Change A Light
Posted on April 13th, 2008 by Tariq Nelson
The following was sent by the ADAMS community. I encourage everyone to join the Green Masjid effort to save energy and resources
As part of the Green Masjid Initiative, ADAMS Center has made a commitment to do our part to save energy and help fight global warming. With your help, we can do even more. Be part of our team and pledge to make your next light bulb or fixture one that’s earned the government’s ENERGY STARFiled under: Practical Solutions
Green Masjid Effort…
An initiative to have environmentally sound masjids….
BismillaharRahmanirRahim
as-salaamu ‘alaikum. It is because of what is being shown in this video that I now only buy milk, eggs and meat from the very place that my own sweat or the sweat of people who mean a great deal to me falls. I am looking to simplify life for myself by returning to a more rural lifestyle.
Perhaps not all at once, I mean, I still live in NYC, but slowly, step by step I am working my way toward country living, growing my own fruits and vegetables and raising my own animals. Remember the Holy Prophet (may Peace and Blessings be upon him) said,
That is the goal… completely attainable… Allahu a’alam… but its my intention.
-Saifuddin
A couple of weeks ago, my family and I drove down to my mother’s hometown of Lagrange, Georgia. We was riding around it at spots we would go to( some in this case no longer exists). We went to my late grandmother’s home( my uncle now has her home) and looked in her backyard. The garden that she cherished so much is now a thing of the past. As kids, I remembered my grandmother serving us an “organic” dinner. Everything was natural, the meat, the veggies, the rolls were a result of her hands. Then we drove to my late aunts home, more memories. I can still see my aunt preparing the meat, that she raised, along with her veggie gardens and her fruit trees.
At there homes we lived the old-fashioned way. We took baths in foot tubs. My grandmother didn’t drive so we walked to the store many days. At the time there were one light at the time/ Otherwise, she relied on good ol candlelights. No washing machine. Either is was Mrs. Ellie’s house to do it or we did with the washboard. In the old days my grandmother struggled, but in her latter years, she was in good shape. Some of my family thought that she should get these items and move out( she lived in a simple three room small house). Oh, she had the money to do so, but the exception of getting a new tub, she didn’t get too modern. She was at peace with her way of living and frankly, so did we. She lived in that duplex since my uncle was a baby. He’s 65.
Even though I’m from the outskirts of the city and was raised around more modern things, I have never forgotten grandma’s place and her way of living. Even though we have modern stuff. I do not use a lot of electricity( i don’t watch a lot of TV) and we’ve been using fluorescent lights for almost year.
Not long ago I was telling some of my friends about this. They think that it’s being behind the times. Initially, I will admit that it was a bit of adjustment for us, but from some strange reasons,we enjoyed it. Even in 2008, if any of us want to go the down district or any store, we don’t drive there, we use bikes or our feet to get there. Now, I look at her hometown. It’s still nice and I enjoy, but I can tell it’s not the same place. It’s getting big as whole county has 70,000 living in it. In one way I like growth , but in another I despise it. green space is becoming a thing of the past as there are more industrial and other business calling this place home. and of course getting good food , vegetables and fruits is very hard to get as they are putting poisons in them.
Walaikum salaam
I’m signing up. I just changed six lights to energy efficient bulbs and I’m already banning plastic bags in my home. Now if I can just find a recycling center….