When I read about migration from Africa to Europe, I always hear phrases like "migrants in search of a better life."
It's as if it is assumed that "a better life" applies only to material standards; food, clothes, cars, houses, infrastructure.
When I first went to Africa though, it seemed to me that the people had better lives than myself.
I was an only child, and spent countless hours alone as a child watching television or sitting on a computer. I had a room filled with toys, but often no one was there to play with me, so I'd play alone.
When I went to any beach frequented by ethnic Europeans, I always noticed how the people would try to avoid each other. If the beach was 2 miles long, the first group to arrive would go to one end; the second group would go to the opposite end, trying to be as far away from the others as possible.
The first time I traveled Africa, I went to the beach in Senegal. It was a huge beach stretching miles in either direction, and I was amazed, because there were around 500 people on the beach, all concentrated in an area of maybe 100 meters. That stretch of water was packed with children so that the noise was quite loud, but they all seemed, on average, to be quite a bit happier than your average American or European children.
Now, as a Muslim I realize the benefits of social contact on your overall emotional health and happiness.
If I am angry or stressed, going to the masjid, exchanging salams, shaking hands, and checking in with my neighbors, (not to mention the baraka of the salah itself) always leaves me in a better mood, with more patience for whatever difficulty I am facing.
There is no question, although I am not as rich as I was as a kaffir, that my life is better as a Muslim. And yet, when you hear the media talking about muhajirin, you never hear phrases like "European Muslims are migrating to Syria in search of a better life."
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