Post by Saleh Rashid

First LinkedIn post and no it’s not about some great career step up. About eight years on this platform, and nothing has moved me enough to write…..until now! I came to Toronto for a 5 week medical elective. Four weeks in, and the thing that has genuinely taken my breath away isn’t a medical experience. It was an event so full of life and purpose that I found myself thinking: I wouldn’t mind giving a lifetime to this. Nothing prepared me for what I witnessed over three days at the MIST | Muslim Interscholastic Tournament (MIST Toronto) From the moment I walked in, I was met with something I didn’t expect to feel so viscerally: hope. A loud, chanting, electric and unstoppable hope. These students were operating on a decibel level so magnificent that my Apple Watch may have filed a formal complaint to my wrist. 1300 high school students from across the GTA poured their hearts into every moment over the weekend. Cheering not just for their own schools, but for each other. Competing fiercely, then turning around and lifting the very people they were competing against. True sportsmanship on display everywhere I turned! I stood there thinking: this is what a Muslim youth community in full bloom looks like. Teachers, professionals and elders didn’t just show up. They leaned in. The atmosphere was incredible - I find myself at a loss of words to describe the it. And by Monday’s awards ceremony? The energy hadn’t dimmed. It had only amplified. To the young Muslims of Canada who took part, please understand what you are part of. You are not just competing. You are learning who you are, finding your people, and discovering that your faith, your ambition and your joy can all exist in the same space. The sadaqah jariyah of your mere participation is accumulating in ways you cannot yet see. You may have been the reason for someone’s smile, joy, comfort or even motivation. You aren’t just proof that Muslim youth exist, you are proof that they thrive. To the Dream Team, a name earned ten times over: what you have built is not just a tournament. It is a family. A legacy. An act of worship made manifest in a thousand quiet decisions. I left wanting to join you. A heartfelt thank you to Umar A Tailor at Charity Week and Islamic Relief Canada for inviting me to help recruit high schools to the Charity Week project. I would not have been able to witness this without your invitation. And to Ramy Sadek and Syed Mohammed Ahmed: you both gave me proximity to greatness. Watching you and the Dream Team work behind the scenes was a masterclass in servant leadership, excellence and in what it means to give for the sake of Allah without seeking recognition. During my five weeks in Canada, If I had experienced nothing else, attending the MIST Toronto would’ve been sufficient. May Allah (swt) preserve and protect every single person that took part and was and has been involved in bringing this tournament to life. Ameen!