In sha’Allah

I met this guy on the morning of my last day in Singapore. We were sitting out the front of my hotel smoking a filthy cigarette each. He questioned me about the local SIM card sitch as he was also new to the country. We got talking and it turns out he just graduated from Marine Engineering at university in Pakistan.

He said his name was Sol or Saul, but they both sound a little too Jewish for a Pakistani bloke, so I will call him ‘Soul’.

He had arrived in Singapore that morning, and he had just joined the merchant navy. I could sense there was a kind of excitement and expectation. As it turns out, it was the first day of his first job EVER and he would be leaving for months that afternoon at ‘14 hundred hours‘. It was hard not to be excited with him. I wished him every success and the very best for his career to which he replied

‘In sha’Allah‘

This phrase means ‘God Willing’. What a very humble phrase.

Post Script: I decided to cut my ugly mug out of the picture because….well, its ugly. But I left a little bit of my eyebrow for your enjoyment (Which is a big deal for me. Those who know me really well can attest to my phobia of eyebrows)