Let Me Discover Myself By Maryam Mohamed Ismail Year 8

Let Me Discover Myself

By Maryam Mohamed Ismail  Year 8

Maryam is my name

And I’ve been called that since the first day

That’s what my parents named me

Ever since I was a baby

Years passed by

And time flew aside

As I started school that day

Here I was still called by my name

But a student was what they say

And then came school’s culture week

Where we shared the language that we speak

We learnt about Modern Greek

And I was part of the Asian streak

And then as I grew up

It was the British Government

Who called me the British Empowerment

And now that was the new acknowledgement

Now came the issue in Secondary School

Where the school folks were those who rule

Am I smart, or short, or am I cool

But I cannot let them ridicule

And some may just class me as a girl of 12 years of age

Or close to a teenage

Studying in year eight

With many school mates

So Maryam was what they first used

And then to a student it moved

To crazy names that folks used

But am I British or Asian? Coz I’m confused

“So who are you?” You may ask

But that is the unsolved task

Because what you see on the outside

It’s simply just a mask

So what I believe

Is that all these names will come to an end one day

And will not forever stay

As Maryam is simply just my name

Like the paint on a window frame

And without it everything will still be the same

And I wouldn’t have been British

If I were born in another village

And I wouldn’t have been Asian

If I were born to different Parents

I could have been Polish, Syrian or American

Therefore this is just due to inheritance

And what they say at school

Is obviously not true

As one day they may call you a toadstool, and the next they call you cool

You cannot let them overrule

So if a student is what depends

Am I still a student in the weekend

But what about when I do not attend?

Not as a student is my life most spent

And as for my age,

It’s always gonna change

As every year comes my birthday

And I definitely can’t be identified this way

So now I know that all these identities only last for a while

Or it’s due to your lifestyle

You may be someone and someone else meanwhile

These are just to fill your profile

So my true self is something which will last forever

Something that would still be there if I were born to whomever

Something that wouldn’t change if I lived wherever

Something which isn’t just for pleasure,

but something which is there to treasure

And the Prophet (saw) says in a Hadith,

That,” The one who finds themselves, Finds there lord”

And now I fell empty and numb

Confused and dumb

My soul screaming out to me

Because it’s true self is what it wants to see

And that’s also what I want to believe

I’ll search for myself everywhere

High up in the mountains and elsewhere

In between all the branches and under all the leaves

If success is what it means

And now I’ve finally discovered who I really am

I found it in the middle of a traffic jam

Trying it’s best to hold tight on the rope

Because dying with me was its ultimate hope

This identity was simply my own choice

Wherever I am this will always be my voice

Whatever be my age

This will never, ever change

This identity wasn’t given to me by somebody else

Nor was it due to inheritance

It’s not something temporary

But something entirely necessary

So now I’ve found myself, and I’ve found my lord

And to please him is all I can afford

I only submit to him and to others my soul is not sold

And I’m not the slave of trends and money, but my ultimate goal is to please my lord

My entire life is a challenging task

And before every action I have to ask

What is the consequence of this task?

And will God be happy with this task?

My Lord is Allah

And my Eternal home is Jannah

My enemy is Shaytan

And this world is not where I truly belong

My Actions should not be sins

And my ultimate goal is to please him

Finally...

I am part of a 1.6 billion membered family,

And I am proud to say

That I have discovered myself as a MUSLIM

 Gold Winner (First)

NCC

2016