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Salma Hasan Ali
Writing
Writing and Speaking
BenchTalk
Personal Essays
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humanKIND
Consulting
30 Days
Journal
Book
About 30 Days
30 Days x 10 Years
30 Reflections
30 Wisdoms From Elders
30 Refugee Stories
30 Days in Review
30 Inspiring Stories
30 Traditions
30 Duas
30 Deeds
30 Gratitudes
Blog
KindWorks
About
About
Press
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Folder: 30 Days
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About 30 Days
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30 Days in Review
30 Inspiring Stories
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30 Duas
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Show, not tell
30 Wisdoms From Elders 6/11/19 30 Wisdoms From Elders 6/11/19

Show, not tell

Dr. Khala shared something that she learned from her father (my Nana) - that you’re more likely to do something by example than by someone telling you to do it.

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All in the Family
30 Wisdoms From Elders 6/9/19 30 Wisdoms From Elders 6/9/19

All in the Family

One of the biggest blessings of living in the DC area is that it’s a ‘hub’ for our family; more than 30 family members live here. Whenever we get together, it’s a celebration

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Gratitude
30 Wisdoms From Elders 6/2/19 30 Wisdoms From Elders 6/2/19

Gratitude

“I experienced my family’s many ups and downs throughout my childhood,” Munia apa says. “Through it all Abba always reminded me to be grateful for what we have.”

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Of grandmothers and joy
30 Wisdoms From Elders 6/2/19 30 Wisdoms From Elders 6/2/19

Of grandmothers and joy

Eboo has been a supporter of the 30 days 30 deeds blog from the first year it started, in 2011; that year he tweeted that it was his ‘personal favorite Ramadan website

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Redefining Success
30 Wisdoms From Elders 6/1/19 30 Wisdoms From Elders 6/1/19

Redefining Success

Tarek Elgawhary remembers a wisdom about success and failure that his teacher Dr. Ali Gomaa taught him when he was studying at Al-Azhar University.

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Speak gently with yourself
30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/29/19 30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/29/19

Speak gently with yourself

“I’ve always been hard on myself, about my career or not reading enough or going to bed too late, I give myself such a hard time about so many things,

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Remember this
30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/28/19 30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/28/19

Remember this

Mami Jaan was 16 years old when she was selected for the Girl Scout Roundup, from Pakistan, and invited to attend the international gathering in Denver, CO.

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The world as art
30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/27/19 30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/27/19

The world as art

During the 30-minute car ride from my father’s Janaza (funeral) prayer to the cemetery where he would be buried, Saanya was busy writing in her journal in the back seat of the car.

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Personal brand
30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/25/19 30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/25/19

Personal brand

Zayd and I were running errands to set up for a pre-prom photo opp with his friends at our house yesterday evening; just the two of us in the car, and no possible escape

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Don't let them down
30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/24/19 30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/24/19

Don't let them down

Principal Akbar Cook of West Side High in Newark, NJ is on a roll. Last year, he installed five washing machines and dryers in his school as a way to deal with faulty attendance

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Imagine you can
30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/22/19 30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/22/19

Imagine you can

Muddassar’s father died when he was 13 years old. “I don’t have that many clear memories of him,” Muddassar tells me at first, "such a traumatic loss messes with your memories

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Making kindness a habit
30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/20/19 30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/20/19

Making kindness a habit

Kazi Mannan grew up in poverty in a small village in Pakistan, without electricity or running water, one of ten kids. “Even when we were going through extreme poverty

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Be strong and study
30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/18/19 30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/18/19

Be strong and study

“We had a beautiful life, beautiful house, beautiful big family,” Noor tells me about her life in Syria. She, her husband and four daughters left Damascus in 2012 soon

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More than half good
30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/17/19 30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/17/19

More than half good

Shahidul and I were driving to the Al Jazeera studio for his interview with Mehdi Hasan, and it was the first quiet moment he’d had in his whirlwind 48 hour stop in Washington DC a month ago.

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Share Cake
30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/15/19 30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/15/19

Share Cake

My father loved dessert, anything sweet and delicious brought him so much pleasure; I inherited his sweet tooth. Growing up, whenever there was an office birthday

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Continue to Serve
30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/14/19 30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/14/19

Continue to Serve

Imam Magid was 17 when he was asked to join a group of people who were providing food at a refugee camp in Darfur, during the drought in Sudan in the mid-1980s.

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Parro, Parro (Study, study)
30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/13/19 30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/13/19

Parro, Parro (Study, study)

Maman, my mother in law, has always shared such fond memories of her Nanna, her grandmother, so when I asked her to share a wisdom from an elder, I wasn’t surprised that it was from her Nanna

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No Job Too Small
30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/10/19 30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/10/19

No Job Too Small

When Kokun Chacha first came to America from India, at age 24, he started working in the kitchen of a restaurant to earn some money; it was the only way he could afford

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Jannat Mein Jharu (Sweep Heaven Clean)
30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/9/19 30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/9/19

Jannat Mein Jharu (Sweep Heaven Clean)

My niece Mariya, who’s visiting from Calcutta, was making kheer as she was telling me this story. “When we were younger, Mummy and Amma (grandmother)

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Sach Bolo (Speak the truth)
30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/8/19 30 Wisdoms From Elders 5/8/19

Sach Bolo (Speak the truth)

Zeshan B remembers coming back from Sunday School one day and his grandmother, who was visiting, asked him what he had learned. He told her whatever lesson they had covered about the Quran and Islamic teachings.

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