"I hate the sun!", I snapped irritably to myself as I crossed the busy road. A traffic jam had left me stranded barely 10 minutes from home, and I had stepped out of the bus and opted to walk the rest of the way. A pedestrian stopped and glanced curiously at me; perhaps I was muttering a bit too loud. I tugged my headband lower down my forehead and waited for the signal to turn red before I could cross the insanely busy intersection in the hub of Karachi's commercial district.That's when it happened...

A young girl, laden with two heavy department store bags, just a step away from me, stepped over the curb and was promptly thrown into the air by an errant driver, no doubt impatient to get home, just like we were. Probably he too was muttering about the heat, the traffic, the noise. If he had pressed on the accelerator a second earlier, it would have been me flying into the air and landing thud on the pavement, just like that girl.

As everyone rushed forward to help her, I stood immobilised at the intersection. It could have been me. As the signal changed from red to green and the cars whizzed by, blowing smoke on my face, I was seized with an eerie sensation of utter helplessness. Let's face it. We'd all like to believe we're immortal; untouchable; in charge of our destinies. We think it'll never happen to us, because it never has, and besides, we don't make those kind of mistakes, do we? We look twice before taking a step, we stay clear out of danger, we do everything the right way, we're just immune from this type of thing. Death, illness, accidents, bankruptcy, failure, it happens to other people, not us.But if you think about it, in how much control are we really? We take our bodies as some sort of unbreakable power machine, but when our little finger throbs, the sensation is felt all over the body. A slight stomach ache and we're set down. Destinies change like the wind. Like the stories we read in the newspaper: street hawker wins millions; superstar brought to dust; world famous cricketer in plane crash; boy brings fame to country. What we are, where we are today; how much of it is our own doing? What have I done to deserve my privileged, happy life, that the girl asking for alms at my car window didn't do? One step earlier and I'd be lying beneath the ground by this time. One second later and I'd be going about my usual carefree existence without a thought.

Today I realised: Nothing is in our hands. Our health, our wealth, our families, even the warmth of the sun on our face, is the blessing of Allah (swt), which we can never, ever, attain fully if it relies solely on our own deeds. Look out the window and feel the breeze on your face. How many people have never felt the beauty and wonder of cold fresh air breaking your face into crinkles? How do you know you will wake up tomorrow and have another day? When you feel proud and look down at someone who hasn't accomplished or achieved as much as you have, do you remember that just as easily as it came, it can be taken away too?

When you put off taking time out for Allah, who created you and gave you everything you have, reading His words, obeying one little thing you told you to do, or refrain from doing, bowing in thankfulness to Him, who has given you the assurance of another chance at that? As Allah says in Surah Nahl:

"It is He who brought you forth from the wombs of your mothers when you knew nothing, and He gave you hearing and sight and intelligence and affections, that you may thank Allah."(16:78)

In the end, no matter what we do, however much we protect ourselves, attain (what is defined as) success in this life, our end is the same:

"He has created the heavens and the earth in just proportions and has given you shape, and made your shapes beautiful: and to Him is your final return". (64:3)

Remember that. Remember when you are taking your next step. And thank Allah, every moment, every day.