Eid is a very special time for Muslims. It’s time for family gatherings, celebrations and re-connections.
However, for a new Muslim, who doesn’t have Muslim relatives or friends to share the joy of Eid with, it would be a very depressing experience with feelings of loneliness and isolation.
Sister Paulina Rivera, a convert Muslim who knows these feelings very well has sent a letter through her faceboook page to all brothers and sisters born into Islam…
Dear born Muslims,
Do me a favor…especially those of you who consider yourselves active in dawa…if you have a revert friend please invite them over on Eid.
Eid is the loneliest and most depressing day for many reverts and many of us don’t have any Muslim family to celebrate or share our joy with.
Walking back to our car after Eid prayer is the worst.
On the long walk back to our cars we witness Muslim families posing for pictures, smiling from ear to ear and spreading glad tidings amongst themselves. While reverts don’t have any Muslim family to celebrate with, oftentimes we are alone before, during and after Eid prayer.
Families and congregants speak to each other in their mother tongues, forgetting that we, the revert, don’t speak or share their language and don’t understand what they are saying. Making us feel like outsiders in our own community.
Others shriek with joy as they bump into old friends and extended family members. They embrace warmly and make oaths to reconnect. While we know no one. Many of our previous friends and family members stopped speaking to us since our conversion.
Children are running around wildly with balloons, candy and money. We know in that very moment we are witnessing a precious childhood memory in the making. For a second we share their joy and think to ourselves how lucky this kid is to have such a wonderful experience. At the same time, we can’t help but wonder if our (future) children will ever experience the same joy.
We watch other families frantically rush off to partake in their traditions such as Eid breakfast, gift swapping or house hopping from party to party. While we sit in our cars, with our hands on the steering wheel wondering what we can do by ourselves for the remainder of the day…
Unfortunately, the aforementioned is the reality for many reverts on Eid. With a community as large as we have, NO ONE should be lonely on a day that should be full of congregational-communion, love, laughter and breaking of bread.
Born Muslims, do me a favor and call your revert friend and invite them over on Eid.
It means more to us than you’ll ever know.
First published: August 2017