionately and peacefully. Certainly, a good spouse is the best thing life can offer. The second affirms the vanity of world and all therein. What shall it benefit a man to live a temporary life of joy here only to miss the eternal peace in the life of the hereafter? May we be blessed with the true abode of unending peace, amin.
Dr. Marzuq Abubakar Ungogo, Kano State <[email protected]>

Worried about your silence
Assalam alaikum. I’ve been reading your diary since I was in JSS3 way back in 2001. These days (June-July 2015) the diary is silent and it has become worrisome.
Shafiq Saleh <[email protected]>

Dear writer…
Dear writer, I was intrigued when a friend sent me a passage from your column, Al-Bint’s diary which dated back to when Grandma was around. I have been trying to read your other diary entries online but couldn’t access them. Kindly tell me how I can have access to your diary to read. And I would also like to have the recipe for Sharbar muluk. Thanks.
[email protected]

Missing the ‘good old days’
Assalamu alaikum, I am an ardent reader of your diary from inception. I just want to plead with you to, once in a while, do a throw-back to the earlier editions when Grandma was alive. The other day I was telling my friends about a drink for the kings and got overwhelmed by the nostalgic feeling of your detailing the joys and travails of marriage. It is by far better than the next generation. May Allah grant you your heart’s desires, including having Tahir at your beck and call, amin. Stay blessed. Yours, Hussaina.
[email protected]

Re: Ahead of the Aayatul Kubra
Inna lillahi wa inna ilaihi raji’un. This is what a Muslim should say when confronted with a calamity and to my knowledge, this is one of the biggest calamities befalling on the Ummah. Alhamdulillah for this enlightenment Anti Bint Jazakillah khairan. I don’t know whether the so-called Imam has any place in Islam or if he was ever a Muslim but if he is as he claims then he must repent to Allah SWT for criticizing the Qur’an and the Prophets of Allah. With my little knowledge of the Qur’an, I know of so many verses that emphatically tell us about sodomy and its place in Islam. For example; Allah says in the glorious Qur’an 7: 80-81 “And (remember) Loot (Lot), when he said to his people: ‘Do you commit the worst sin such as none preceding you has committed in the ‘Aalameen (world of both mankind and jinn)? Verily, you practise your lusts on men instead of women. Nay, but you are a people transgressing beyond bounds (by committing great sins).’” Similarly, many ahadith of our beloved Prophet SAW have described homosexuality as a great fitnah  to the Ummah. Example of such is a Hadith from Jaabir (may Allaah be pleased with him): “The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: ‘There is nothing I fear for my ummah more than the deed of the people of Loot.’” (Narrated by al-Tirmidhi, 1457 and In Maajah, 2563). With this few quotations from the Qur’an and Sunnah, I believe we know where to place this so-called gay Imam. I think the steps you prescribed in the diary are what we really need to take, especially at a time like this. I pray that Almighty Allah SWT will continue to guide us to the right path and may He SWT help us to overcome our temptations, ameen.
Rabiata Garga <[email protected]

Al-Bint is MIA
Assalamu alaikum. I am an addicted reader of your column and I enjoy reading every single one or re-reading them all over again! But I’ve noticed your last write up was June 20th and I and other readers are wondering why the long silence and eagerly looking forward to your next diary! What is happening? Ma’assalam!
Naima <[email protected]>

Please come back!
I am a dedicated fan of your column. For the past five weeks you have starved us of our weekly dose of entertainment and education concerning realities of life which is contained in your column. I hope all is well. At first I thought you took time off for the month of Ramadan but Ramadan is now over. Please come back! Thank you.
Dr. Fatimah Mohammed, Lagos <[email protected]>

Appreciation
This is just to express my sincere appreciation for the good work you have been doing over the years through your column. I’ve been an ardent reader since I discovered it years ago and the urge has been very strong in me to send you even just a word to appreciate this jihad you have embarked upon, but I wasn’t able to, until now. May Almighty Allah’s Mercy form an enclosure over your life, and may He give you all the good things in this life and make your hereafter a better and enviable one. Ma’assalam.
Hassan Zubairu <[email protected]>

Alhamdulillah!
 To have ‘Al-Bints Diary’ back. Hard-luck on the accident you suffered. May Almighty Allah make the pains an expiation for your wrongs and prevent a future re-occurrence, amin. While my family and I look forward to reading more thought-provoking and inspiring columns from you, Allah ya kara basira!
Mashood Ahmed <[email protected]>

P.S All questions and requests made in the above letters have been responded to through individual replies. Thank you.
– Al-Bint.