Saudi Airlines domestic flights take much pride in adhering to the policy of segregation between the sexes. Unrelated males and females are usually separated from each other and usually before the flight t
akes off there is a lot of reshuffling and rearrangement of seats. A few days ago whist on a flight to Medinatul Munawwara I was initially allocated a window seat. However, the seat next to me was allocated to a Saudi gentleman who naturally refused to sit beside me. The air hostess then asked me politely to change my seat and moved me a few rows forward in between two middle aged Arabic speaking women.Initially, there was complete silence between us until Umm Zubeida's phone rang. She was talking to her son for almost fifteen minutes and showered him with prayers and words of kindness."May Allah grant you success, May Allah be with you, May Allah grant you a ling life with good health my boy.", she said. When her conversation ended, the lady on my left, turned towards Umm Zubeida and complimented her on the beautiful prayer she made for her son.She then introduced herself as Umm Suad.She is a middle aged woman born in Jordan but now resides in Chicago with her eldest son. She was quite excited to inform us that she had recently acquired American citizenship.Umm Suad's younger son resides in Riyadh.She also has a daughter who resides in Jeddah. She is married to a Saudi gentleman. Being widowed for many years, Umm Suad explained to us that she had chosen to dedicate her life to her children and grand children and hence spends a few months during the year in the Kingdom and the rest of the year in the USA although she considers America as her home and prefers living there..
Umm Zubeida is a 60 year old Saudi woman whose roots go back to Pakistan many decades ago.She made mention that her great, great grandmother was of Pakistani origin.I was so impressed to learn that at the age of 60, Umm Zubeida was memorizing the Holy Quraan. She has thus far completed 15 chapters of the Quraan and has another 15 more chapters to go. Her biggest dream is to complete the entire Quraan before leaving this world. Umm Suad complimented her on her soft and pleasant personality to which she replied," If you have the love of the Quraan inside your heart, then Allah softens your heart and fills it with all things good.You become mindful of other people.You learn to become good and kind towards others. This is the miracle of the Quraan." Whilst conversing with Umm Zubeida she further mentioned that she had lost her sister Noura during the month of Ramadhaan in a motor vehicle accident near Makka. Noura resided with her husband and kids in the picturesque city of Taif, approximately a one hour drive from Makkah. Whilst I sympathized with Umm Zubeida on her loss, she told me that she views her sisters death as a tremendous blessing from God Almighty as she had passed away on the 21st night of Ramadhaan where almost two million people were present to perform her burial prayers. She is also buried in a city where many of the Great scholars and pioneers of Islam are buried.
Both women were under the impression that I was a Saudi woman as I was fully veiled and conversed with them in Arabic. It was only when I picked up a copy of the Saudi Gazette, a newspaper written in English that both women quickly enquired about my roots, culture and nationality.
Time flies when you having fun and thus having Umm Zubeida and Umm Suad as company, the one hour plane ride felt like half an hour.The last fifteen minutes of the plane ride was a hair raising experience due to the turbulence.The kids on board started crying. A Saudi gentleman seated one row away from us started throwing up.I started feeling nauseous due to the shaky motion of the plane and there was butterflies in my tummy.With my right hand grasping Umm Zubeida's hand tightly and my left hand squeezing Umm Suads hand, both women started blowing on me after reciting verses of the Quraan.When the plane eventually landed, I breathed a huge sigh of relief. Everyone was impatient to disembark. Finally the doors opened. I held on to Umm Zubeidas hand and assisted her down the flight of stairs as she had a slight arthritis problem in her hip. We hopped onto the shuttle that made its way to the airport terminal building. After collecting Umm Zubeida's luggage, we both exchanged mobile numbers. She gave me a big hug and planted a few kisses on my cheeks and then insisted that I grace the henna and wedding ceremony at her brothers home. We departed ways after leaving her in the company of her handsome nephew who was delighted to meet his aunt.
The hotel driver waited for me quite patiently just outside the arrivals building. He was a middle aged Bangladeshi man. As we made our way to the hotel situated near the Prophet's mosque, I couldn't help but ponder about the many facets of life. Ever so often we come across people we take an instant liking to, people who are kind, caring, courteous and polite;people who have wisdom and love inside their hearts. Unfortunately, many a times we come across people who are rude, aggressive, arrogant, people who find bliss and happiness in naming and shaming another human being rather than guiding and educating.As our vehicle came to an abrupt halt at the entrance of the hotel, I looked out of the window with a grin on my face and thought to myself, despite having the worst plane ride ever, I was truly blessed to have been in the company of two incredible women...A ride well worth it indeed!!!
