THOUGHTS OF A SOMALI GIRL

So I came across this scene from Jesus of Nazareth : Look at the women...and how they're dressed. OH MY GOD! THEY LOOK LIKE MUSLIM WOMEN!!!! WHAT IS GOING ON?! Please, have a seat. Have a cup of tea and allow me to enlighten you. Be honest with yourself. Do those women from the film look any different from  these   women?:  Admit it. You know they don't. Yet...the hijaab is such a strange concept for many non-Muslims when it shouldn't be - especially for Christians and Jews.  Sometimes when I walk down the street people stare at me. Sometimes people will ask me why I wear it and it's just so foreign and alien to them.  When I was 10 years old, my family moved to a small city that wasn't very multicultural. Forget the fact that there were very few Black students in the school. My sisters and I were the ONLY students in the ENTIRE school who wore the hijaab. I remember my first day of school like it was yesterday. ...

Hi everyone! I'm back in Canada safe and sound! Alhamdulillah! I'm so happy to be home. I've never missed my home so much. Neither have I missed nor appreciated food in Canada, my bed, my stove, and yes, even my washing machine! My trip to Mogadishu with my family was definitely a humbling one. I've never appreciated the life we have as much as I do now. You only come to understand and appreciate your life when you put yourself in someone else' shoes. I was already somewhat aware of what life in Somalia was like. But actually living there was what made me have more appreciation for the life I had.  I could never live in Somalia. The family I have there would always ask me whether I would move there. Whenever I'd politely say no, they'd say the same thing: "This is your home, it's where you are from. You're whole family is here." I'd feel conflicting emotions. On the one hand, Canada is where I grew up. I consider ...

Ramadan in Somalia Several things to say about fasting during Ramadan in Somalia. There's the good and the bad as with all things. The good thing about Ramadan in Somalia? It's easier to fast in Somalia than in Canada: the fast is shorter with the sun setting earlier (around 6 pm instead of around 9) and there is no temptation to eat; everyone is fasting and if they aren't, they're not open about it. In addition, all the restaurants are closed until it's time to eat so you won't see anyone eating when you go outside. Furthermore, there isn't any food in the house to tempt you - people buy fresh food everyday from the market. I also love hearing the multiple aathans (call to prayer) at every prayer from the mosques in the area. There's no need to check the time to see if it's time to pray or set an alarm to wake up for Fajr. I found that I'm able to pray on time more. On the flipside, despite being in a Muslim country, I don't feel...

Hello everyone! I saw something today that I just wanted to quickly share with y'all.  Humans are helpless when they are babies. We completely depend on our mothers. It  was an exhausting day and I was on my way home from class. I was on the bus. A young woman came in with a stroller. She didn't look much older than I. She sat down on the seat beside me. I watched her lift the edge of the blanket covering her baby's stroller so she could look through the small corner at her baby. Inside the stroller, underneath the canopy of a blue blanket, was an adorable little baby. He looked about 2 months old. The bus ride was rough and bumpy. Every now and then, the bus would be jolted and we'd all be jarred from our tired stupor. Each time, the young mother would lower her head to peek through the small corner. Checking on him. To see if he was okay. I'd look at the child each time his mother peeked in at him. He looked comfortable and kept staring at m...

I must say that there's a bit of an ajanabi (non-Somali) craze going on these days especially among the girls. It's quite prevalent among many masaajid girls. Once a white man converts to Islam and becomes a regular in the masaajid (mosque) they're all over him! This bothers me. In addition, there a lot of stories going around about Somali girls who have been divorced by their ajanabi husbands; the parents like to say this happened because the husband wasn't Somali.  Now, before y'all start the accusations, let me inform you that I am not an ajanabi hater. Neither am I a person who strictly stays with their "own kind"; race and/or culture is of no concern to me. Rather, this post is my sincere advice to my abaayo, my sister in kinship, or even to any other non-Somali woman, who is about to marry or is interested in someone who is ajanabi. My advise is based on the experiences of others and myself. So. About to marry an ajanabi? Interested in ...

Hello everyone! Or Assalamualaikum (peace be upon you)! I'm back woohoo! This blog ain't dead - yet. Hopefully, I never give up on this, I really enjoying posting and I've noticed I'm getting quite the views :) And the best feeling is getting comments! Thank-you, keep those comments coming - whether they're negative or positive - I love to read them :) I'm going to share a short personal story today. The story I'd like to share today is my spiritual journey. We all think about religion and our purpose in life at some point in our lives; it's part of human nature. We begin to question a lot of things even if you are raised in a religious household. I was raised in a semi-religious Muslim household. And there came a time in my life where I began to struggle with my faith in Islam. Eventually, I even began to struggle in my faith in God. I became agnostic for a while. Did I just say that I was agnostic? A Muslim saying that she was agnostic? A...