My uncle and I frequently had discussions about religion and politics, and I would frequently roll my eyes and say, “There’s my uncle complaining again.” Yet, as I grew older and learned more about the world around me — especially after 9/11 — I came to realise how correct he really was. I found myself agreeing with him so much more than before. I am going to miss our conversations. I can’t believe he is gone.

My uncle was pretty ill, even at the tender age of 60. He had a very frail heart, and he had a pacemaker inserted to help it beat. He was also on blood thinners to prevent a clot from forming in his bulging, weak heart. Still, I never thought he would die. He had managed with his weaknesses for so long. I had believed that he would always be around. But taking life for granted was the big mistake I made.

This goes to show how truly fragile life is. One minute, you can be alive and well. The next minute you can die, never to return to earth again. My uncle had passed away in Egypt, and there are times when I thought, “If he had been in the United States, he would have lived.” But I quickly remind myself that this is not true.

God is the One who gives life, and He takes it away. God had willed him to die in Egypt, and there is nothing I, or anyone else for that matter, could do about it. It is exactly as the Quran says: “But never does God grant a delay to a human being when his term has come, and God is fully aware of all that you do.” — Beliefnet.com