Name : Amin

Age : 7

Siblings : Haseeb (18)

Favorite Color : Blue

Salaam! I’m Amin! It’s awesome to meet you! My friend Asad and I, we’re racing, and the first one who can meet a hundred new people wins. I’m winning so far. But I’m good at making friends. Asad is better at other things. My big brother, Haseeb, is the best. He’s friends with everyone. He also plays soccer at college and he’s gotten to lead prayer at the masjid like 50 million times. I think he might be an Imam one day. I got to call the adhan for Jumu’ah one time. It was the best thing ever! People say I’m a lot like Haseeb, but really, I’m not. I don’t think Haseeb ever gets sad or feels lousy and stuff like I do sometimes. I know a secret, though, to never giving up. Like our Prophet (SAW), I have help from my friends!

Name : Amira

Age : 7

Siblings : none

Favorite Color : Yellow

In the time of the Prophet (SAW), people didn’t have cars or planes or trains, or any way of getting around except by walking. Or by riding on adorable camels, which doesn’t sound so bad in a way, but must have been pretty tiring. So when someone new arrived, people would say, “ahlan wa sahlan,” which means “family and flat land,” because that’s what a tired traveler would want most of all. Can you think of anything so beautiful? Anyway, ahlan wa sahlan to you! I’m Amira!

Name : Asad

Age : 7

Siblings : Yusra (1)

Favorite Color : Green

As Salaam Alaikum. My name is Asad. Do you like math? If you don’t like it, that’s okay, most people don’t. In fact, a lot of people think I’m sort of a weirdo because I really, really, really like math. But to me, those people are the ones who don’t make any sense, because without math, there would be no science, and without science, we would be in terrible, terrible darkness! We would have no way to understand the beautiful universe Allah (SWT) created! And no one wants that! So if I’m a weirdo because I really, really, really like math, then maybe we need a few weirdos around, right?

Name : Shireen

Age : 7

Siblings : Jafar (7)

Favorite Color : Red

Salaam! Call me Shireen. Wanna learn to fly? One of my favorite writers, Fatema Mernissi, says there are two steps to growing wings. First, you have to feel stuck. That’s easy, since we all feel stuck, at least sometimes. Then, you have to believe you can be un-stuck. So, what do you say? Wanna fly? I know, I know, it seems too easy. I like the idea of making a big change in a snap, but the truth is that’s not how it works. Big changes take a long, long, long while. But the changes that are the hardest and take the longest to make, they’re the most important ones.