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I\u2019ve never been to the masjid during\u00a0Ramadan.<\/p>\n
It might sound unbelievable, but it\u2019s true. Mother\u2019s with small children might know what I am going through- \u00a0with the fasts being so long these past few years I find it almost impossible to get out of the house to go pray taraweeh. My daughter is six-years-old and while it may be arguable that she\u2019s ready to be attending the masjid, I just don\u2019t see how it\u2019s possible. And that is what gives me \u201cRamadan Guilt\u201d almost every year.<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve read several articles that say it\u2019s better for a woman to pray at home and what we\u2019re doing is commendable. It\u2019s not easy to fast all day, cook a great meal and then deal with the post iftar kitchen disaster, all while trying to squeeze in prayers and other forms of worship, and most important to me, spend time with my daughter. However I ask myself at times am I doing enough? Is Allah pleased with me? Am I really reaping the benefits of this month by staying at home at night while my husband is at the masjid?<\/p>\n
One beautiful aspect of our religion is the fact that actions are judged by intentions. To try to remove some of the guilt or sadness I have, I not only directly ask Allah to reward me for what I do around the house, but I now change my intention for everything. Whether it\u2019s putting my daughter in bed right before Isha or washing the huge pile of dishes in my hot kitchen, my intentions are always to do this for the sake of Allah.<\/p>\n
As mother\u2019s we have to try to do the best we can in balancing our deen and our families. If you can make it to the masjid every taraweeh and Jumah, then MashAllah. But if you\u2019re like me and have to choose, make the decision with hope that we\u2019re rewarded just as much. I pray that when my little one is a little older, we\u2019ll be able to go to the masjid together. Until then, I am trying to make the best of my Ramadans at home. Maybe next year, Inshalah.<\/p>\n
Miriam Mahmood<\/p>\n
Miriam is a recent college graduate with her B.S in Human Services and a mother to a six-year-old year old girl. She resides in Brooklyn, NY.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I\u2019ve never been to the masjid during\u00a0Ramadan. It might sound unbelievable, but it\u2019s true. Mother\u2019s with small children might know what I am going through- \u00a0with the fasts being so long these past few years I find it almost impossible to get out of the house to go pray taraweeh. My daughter is six-years-old and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1573,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,1],"tags":[617,797,958,1448,1029,1090],"class_list":["post-5959","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-spirituality","category-uncategorized","tag-intention","tag-motherhood-2","tag-prayer","tag-praying-in-masjid","tag-ramadan","tag-reward"],"yoast_head":"\n