The Autobiography of Saleem Solaiman

Ramadhan and Eid Ul Fitr 2000 ( 1421)

Memories of Saleem Solaiman 1986 - 2000
By: his cousin at - Age 10

My Eid was sad and happy at the same time. The sad part about my Eid was my cousin Saleem Solaiman, he is only 14 years old and suffered with the disease of Cancer. Saleem was very sick.

Many evening just after I come home from school we would go see him at the Sick Kids Hospital in Downtown. Sometimes I do not want to see Saleem due to how sick he was. My Uncle who is Saleem's father spent many days of Ramadhan at my house. Every morning we would all wake up for Suhoor and start our fast. Every morning when we would all pray Salatul- Fajr, we would make long Duas for Saleem's recovery (Shifa). My Uncle (Saleem's father) and I got very close during the month of Ramadhan because of the time he spent at my house. Every weekend Saleem's younger two brothers, Musa Ansari and Abdul Qadir visited my house and we played a lot.

Everyday during Ramadhan at Iftar time my mom would make Samosa, potato balls and chana. We would have all these snacks with dates and tea. I would wait patiently and listen to the Islamic radio program for the Adhan and time to break my fast. You would not believe how delicious these foods tasted after a day of fasting. At Maghrib time again we would also make long Duas for Saleem's recovery (Shifa). On the last day of Ramadhan my two Uncles took me to buy gifts for my self and my two other cousins. I got an Electronic Science Laboratory Kit which can make almost anything such as a radio, burglar alarm, electronic game, computer, ohmmeter, telegraph, rain detector, amazing sound affects and much more. I also learned about transistors, transformers, diodes, capacitors and much more. This is educational fun. Musa got a radio-controlled car and Abdul Qadir got a radio-controlled airplane.

On the day of Eid Ul Fitr (1st. Shawaal) I woke up very early, prayed Salatul-Fajr. Then we had breakfast and then drove to Oakville to pray Waajibul Eid (The Eid Prayer) at Masjid Noor Ul Haraam. The Eid Prayer consists of two rakaats and it is offered in a congregation. I met my cousins Musa and Abdul Qadir at Masjid Noor Ul Haraam. This was my first Eid prayer without Saleem and this made me feel very sad. We did not do much celebration on Eid day because Saleem was very sick in the hospital.

Since Eid day Saleem started to feel more sick. I think Allah wanted Saleem to be with us at Eid day. On Saturday 30th. December (4th.Shawaal) I visited Saleem in the hospital for the last time and said my last words to him. Saleem was not able to respond at this stage. My uncle told me to feed Saleem some drops of Zam Zam water. This made me feel more than just a cousin to Saleem. On Sunday morning December 31st. (5th. Shawaal) at 3:45 am Saleem past away peacefully with my Nana (my mothers father) at his side. At the time my Nana was reciting Darood Sharif next to Saleem.

Saleem's body was then taken to the Jami Mosque in Toronto where his body was kept for one day and one night. On January 1, 2001 (6th. Shawaal) Saleem's body was then taken to Masjid Noor Ul Haram in Oakville Ontario for Salatul Janaza. This is where I saw Saleem for the last time. When I looked at Saleem's face he was smiling. Saleem's Janaza was so big I cannot to explain the atmosphere. I think there were at least 1,000 people there due to the memories and love for Saleem. After Salatul Janaza Saleem's body was than taken to the Kabristan (Urdu-burial ground). The Kabristan is a 15 minutes walk from the Masjid Noor-Ul-Haram. Nearly everyone who prayed Salatul Janaza walked to the Kabristan. I found this very interesting because I think people usually have to go by car.

All my life I remembered Saleem being with his brothers and I. Saleem played a lot with me since I was born. Saleem was very knowledgeable in Islam. I always remember Saleem praying Salah. Many times Saleem his brothers and I would pray together and Saleem would lead. He was also very intelligent academically. When he was in grade 7 he got the highest score for Mathematics for the Canadian Mathematics Competition, Sponsored by the University of Waterloo.

I have lots of memories of Saleem. My last happy memory of Saleem was at Masjid Noor Ul Haram about 5 months ago when he took his dad's van and told all his friends and cousins to go into the van. Saleem then sat into the driver's seat and told me to sit beside him. He then drove the van around the parking lot of Masjid Noor Ul Haram for 15 minutes. At the time the grown ups were very upset with us but now this is such a happy memory.

Saleem always used to make me laugh with his funny jokes. I really miss Saleem very much. I hope he went straight to Jannah. I hope his life in Jannah is a lot better than the suffering he went through on Earth.

I think Allah sent Saleem for a special reason. Maybe, it is to teach us all what life and death is all about. Allah wanted to show us that a person could die at any age. I think Allah loves Saleem so much he had to be with him. It was very sad to see a 14 year old who committed no sins suffering so much. I love Saleem very much.