Haven’t you heard?  Muslims do it five times a day.  Or at least we’re supposed to.

But how do they find time?  Well, many drop everything and get down right there where they’re standing; others prefer to wait until the opportunity arises, after all, they’re at work for goodness sake.  For a few, it’s easy, the day is arranged around their five-a-day, seamlessly woven around kids, cooking and cleaning.  Others strive to do it, but sometimes fail; they spend some days doing it five times, other days barely reaching two or three. 

Those who strive but sometimes fail can be prone to attacks of guilt, sickness, and then finally: justification.

But my job got in the way.

I tried but I couldn’t do it on time.

I can’t just stop everything can I?

Ideally we would all arrange our day around the five dailies rather than the other way around, but that’s not always possible; nor is it likely for some of us.  However, that’s no justification for missing them is it?  So where do we strike the balance between dropping everything in the middle of a meeting because it’s time to “do it” and avoiding “doing it” at all costs?  Let’s face it, it’s not a healthy way to live running from the fact that eventually, it’s got to be done or you’ll be asked: “Did you do it?  If not, why not?  Was doing it all that hard?  I mean, it was five times a day, not one hundred.”   

So we start small, learn to crawl before we learn to walk; do it once, feel the peace, then get up and do it again.  Once you have started with one of the five, the other four should fall into place.  Some days you won’t do it the full five times, other days you will, the trick is to strike the balance; fall off the wagon but get straight back on again.  Soon the pieces of the five-a-day puzzle should fall into place.

It won’t happen over night, it never does; sometimes it will be a chore: “What?!  It’s time to do it again!?”  At other times you’ll be watching the clock, waiting for your next fix, like a heroine addict, gasping for the hit, like the dying man gasping for life. 

Eventually it turns into an addiction.  I hope.  I pray.  I expect. 

Eventually I’ll do it five times a day.  Everyday.ÂÂ