When the Dust Settles, Who Will Remember Me?

One day, long after I’m gone,

A stranger may walk through the ruins of my memories.

Maybe they'll step into a home I once loved—

the walls still faintly smelling of old books,

the floor creaking under the weight of forgotten laughter.

They won’t know who lived there.

They won’t know who I was.

There might be a mirror, cracked at the corner,

where I once fixed my collar before heading out into the world.

There might be a drawer, still holding the letters I never sent.

And on the wall,

a calendar.

A single date circled in red.

A reminder of a day that meant something to me—

and nothing to them.

They’ll pause.

They might wonder,

“What happened on that day?”

And then they’ll move on.

Because that’s how time works.

My favorite chair might be gone.

My quiet cup of tea each morning,

the moments I sat in silence and cried,

the dreams I never shared—

All will vanish, swallowed by years I’ll never see.

Maybe someone will remember my name—

for a while.

But names fade too.

Even the people we love the most—

we sometimes forget their birthdays,

we lose the sound of their laughter,

we let go of the things they whispered to us in the dark.

And that makes me wonder—

Was it all temporary?

All this striving, all this loving, all this aching for more?

What is the worth of a life

that disappears like footprints in the sand?

But then…

A quieter voice answers.

The worth is not in being remembered by people.

The worth is in being seen by the One who never forgets.

That prayer you whispered when no one was watching—

It was recorded.

That kindness you gave without expecting anything in return—

It was seen.

That burden you carried silently for the sake of others—

It was known.

We are not here to be monuments.

We are not here to be names etched in marble.

We are here to serve,

to love gently,

to give quietly,

to worship deeply.

And when our bodies return to the dust,

what we gave to this world

and what we gave for the sake of Allah—

that alone will remain.

One day, the sun will rise on a world where I no longer exist.

The sky will still change colors.

The seasons will come and go.

People will fall in love, lose their way, build new homes.

But if even one of my prayers reaches the sky,

if even one of my deeds is carried to the eternal book of light,

then I have not lived in vain.

So let me not chase a place in this world.

Let me chase a place in Jannah.

Where memories do not fade,

and love is never forgotten.