Hearts That Remember by Sa'diyya Nesar

Sa’diyya Nesar

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: Faizah Hamid : Rahmah Pauzi : Nur Izzaidah Abdull Zubi Zahidah Azman : Nur Izzaidah Abdull Zubi : Nur’Ain Mamat : Aisyah Nasruddin : Sa’diyya Nesar : Husna Ab Rahman : Husna Ab Rahman Asnawi Hassim : Haziq Razack

HEARTS THAT REMEMBER First Print May 2023

ISBN 978-967-2459-77-4

Printed by : Mihas Grafik Sdn Bhd No 8, Jalan SR 4/18, Taman Serdang Raya, 43300 Seri Kembangan, Selangor.

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Chapter 1:

The Battle With Embracing Authentic Beauty We Are Harsh Towards Ourselves Imagine finding ourselves hearing harshness from our niece towards herself: “I don’t feel pretty. I am not as fair as they are.”

“The other girls have sharp jawlines, but my face is round.”

“I will never look as pretty as them even if I starve.”

How would we feel when hearing such words from our niece?

Have these thoughts similarly crossed our minds where we compare how we look with others?

If we feel it is not okay for our niece to say harsh words towards herself, why then would we allow ourselves to do so?

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This treatment towards ourselves is perhaps influenced by society’s standards. These standards have become our cause. This is our self-made purpose, that the image that we see before the mirror feels less real with time.

The conversations that we are having with people are becoming less deep. The beauties that were once valued as a child end up less beautiful. We feel like a completely different person from who we once were. Our emotions– our feelings–are even harder to recognise. We have tucked them inside our hearts for too long by deeming them the roots of our imperfections.

Our hearts lay buried during life’s battles. It has been layered under this superficial surface, making it harder for our hearts to access and see authentic beauty.

Authentic beauty is the original state of something that is cherished due to it possessing natural beauty. It is an unfiltered and unaltered version of something. This could be the Earth’s natural environment or our own makeupfree and cosmetic-free faces.

Authentic beauty can also be the sharing of life experiences in a real and sincere way. One can be authentically beautiful by how they naturally conduct themselves. Authentic beauty is, therefore, beauty beneath the superficial surface. It is beauty at its essence instead of something made to be beautiful.

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Authentic beauty from the trees to our freshly washed faces contains signs from Allah (SWT). The world around us and how our bodies function are signs from Allah (SWT) since He, as Al-Khaaliq, created everything. We are designed to have deep authentic conversations because our designed purpose is to remember Him. Our hearts are meant to remember, but this can only happen once we remove that superficial surface that has led them to be buried in the first place. We can remove this superficial surface by turning to and remembering the One that is the most authentic and real–our Creator.

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Al-Khaaliq (The Creator, The Maker)

The mirror before you carries signs.

Your body is part of a greater design.

It holds a heart beneath a cage.

This never meant to trap or constrain.

It was designed to protect from harm.

And also meant to free up palms.

Look down at your hands below.

Clutch them for water to flow.

Capture the greatness of its design.

It’s time to call out to the most Divine.

Al-Khaaliq, I’m static.

I’m stunned over the details of my veins.

The way they connect with our hearts, not brains.

The way they bring colour and show signs of life.

I want to remember this at night.

Sometimes the dark makes it hard to see.

The way You’ve shaped my face and knees.

I sometimes reach to check the time.

My fingertip opens my phone with a chime.

This is when my heart surrenders again.

And so I praise You with my mouth and pen.

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