Week 1: Construction Has Started

On the 28/02/2011 the permits for the plans were approved and the construction of our home has finally begun. At the moment, it's just a hole in the ground with a fence around it.

When I first spotted the plot, it was just empty fields with those 'For Sale' boards planted in the ground. Some of our neighbors have their houses further along than we do, so by the time we move in there should be a well-populated neighborhood around us. These will be our neighbors to the right of us (nothing on the left just yet)

Directly opposite the road construction has also begun for a few other homes.

The next stage is going to be laying down the concrete base and then the timber frame can go up. We're expecting the house to be done around the start of July, which would be good timing since Liyana is going to make her first trip to Melbourne then. It won't be livable just yet, we still need to put the timber flooring in, but at least she gets to pick some of the final fittings by seeing them physically instead of in photos. I think she'd like that.

A Night with Friends and Hippies

Ahmed came back from his trip to Egypt, safe and in high spirits. He was very happy and very proud of what has been achieved so far in Egypt. He also knows that the hard work starts now.

On the same day he returned from Egypt, he was the featured speaker at a public meeting held by the Socialist Alliance. Ahmed is the national president of FAMSY (Federation of Australian and Muslim Students). FAMSY sometimes works together with the Socialist Alliance on various social justice issues, mainly because the group has a good network of contacts.

This was my first time showing up to one of their meetings, and it wasn't really what I expected. I didn't think hippies were still around, but that's exactly what they were. They were so very stereotypically left that I felt very right wing.

Ahmed delivered an excellent telling of his experience in Tahrir Sqaure, unfortunately none of us had the presence of mind to record his speech. He was extremely proud and happy with what was achieved. He had the belief that to really change Egypt from a dictatorship to a truly free country meant that the people themselves had to change. This has been how he has worked against the regime, by working with people to improve themselves, and thus improving their own lot in life instead of waiting for Mubarak to say it is ok to change. He also stated that getting Mubarak out was only the beginning. This is what the revolutionists were asking for. Not just to have Mubarak removed, but to remove the entire corrupt regime he had built around him to maintain his control for so long.

He's been uploading the pictures he took in Tahrir Square over the last few days, I'll share a few of those soon too.

After Ahmed spoke we had to endure a speech from a Socialist Alliance and Lebanese Communist Party representatives, who had somehow found a way that socialism and communism were the driving force behind the revolutions, and that capitalism was the problem. What you'd expect from hippies. When question time came, each question was delivered with a mini-speech, and if the answer was not what the hippie expected, it was clear he didn't like it. Ahmed was the receiver of most of the questions, and his approach was more pragmatic than idealogical. While a problem was identified, he also had one or two ways to move forward.

When the meeting was over, we all caught up for a little bit. We hadn't seen much of each other over the previous few weeks, so it was a good catch up. The time for evening prayer had also arrived, so we prayed on the grass outside the State Library. When we were finished, a woman came up to us and asked us 'What do you say when you pray?'. We tried to answer her question as well as we could. We didn't mock her and get offended. When she was satisfied with the reply, she went back to her friends. One of her friends came back a few minutes later with ice creams for us.

It's small things like this that really show the attitude of Australians in general. It's not the image splashed all over the media of racists rednecks. They're curious about these 'new' people in their midst that they are largely ignorant of. People fear what they are ignorant of. It's up to us as Muslims to make them aware of us. Small interactions like this make a big difference in the end.

Egypt Revolution

I have quite a few Egyptian friends. They're either here from Egypt, were born in Egypt but raised in Australia, or they're half-Egyptian. They're all taking part in the demonstrations here, and they're not just attending, they're organising the protests.

They've even made the news. Ahmed Huwait (purple shirt and sunglasses) is my study circle leader and appears in this SBS News coverage of the event in Melbourne. He's an Egyptian citizen in Australia on a work visa

Another study circle member is Mohamad Elmasri. His parents are Egyptian and he was raised in Australia. His wife was born and raised in Egypt though. His family name, Elmasri, means 'The Egyptian' in Arabic. This is him speaking at the rally in Melbourne:

Both of them are around 30 years old, which means the only Egypt they know is the one under Hosni Mubarak. They've always talked fondly of the people of Egypt but never spoken fondly of the government. Insyallah, they'll get their country back from the dictator, and then maybe they can build a country that they can be prouder of.

UPDATE: On Friday night (04/02/2011) Ahmed Huwait flew back to Egypt. He is now currently in Tahrir Square with his fellow revolutionists as they prefer to be called. His wife and 2 young children are still in Australia.

Most people ask 'why?'. If you need to ask, then you will never really understand. I think the rest of us left behind here are a bit envious of him now.

