iftar meals with Bangladeshi/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u00a0food/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u00a0staples like biryani,/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u00a0fyaazi/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u00a0or lentil fritters, and kisuri, a lentil rice porridge eaten during Ramadan./wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u00a0Photo from Nargis Hakim Rahman./wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/nDuring Ramadan, we usually host large iftars, where we break our daily fast with family, friends, and community. Before the pandemic, my family and I would rotate hosting iftar among five extended families of nearly 30 people, where we/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u2019d enjoy mounds of chicken biryani and arrays of other traditional foods./wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/nMy kids and I used to also cook iftar for our non-Muslim neighbors to share our traditions. As one of the few Muslims on the block, we wanted to teach people about Ramadan and share Bangladeshi foods. Last year, we opted out of this practice with our neighbors, unsure of how the coronavirus would spread. But this year, we/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u2019re hoping to resume those traditions by doing porch drop-offs. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/nUsually, I am exhausted while fasting. But I loved the social and community aspect of breaking fast. When I was a kid, I spent many iftars at the mosque breaking fast with the community and trying new foods from various cultures. Before the pandemic, people would host or sponsor communal iftars at the mosque and fundraise to provide food products to loved ones in Bangladesh, family around the world, and locally. Helping to feed those who are fasting is especially rewarding in our faith. That can run up to 300 meals at some mosques./wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/nBefore COVID, networks such as Muslims Building Bridges would invite non-Muslims to gather with Muslims to learn more about Islam with a diverse network of mosques across Michigan. The last time I attended one of these iftars was with two non-Muslim friends who wanted to learn more about Ramadan. We went to the Muslim Center in Detroit, broke fast with fresh dates and water, and went into the communal prayer space together. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/nThe last time Nargis Hakim Rahman attended an in-person community iftar was with her non-Muslim friends at the Muslim Center in Detroit, which was hosting an iftar as part of the Muslims Building Bridges network. Photo by Nargis Hakim Rahman./wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/nOf course, folks are not hosting large communal iftars this year. Muslim Community of Western Suburbs President Haaris Ahmad said about 1,000 people from the MCWS community have been vaccinated, allowing some people to host small intimate iftars at home with immediate friends and family. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/nLast year during the pandemic, local mosques created grab-and-go iftar meals for pickup or delivery services for those in need. This practice continues this Ramadan. But this year, mosques remain closed for iftar, continuing to stay cautious about spreading the virus. A Muslim-led grocery drop-off service was created last year by Michigan Muslims to provide food to those most in need. The effort spread throughout Southeast Michigan, especially to help older adults who were more at risk. Local food banks in metro Detroit increased giving out food products for families in need with culturally sensitive meal options, including providing halal meals. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/nFor me, a lot stays the same this year. I break fast with my kids at home. I won/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u2019t be able to pray at the mosques at night, but I haven’t for several years because I have young kids. No extended family iftars are planned, but I/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u2019ll still be cooking some of our favorite Bangladeshi Ramadan meals, while mixing it up with an occasional shrimp Thai curry, spaghetti and meatballs, and tomato soup with grilled cheese. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/nBefore the pandemic, Ramadan was largely spent in the hustle and bustle of rushing off to work, picking up kids late into the afternoons, and setting the iftar or driving to someone/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u2019s house to get there just in time to break fast. Now we have more time to prepare meals together, experiment on new desserts on the weekends, and sit under the makeshift tent that the kids made to read books about Prophets. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/nNargis Hakim Rahman/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u2019s oldest son waits to break his fast at sundown. He is now 11 years old and fasts the whole day. The fast is about 15 hours long in Michigan. Photo by Nargis Hakim Rahman./wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/nI/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u2019m trying to enjoy having older kids with whom I can share more/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u2014from cooking meals to taking late-night strolls through the neighborhood under the Ramadan moon. It/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u2019ll be my last chance to keep their attention before they run off to school in-person, buried in homework and discussions with their friends./wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n
My kids are excited about Ramadan, or what they call /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u201cthe Ramadan vibe/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u201d: waking up before dawn to eat meals, staying up late to pray Tarawih, competing with their cousins to see who kept the most fasts, and decorating the house with lights, streamers, and posters saying Ramadan Mubarak, meaning /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u201cHappy Ramadan./wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u201d But they are also sad to be observing Ramadan yet again without their cousins and extended family present. We/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u2019re hoping that next year we can resume in-person and community iftars and gatherings again. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/nOne thing we/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u2019ve learned celebrating during the pandemic is how to go back to the essence of Ramadan: leaning inward, spending time with immediate family members, improving oneself, and building character to emerge as /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u201ca new, better me/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u201d without competing with anyone else. I/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u2019ve also learned to appreciate the things we used to take for granted pre-pandemic: good health, family time, and community gatherings. While I/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u2019m looking forward to spending Ramadan with others again, I/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u2019ve enjoyed the one-on-one time at home. I hope others will get to enjoy that /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u201cRamadan vibe,/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u201d too. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
One thing we/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/u2019ve learned celebrating during the pandemic is how to go back to the essence of Ramadan./wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":91636,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","format":"standard","categories":[7,784],"tags":[745,779,1148],"article-type":[246],"master-category":[465],"special-series":[],"type-of-work":[941],"class_list":["post-91599","article","type-article","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health-happiness","category-coronavirus","tag-muslims","tag-covid-19","tag-ramadan","article-type-opinion","master-category-health-happiness","type-of-work-opinion"],"acf":[],"apple_news_notices":[],"yoast_head":"/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n
Traditions New and Old Come to Life for Ramadan Celebrations Amid COVID - 大象传媒 Magazine Solutions Journalism/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/t /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/t /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/t /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/t /wp-json/wp/v2/article/91599/n