Fatima and the Crooked Wudu

Fatima was six and very, very fast. She brushed her teeth fast. She ate her breakfast fast. She tied her shoes fast (which is why one was always coming undone). And when it was time for wudu, she was the fastest of all. Splash, splash, splash, done. Off to play.

One day her older sister Zaynab was watching. 'Fatima,' she said gently, 'do you know what wudu means?' Fatima shrugged. 'Washing the water?' Zaynab laughed. 'Washing yourself with water. And not just on the outside. The Prophet ﷺ said when you wash your hands, the little mistakes your hands made drip away with the water. When you wash your face, the things your eyes shouldn't have looked at drip away too.'

Fatima's eyes got big. 'The water cleans my MISTAKES?' Zaynab nodded. 'If you do it carefully. With your heart paying attention.'

Fatima walked very slowly to the sink. She turned the tap on, just a little. She said bismillah. She washed her hands one, two, three times, looking at each finger. She thought about the time she had pulled her cousin's hair. The water ran down. She washed her mouth. She thought about the time she had told her mama she had brushed her teeth when she hadn't. The water ran down.

By the time Fatima finished, the wudu had taken five whole minutes — which for Fatima was practically a year. When she stood up for prayer, something felt different. Lighter. Like she had put down a backpack she didn't know she was carrying.

After that, Fatima still did most things fast. But wudu? Wudu she did slowly. Because, she explained to her little brother very seriously one day, 'You can't rush something that's washing your mistakes away.'