Children's Corner

The reddish glow of sunset
Turning the azure sky—
To a strip of dazzling amber
Had always bewitched my eyes.


The whistling breeze
Seemed to hail Nature’s proceedings
The sombre hues of the setting sun
Reflected in my eyes.


Guess, the poet who has portrayed the nature in these beautiful words. You may say, Wordsworth. Not very wrong, if only description of nature could have been your yardstick. But the stanzas come from a young girl in Kerala to whom the setting sun in the Arabian Sea provides food for thought on a daily basis.


The young poetess Fousiya Yoonus is just about 14 and is studying for her SSLC exam early next year. But she has already three books to her credit. And wait and watch, more may be coming soon. Fousiya is a restless soul. Churning in her mind never stops. Thoughts come to her ceaselessly. And her pen refuses to stop at anything. Flowers, ocean, waves, rocks, forests, pitter-patter of thunderous monsoon over tiled roofs of Kerala houses, set her fertile imagination astir. Off she goes with her pen and the scribble pad to a corner. She emerges with a poem, full of delicate sentiments. As delicate as crystalware.


Fousiya has boundless love for everything the Nature offers. Her thoughts are deep and moving. She ascends to mystic heights to unveil the deep mysteries of universe. Her first collection of poems in Malayalam Puzhayude Sangeetham came in 2003 while she was in 8th standard. Same year, its English version, Through the Open Window was published by Melinda Books in Trivandrum. Next year she went on to publish Buds to Blossoms.


Fousiya aspires to be a civil service officer and is preparing for a career in the top bureaucracy. Daughter of telecom engineer A. Yoonus and Dr. A. Faseela Yoonus, from Trivandrum, Fousiya has bagged awards like Balaratna Award, Young Talent Award and has represented the South Indian states in National Balashree Contest.

Cairo is the capital of Egypt. It is situated in the western bank of river Nile- the longest river in the world- 6690 kilometers in length.


The Romans originally occupied this town and it later became a great city. In 973-974, it acquired the Arabic name Al-Qahira meaning the victorious and in English the name is popularly known as Cairo, following the Arabic name.


At Giza, a place 15 kms, west of Cairo is one of the Seven Wonders of the World, the Great Pyramids. There is another ancient statue, the Sphnix which is a composite creature with a lion’s body and a human head.


Al- Azhar Mosque and University is situated in old Cairo. These date back to 975 A.D and the University is the oldest institution in the Islamic world serving as a light house of knowledge all these years. Arabic is the language spoken here and Islam is the religion of the people. (10% of the population is Coptic Christians). The currency is Egyptian pound of 100 piastres. One pound is around Rs.8 at the present exchange rate.


Both men and women vie with each other in their business enterprises, big and small. In fact women are more active than men. Unlike other Arab countries, expatriates are not many in Cairo.


The total population of Cairo is 22 million. Total population of Egypt is around 72 million. More than 30 per cent of the country’s population live in Cairo. Egypt is primarily a tourist centre buzzing with business activities. It is a metropolis with an ancient


history and a city with a great civilization

Muslim Cabbie Returns Lost Diamonds


He’s a gem of a guy. An honest Brooklyn cab driver answered the prayers of a Canadian jewellery dealer by returning a diamond-stuffed suitcase that had been left in the trunk of his yellow cab. “It’s like a perfect miracle,” said Thierry Delisha, 32, of Montreal. “I am so proud to meet such an honest gentleman. “Hossam Abdala made the sparkling discovery, hours after dropping off Delisha and two other men at LaGuardia Airport for a flight to Canada around 7:15 a.m. In their haste to unload eight pieces of luggage, the men didn’t notice until it was too late that Abdala had driven off with a suitcase loaded with hundreds of thousands of dollars in bridal jewellery. One call later to Crown Ring, the company Delisha owns in Montreal, and Abdala tracked down the grateful diamond dealer, who had stayed in New York hoping for a miracle. “The guy’s lucky,” said Abdala, 30. “Usually, I find cell phones and things like that, but never very heavy bags filled with diamonds. “Delisha and his partners had been in New York for a jewellery expo at the Javits Convention Center. They were on their way to another show in Toronto when they discovered they might have to show up empty-handed. “That would have been terrible,” Delisha said. “I thought they were gone for good. “Abdala, whose 12-hour shifts behind the wheel start at 4 a.m., received what Delisha called a “very nice reward” for his good deed. “In New York, with so many people, I never would have believed this could happen,” Delisha said. “I found a very good man. “For Abdala, he was relieved he was able to track down Delisha. “It’s the right thing to do,” said Abdala, a father of a 4-year-old girl who immigrated from Egypt in 1997. “I knew I had to find the owner. “The episode reaffirmed Delisha’s belief in the power of prayer. “I’m Jewish and he’s Muslim, so there has to be a message from God in this,” he said. “I wish there could be more people like him.”


(Source: Azhar’s Global List (azhar_azeez2@hotmail.com)

“Surely my Lord is near at hand and answers all.” (11:61)


A believer is taught that Allah is very close to him and ready to answer his prayers. “And when My servants question you concerning Me-I am near to answer the call of the caller, when he calls to Me.” (2:186).


He listens to the prayers of the righteous. “ He answers those who believe and do righteous deeds and He enriches them through His bounty.” (42:26).