Ohmygosh, Ramadan is kicking my A**! \u00a0I\u2019ve not been this tired for more than 2 days consecutively since 2005. \u00a0Usually when I get this little sleep, there is a squishy, sweet-smelling baby in my arms. \u00a0No such luck. \u00a0I do have a very appreciative husband and son though, so I try really hard to be gracious. \u00a0They have the more challenging task. \u00a0Husband is actually getting the same or less sleep than I am and fasting, and going out of the house to work every day, plus maintaining his \u2018Fun Baba\u2019 status with the short people. \u00a0This amazes me. \u00a0Yes, he needs considerably less sleep than I do, but seriously?<\/p>\n
I follow a lot of blogs on Facebook written by Muslimahs, or whose target audience is Muslimahs. \u00a0I also follow a few boutique clothing designers who create beautiful Abayas, Caftans and Jilbabs as well as hijabs. \u00a0So, I don\u2019t quite remember where I came across this book title, but I do remember it was announced pre-sale, and I was very interested in reading it. \u00a0But as things go, I looked up the book title, followed the fan page on Facebook, and kept on going.<\/p>\n
A few months later, I found the book for sale on Amazon<\/a>, and put it into my wishlist\u2026then a month or so ago, I bought it.<\/p>\n I didn\u2019t really know what to expect. \u00a0The back cover reads:<\/p>\n In this groundbreaking collection, American Muslim women writers sweep aside stereotypes to share their real-life tales of dating, longing, and sex. \u00a0Their stories show just how varied the search for love can be \u2013 from singles\u2019 events and college flirtations to arranged marriages, all with a uniquely Muslim twist.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n My experience with Muslims dating is a bit skewed. \u00a0When I dated Khaled, his religion posed no real effect on how we navigated our relationship. \u00a0Once we got engaged, I learned a little about how marriages happen in his family. \u00a0They maintain the chaperoned family visits once the prospective spouse (and their family) is vetted. \u00a0Both of his brothers married without our knowledge until after the fact. \u00a0I was shocked. \u00a0We married with my family and a few of our close friends as witnesses.<\/p>\n My SIL, saw her husband on campus while she attended college. \u00a0She told her mother, who inquired with the young man\u2019s family, then (I\u2019ve been told) a series of family visits occurred. \u00a0We\u00a0traveled\u00a0to Egypt for the Nikah, and then we returned for the formal wedding celebration.<\/p>\n The last few years, I\u2019ve met a few converts who are Hijabi, and single. \u00a0I wondered how someone would go about navigating the dating world while maintaining the\u00a0plain and simple <\/em>mandate<\/a> \u2014 you\u2019re not supposed to interact with the opposite gender unless there is a need. <\/a>\u00a0<\/em>As it is today, I have a very difficult time speaking to men who are not in my family just because my life reinforces this mandate on a\u00a0consistent\u00a0basis.<\/p>\n So, how do Muslimahs date? \u00a0The other thing I have a problem getting past, is that I have this preconceived notion that Hijabi = Nun = Virgin Mary. \u00a0Yes. \u00a0Now you get it. \u00a0In my head, I equate a hijab with celibacy. \u00a0I imagine there are a lot of people who share this notion. \u00a0It is possible that this is why people see the hijab as constricting and shaming. (I\u2019m just\u00a0hypothesizing\u00a0here.)<\/p>\n A couple of the single Muslimahs have used the internet to meet men. \u00a0One has a married man from the community to represent her when she meets her prospective dates. \u00a0She also takes\u00a0chaperones\u00a0with her when she meets someone face to face. \u00a0Another friend dates in a very typical way, meeting the person online\u2026chatting for a while, meeting in a public place for coffee, potentially lunch. \u00a0I ask questions all the time, but since I\u2019ve never seen it happen in action, I still cannot fathom how someone who wears hijab full-time, can meet a stranger and end up dating.<\/p>\n Love, InshaAllah<\/span> is a book that compiles the love stories of \u00a025 American Muslim women. \u00a0The stories take place during their teenage struggles with dating and sexuality, their experimental college years and during the courtship with their husbands. \u00a0If you got a room of women together at any conference, and asked them to share their most pivotal romantic stories in\u00a0confidence, you would get similar themes. \u00a0Regardless of their religion, these women shared the same palpable angst, romance,\u00a0tentative\u00a0love and powerful connections as anyone.<\/p>\n One of my favorite stories is by Angela Collins Telles. \u00a0Her story tells of how she was on vacation with her girlfriend, and fate brought her together with her husband, Marcelo. \u00a0I also love A Cairene Kind of Love<\/em>, possibly because it is set in Cario. \u00a0I\u2019m a sucker for anyone in love with an Egyptian. \u00a0Both of these stories were written by women who converted on their own, then met men who were not Muslim, and fell in love with them\u2026the husbands eventually took their Shahada on their own\u00a0accord, challenging the idea that Muslimahs cannot marry non-Muslim men.<\/p>\n The final story in the book is written by Yasmine Khan. \u00a0She has a beautiful love story to share, and placing it at the end of the collection leaves you with a happy outlook on all of the future relationships for American Muslimahs. \u00a0The final paragraph she wrote is so\u00a0poignant, I\u2019ve reread it many times as it could apply to any of our relationships. \u00a0It also describes my story with Khaled.<\/p>\n This is not just a love story about a man and a woman. It also a love story about a little girl. It is not a story I would have had the\u00a0imagination\u00a0to write for myself, nor a story I would have believed I\u2019d have the openness and capacity to live. This is a story only God could have written. And it is already beautiful.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Ohmygosh, Ramadan is kicking my A**! \u00a0I\u2019ve not been this tired for more than 2 days consecutively since 2005. \u00a0Usually when I get this little sleep, there is a squishy, sweet-smelling baby in my arms. \u00a0No such luck. \u00a0I do have a very appreciative husband and son though, so I try really hard to be […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2860,"featured_media":811,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,14,4,6,11],"tags":[24,31,60,113,116,125,140,164,175,182,194,213,219],"class_list":["post-797","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog-posts","category-books","category-in-the-house","category-personal","category-resources","tag-acceptance","tag-american-muslim","tag-convert","tag-good-vibe","tag-growth","tag-hijab","tag-islam","tag-men","tag-muslim","tag-non-muslim","tag-personal","tag-religion","tag-revert"],"yoast_head":"\n