It was one of the strangest days. My husband called, telling me he’s on his way home and to prepare a room for him to sleep that night. Returning from one of his travels, I couldn’t understand the point.
Getting home at 1:00am, he asked us not come near to him. He went directly to his room and started to explain.
Some people who were with him abroad found they had Covid-19 virus symptoms while checking in at the airport. So he had to immediately check his situation too, before interacting with me and our children.
Early morning he made an appointment and went to the hospital. The results were positive! He had caught COVID-19.
This news made my head spin. Where will he be quarantined? How do I deal with this contagious virus?
A Guest in Your Own Home
After the initial flood of anxieties, I decided to take a positive attitude. After all, it was a reality now. We have a life-threatening, highly-contagious illness in our house. And instead of thinking of it as a nightmare, I embraced it as a guest of Allah.
I knew that through it, Allah will purify my husband and expiate his sins.
I was a bit exhausted trying to balance between nursing my ill husband, cleaning, making food, caring for children, work… but amazingly all went well. As I asked, Allah gave me the strength and power to handle it all.
Gratefulness
My husband was a rightfully worried about his illness. He is the kind of person who doesn’t like to stay at home, so the quarantine had already made him feel uneasy. I told him instead of cursing and blaming Allah with things like “Why me?” Think about “Why not me?” We are human, and this life is a test. We can expect every kind of trial.
I knew that this was a test for us. Allah was testing us to see if we are grateful or ungrateful. And if we are grateful, then it’s for our own good.
We should be grateful at all times: tough or easy. This is the trait of the believer. Accepting the illness, being patient and grateful for it helped him overcome the trauma.
Not the End of Life
From hearing horror stories about infected people who died, I made sure in my mind that nothing happens except by the will of Allah. He decreed for us to die either with this virus or without it. This minimized my anxiety and made me firmly trust in His plan.
Two weeks after the test, my husband totally recovered and we returned to our normal life routine.
Whatever happens to us is decreed. Embrace your test and trust in God’s plan.
I hope these reflections help you in your tough times.