Once Upon an Eid

by S.K. Ali

“Anytime you share something you love, it comes right back to you like a boomerang. You never lose it. Just wait and see.”

“There are a lot of ways to show our faith and love to Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala. You pick the ones that are right for who you are right now.”

“If we can be strong enough to resist the stuff Allah has allowed, it makes it easier to resist the stuff that’s forbidden. I know Ramadan makes me appreciate the things He gave us that I usually take for granted, like food and water.”

“Habibi,” Babba had said, “always look beyond what your eyes initially recognize and find out what is real, what is possible, and what is the truth.”

Maya Madinah loved her aunt’s ease with silence and her deep listening. So many adults she knew only pretended to listen when in fact they were just waiting for her to pause so they could jump in and lecture her.

“We are made anew every day, beloved. And tasting sadness changes us,”