"Fast, Pray, Love"
Reflections on Ramadan 2016
Ramadan Mubarak to all members of the American Muslim Professionals of Dallas! As our immensely talented community of Muslim professionals continues to expand, we can’t help but stop to smell the roses and realize what a great time it is to be Muslim in DFW.
FAST
Fasting is one of the most unique forms of worship that cleanses the soul. Even in the Texas heat, thousands of Muslims will start fasting from sunrise to sunset each day during the month of Ramadan. Coworkers will offer you a glass of water as you brave the lunch-hour, and look at you in shock when they realize even water is not okay. But you can always invite them to iftar after Maghrib - what better opportunity to share our faith with our peers?
In a grass-roots effort to support local businesses, AMPD has been fortunate to partner with and host meetings at the following great restaurants around town over the past few years. So when the sun starts to set and you find yourself looking for a place for iftar, here are AMPD’s Top 7 Restaurant picks (in no particular order):
PRAY
Some 30ish years ago, DFW had only a handful of religious institutions catering to our diverse Muslim population. Fast forward a couple decades and we are blessed to have masjids, momin centers and jamat khanas in every city (sometimes even more than one in a city). And there is not just one Eid service, but multiple at the same mosque. What about the conveniently accessible sermon livefeeds and digitally streamed taraweeh prayers in case you want to hear some late-night recitation from your home - oh my Allah, thank you technology!
I have fond memories from the early 90’s of attending Eid prayer with family and friends at Dallas Fair Park each year. We decorated our homes with lights and our hands with henna. The most beautiful part has been seeing people from virtually every part of the world dress to impress in their respective cultural attire coming together from all over DFW in a soulful celebration of God’s infinite blessings.
LOVE
Above all, Ramadan is a time to show love and devotion to our community, as well as our Creator. As minorities, we have learned to stand together in the face of bigotry and respond to hate with love and education. This year, we even managed to come together as a community and start the month of Ramadan on the same day across DFW. I haven't really been keeping track, but something tells me that has got to be a first! Now let's keep our momentum strong to collectively elevate our Ramadan experience.
AMPD is committed to supporting our local charities where volunteers bring service into action, tirelessly giving back to those in need. A few organizations we have collaborated with over the years are: Islamic Circle of North America, Literacy Instruction for Texas, Project Ramadan, Texas Muslim Women’s Foundation, Ma’ruf Dallas, Texas Trees Foundation, and Feeding Their Legacy at Masjid Al-Islam.
In the words of the greatest, Muhammad Ali (1942-2016), “We have one life; it soon will be past; what we do for God is all that will last.”
Make this your best Ramadan yet, insha'Allah! #GetAMPD for our 4th Annual AMPD Iftar on Tuesday, July 14th.
Happy Fasting!
Aisha U-Kiu,
AMPD President, 2012-15