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Holiday Fever
It is that time of year again. Ramadan begins Thursday. I am once again filled with excitement.
Why, one would ask, would I be remotely excited about starving myself from sunrise to sundown every day for thirty days? Well, besides the spiritual cleansing, the time I give myself to nap the afternoon away during this month, and the thankfulness that I feel that I actually have food at the end of the day, I can’t really say.
It might be the food, for Ramadan food is what I always look forward to -- the savory pastries my mother sends with me to my apartment and the cookies I treat myself to after the sun sets.
It could be getting up before the sun, drinking tea while watching the city wake up, watching an empty street turn into a bustling environment.
And, perhaps the most plausible reason, it could be Eid-al-Fitr, “Little Eid” as it’s called my family, the celebration after a month of hard work in Ramadan. A day filled with food and family. Some of the best parts of growing up were on Little Eid, wearing itchy Pakistani clothes and playing tag in various houses of relatives.
So the autumn chill could not have come sooner in Chicago, because, for Muslims, holiday season is here.
By
Hafsa Arain
|
September 12, 2007; 3:06 PM ET
| Category:
Salaam Chicago
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Posted by: Ida | September 16, 2007 12:13 PM
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Jason:
If you are sleeping -there is no problem as your metabolism slows and your body is at rest.
Not eating for an active day or two is a strain on your body but usually not dangerous. It may actually help cleanse your body of toxins, if you are careful to drink plenty of water.
Not drinking for ten or more hours of an active day: can lead to the serious problem of dehydration which can cause migraine, asthma, constipation, and high blood pressure. Continued dehydration will place a strain on all the body's organs and systems. Signs are thickened and pasty tongue, flaky dry and itchy skin with premature wrinkles, lower back pain associated with the kidneys inability to cleanse the body of toxins.
Best wishes.
Posted by: Anonymous | September 16, 2007 10:59 AM
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excuse me, in what way is not eating for 8-10 hours unhealthy? we do it every night!!!
Posted by: jason | September 15, 2007 5:08 PM
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I like the personal quality of your post. That feeling is much stronger in this post than it is in the others that I've read. So, yeah, thanks for sharing.
Posted by: Garrett | September 15, 2007 12:41 PM
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OMG, this guy is psycho. There is nothing you can write without Halozcel showing up. PSYCHO!
Posted by: Brittany | September 14, 2007 8:47 AM
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Fasting,which is an *adaptation* from Judaism and ancient Pagan custom,is *harmful* for Human Health.
Pakistan,hunger and backward islamic country.The life expectancy is about 60 years and less(if you are not murdered by a terrorist)
Sweden,civilization country.The life expectancy is about 80 years and more.
Posted by: halozcel | September 14, 2007 7:51 AM
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The comments to this entry are closed.
Hafsa, I love the whole feel of your reflection. I have often thought that Ramadan is like Elul a month of getting ready for the atonement of Yom Kippur. Even without ichy Pakastani clothing, my childhood memories are of the discomfort of our new faall holiday woolens in the heat of the midwest Indian summer. I espeically like your fondness of packages from home. What could be sweeter? Its all about that- A family instilling its tradition with such love that it is carried forward for another generation.