This is Day 27 of Hindtrospectives’ #MyMosqueMyStory series for Ramadan 2015 By Ashley Wolford Every year since I said shahada at IMAN’s Community Cafe five years ago, I have had anxiety about the month of Ramadan. Since 2009, the Holy Month has landed smack dab in the middle of the summer, including the Solstice. Just thinking about fasting on the longest day of the year while attempting to stay cool in Chicago’s weather stressed me out.  I made a lot... Read more

This is Day 27 of Hindtrospectives’ #MyMosqueMyStory series for Ramadan 2015 By Akeela Ahmed I really wanted to write a happy, fluff piece about my local mosque. I really did. I wanted to write that each time I go there I am filled with inspiration and love for Allah. That I come away refreshed and re-engerised in my faith. At peace with myself and everyone around me. But I can’t, because it wouldn’t be the truth. And that thought fills... Read more

This is Day 26 of Hindtrospectives’ #MyMosqueMyStory series for Ramadan 2015 By Asma Soltani This summer is special for me for two reasons: firstly, it’s the first time I will spend a long time away from my family. A long way away, on another continent to be precise: the United States. Secondly, it’s Ramadhan! Normally, during Ramadhan my family breaks bread together more often than outside the month. We all enjoy the warmth, joy and magic of an iftaar together,... Read more

This is Day 26 of Hindtrospectives’ #MyMosqueMyStory series for Ramadan 2015 By Yasmin Diallo Turk Even though I have fasted almost my entire life, the experience feels different each year. The challenges and opportunities are never quite the same, and I am never quite the same person from one Ramadan to the next (at least that is my hope!). Long before Ramadan, this year it was clear what my primary challenge would be. A few months back I took a... Read more

This is Day 25 of Hindtrospectives’ #MyMosqueMyStory series for Ramadan 2015 by Naazish YarKhan If you had asked me five years ago, if building yet another masjid was a good idea, I’d have hesitated. Chicago’s western suburbs have their fair share, mashallah! I would have said it was more important to maintain the existing ones; that donors burn out. Help society’s most vulnerable instead, I’d urge. These are important considerations but if you ask me today whether it’s a good... Read more

This is Day 25 of Hindtrospectives’ #MyMosqueMyStory series for Ramadan 2015 By Shahina Bashir There are no chandeliers hanging from the ceiling, no beautiful Islamic art adorning the walls, and no columns in my mosque. But its grandeur lies in its simplicity. It stands conspicuously at an intersection in a modest neighborhood. Baitur Rahman is the mosque I have frequented for the last nineteen years. It is the national headquarters of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community and located in Silver Spring,... Read more

This is Day 24 of Hindtrospectives’ #MyMosqueMyStory series for Ramadan 2015 By Arnesa Buljusmic-Kustura In the winter of 1995, I had completed my very first month of fasting. An experience which – considered by many Muslim children to be a rite of passage – was unforgettable for all the wrong reasons. In 1995, the war in Bosnia had reached its peak. My very first Ramadan was spent under siege, hiding from the terrorizing sniper campaign which was occurring throughout the... Read more

This is Day 23 of Hindtrospectives’ #MyMosqueMyStory series for Ramadan 2015 By Amina Ebrahim The mosque I used to attend in Cape Town while growing up always made accommodation available for the elderly. The accommodation came in two forms: a female prayer space downstairs for those who could not climb up the stairs to the ladies section and plenty of chairs scattered all over the different prayer spaces. I’ve always looked at the facilities as accommodation for the frail or... Read more

This is Day 22 of Hindtrospectives’ #MyMosqueMyStory series for Ramadan 2015 By Alev Karasu This is the final year of my PhD and the pressure is rising. I live in The Netherlands, and am completing my PhD in medicine at a university hospital. The past few years with Ramadan I was able to adjust my schedule a little bit: I wasn’t working late (a 36-hour workweek would have to do) and I came in a bit later and left later.... Read more