The following incident took place when Muhammad Ali's daughters
arrived at his home wearing clothes that were not modest.
Here is the story as told by one of his daughters:
When we finally arrived, the chauffeur escorted my younger sister,
Laila, and me up to my father's suite. As usual, he was hiding
behind the door waiting to scare us. We exchanged many hugs
and kisses as we could possibly give in one day.
My father took a good look at us. Then he sat me down on his lap
and said something that I will never forget. He looked me
straight in the eyes and said, "Hana, everything that God made
valuable in the world is covered and hard to get to.
Where do you find diamonds? Deep down in the ground, covered and
protected. Where do you find pearls? Deep down at the bottom
of the ocean, covered up and protected in a beautiful shell.
Where do you find gold? Way down in the mine, covered over with
layers and layers of rock. You've got to work har d to get to them.
He looked at me with serious eyes. "Your body is sacred.
You're far more precious than diamonds and pearls, and
you should be covered too.
Source: Taken from the book: More Than A Hero:
Muhammad Ali's Life Lessons Through His Daughter's Eyes.
Presented by Hassan Ali