We're all hoping he comes back in one piece, but it's quite clear that whenever he leaves Egypt, he leaves a piece of his heart behind.

Sunset photo

I thought I'd share this photo I took today. I went out this evening for a cycle through the market garden farms and the coast. This photo was taken about 15km from my house. Hard to believe a city of 4 million is just around the corner from here.

Home Sweet Home

Last weekend I attended a marriage course in Melbourne, title 'Home Sweet Home'. It was run by the Al Kauthar Institute and delivered by Sheikh Alaa Elsayed. The aim of the course was to encourage couples to be more proactive in their marriages, rather than wait for problems to occur or the more usual approach, assume 'happily ever after'.

It was a valuable course and I learnt alot. The lessons could be applied to any marriage or preparation for marraige, not just Islamic ones. Islamic sources were used to help reinforce the points being made, since the course was being conducted for Muslims.

The venue was a university lecture theater which was well setup for interaction between the lecturer and the students. The atmosphere was very easy-going, but sensitive issues were given the respect it deserved. Women were encouraged to speak as well, not that they needed much encouragement. Unfortunately, there are some sects of Islam that believe even a womans voice should not be heard since it might seduce men. It was made clear early on that Al Kauthur Institute did not subscribe to this point of view. The only problem was the lecturer. Being Canadian, he had a bit of trouble understanding the Australian accent :P.

This trailer was produced to advertise the course, so it's a good description of what the course is about.

The approach to that they used was different to any other lecture series that I've listened to about marriage. Most take the approach that if you know your rights then you can claim it and all will be well. The approach for the 'Home Sweet Home' course came from the opposite direction. It tells you what your duties are as a husband or wife, because if you do your duty, there will be no need for anyone to claim their rights. It also put a bit more pressure on men to do their part. My sister described it as a more western style of presentation, which suits us living in western countries. It gels with the culture, while remaining true to the religion.

The case studies were interesting and relevant to minority Muslim communities. It allowed some of the knowledge to be put into practice, and also hinted at what the next chapter would be about. A case study for everyone was presented, not a case study for men and a case study for women. This made the differences between the way men and women perceive the same situation clear.

The Q&A sessions were very good. It allowed attendees to clear up issues they had, and also to ask some questions that were not addressed at all. Some were rather serious and sensitive, like one woman asking (anonymously) if she should reveal to her fiance that she has had an abortion previously. Most were the typically direct questions Australians tend to ask, like 'Is it ok to talk dirty while being intimate with your spouse?'

During breaks the instructor made himself available for ppl to ask more personal questions. He had mentioned before about long distance relationships rarely working and that he doesn't recommend them. This got me a little bit worried, but he had also said that it works sometimes, though not often. I went to him during one of these breaks, explained our situation to him and asked if he had any advice for us to make our relationship successful. His advice was to keep the long distance part as short as possible.

At the end of the course I was happy I had found Liyana. Using the course methods, we are highly compatible. We've also discussed many of the topics we should have been discussing before marriage already. When we have these discussions, we also come to a conclusion that is almost the same as their ideal solutions.

I've still got to write an exam to be able to say I passed the course. I've not received the exam date yet. As part of my preparation, I'd like to share the lessons learnt on this blog in a few posts. The best way to learn and remember something is to teach it. Insyallah, we can all teach and learn from each other.

Settled

It's been awhile since I last put a post up. I've been rather busy trying to get things sorted for this year. This was what kept me busy for most of the last quarter:

An empty bit of land for now, that will become our first home. It's expected to be done by May, insyallah.

It kept me busy because it was not a smooth process. Buying the first home is exciting and stressful enough when it all goes well. When things don't go so smooth, the stress part goes up and the exciting part goes down.

The two main issues where that the initial broker over-estimated what the bank would lend me, and then let the contract lapse and become unconditional. Which meant that I could no longer leave the sale due to insufficient finances. If I did, I'd lose my deposit and possibly get charged penalty fees on top of that.

Fortunately, a second broker was able to smooth everything over and the land. My father also helped with a little bit of extra finance. We don't always get along, but those differences disappear when either of us needs help. Now that it's settled, I need to go to the builder to finalise the plans and then they start building.

If I know my father, he'll be going every weekend to have a look at the progress and take photos, which means I'll have a regular update on the progress to share too.

We're looking forward to moving into our first home together. It will be a welcome relief from the trials of Long Distance Relationship.

Happy 2011 everyone!!

We, on Hues of Life, would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year! Never too late to wish you guys that :P

May this new year bring more toe-tickling days, warm snuggly nights, caffeine powered mornings, loads and loads of love and happiness! One can never have too much of these :)

It may not be the 1st of Jan 2011, but go ahead...make a wish. You know you want to ;)