There was once a young man named Saad ibn Abi Waqqas (radiyallahu anhu), and he was very good at one special thing. He could shoot an arrow from his bow and hit exactly what he was aiming at, every time. He made his own bows and arrows too.
One night, while he was sleeping, Saad had a dream. He was standing in a wide, dark place where he could not see anything at all. It was very dark. But then, up in the sky, a big round moon began to shine.
Saad followed that bright moon. And when he reached its light, he saw three good people already standing there in the glow. When he woke up, he heard that the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ was quietly telling people about Allah. So Saad hurried off, and he believed right away. He was one of the very first people to believe.
Saad loved his mother very much. But when he told her he now believed in Allah, she became upset and wanted him to stop. To try to change his mind, she decided she would not eat any food.
This made Saad so sad. He loved his mother dearly. He kept bringing her food and water and saying gently, please, mother, please eat. But he could not stop believing in Allah, because his love for Allah was the strongest love of all.
And do you know what Allah did? He did not say anything unkind about Saad's mother. Instead, Allah sent down beautiful words teaching Saad to always be gentle and good to his parents, and to say thank you to them, even while he kept believing. So Saad stayed kind to his mother, and soon she began to eat again.
Saad became the Prophet's brave archer. He stood close and protected him, shooting his arrows carefully. The Prophet ﷺ handed him arrows himself and cheered, well done, Saad!
Then the Prophet ﷺ gave Saad a very special gift. He made a prayer, saying, O Allah, please answer Saad whenever he calls to You. After that, everyone knew that when Saad made a prayer, Allah would hear it. So Saad was very careful, and he only ever made important prayers, never silly ones.
Saad grew up to be a wise and brave leader. But when he was old, some of the people started to argue and fight with each other. Saad did not want any part of the fighting at all.
So do you know what he did? He gathered up his fluffy sheep and walked quietly up into the peaceful green hills, far away from all the noise and arguing. He wanted to be calm, and close to Allah, and content with what he had.
Saad said that Allah loves the person who is gentle, who is happy with what they have, and who does good quietly, without needing everyone to watch. And that is exactly how Saad chose to live.
So settle down now, little one, somewhere soft and quiet like Saad's peaceful hills. Allah hears every little prayer you make. Whisper one now if you like, and then drift off to sleep. Goodnight.