Dr. Marcus Lambert & Zahara Basir

Dr. Marcus Lambert with Twin Sons | Image captured at the Paper Monday Studio (New York)

بِسْمِ ٱللَّٰهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ

Dr. Marcus Lambert:

Raising children is a lot like cultivating seeds. You try to pour into them, providing a good environment, great education, love for faith, but as much as you try to control their nourishment, you can't control how they grow.

The same is with a plant. You can give it good soil, water it daily, access to sunlight, but you can't control how tall that plant becomes or how many leaves or flowers it grows.

Dr. Marcus Lambert with Eldest Son | Image captured at the Paper Monday Studio (New York)

This is where you have to have tawakkul or trust in Allah. You can pour all you have into the growth and development of that seed, but ultimately it becomes a trust. A sacred trust, in fact.

Honey, what do you think? What's it like raising four  kids? What's it like traveling the world with four kids?

Zahara Basir with Daughter | Image captured at the Paper Monday Studio (New York)

Zahara Basir :

Whenever I tell people we travel the world with four children. They always say, "Oh my gosh, how? What should we pack, what should we bring?"

I always say bring snacks, but please pack patience.

So many unexpected things can happen when you travel with children. But like so many other chapters in this book of parenting, lay the seed of ṣabr, patience. With patience, every journey of parenting can be accomplished and achieved, cultivating our children's hearts has also exposed to them to different cultures, communities, and countries.

Traveling provides a sense of understanding to the importance of appreciation and love. As our children grow around the globe, I pray their hearts are cultivated with a tremendous amount of gratitude as they transition from toddlers to global citizens. I pray their faith continues to make the same strides. I want them to be inquisitive when it comes to their faith and the world. I never want them to be timid or ashamed to ask questions. I pray their journey is rooted in love and inspired by faith.