I finally managed to quench my thirst for a real Ramadan last night. “Real” – is to me the observation of doing things way beyond fasting and daily prayers, and trying to do a bit more than the usual. It was my first terawih prayer for the year, the first done in Canada and how sweet it was that it was also the first time that DH and I are able to go for terawih prayers together. All these years, we have been observing Ramadan in different parts of the world – all 18,000 km of it, and made do with our own little spiritual journeys. We don’t have the luxury of going for terawih or qiyam together as a couple, hand in hand in Ramadan, as we keep each other posted about our spiritual investment via long distance phone calls.
Anyway, my first 2 weeks of Ramadan flew past me in a whiff. I was caught up in work and my colleague from the SG office as in town. In between – I was in Toronto too. In Toronto, I found out that some halal restaurants are opened till sahur, how cool is that. In this industry, most meetings are done over lunches, coffees and dinners and I had to endure quite a few of those while fasting. It was me (and my colleague) who insisted that the meetings will carry on anyway, regardless of the fact that we won’t be eating. We both felt the same way – it is us who are fasting, not the broadcasters or other non-Muslim producers. We should not impose on others.
So a few meetings went by with us sitting across the table, – while the others eat. It was a funny scene to say the least.
My first terawih prayers was beautiful. We prayed at Richmond Mosque, which I think is the first mosque ever built in Vancouver. When we were finished, I walked slowly to the mosque entrance looking for DH and it was then that it hit me – this is the first time we go for terawih together after 4 years of marriage. In a typical setting, some people may feel sad but yesterday, I felt blessed. Vancouver was windy last night and the sky was exceptionally bright. I love windy nights and with the Autumn leaves falling, everything was perfect.
I don’t wish to look back and see how my last 15 days of Ramadan was ‘wasted’. A casting agent friend called to check if I was going to the film festival’s gala last night, and I proudly said no. When he asked why, I said : “I am not going, I have a lot to catch up. You have no idea.” He must have thought that I am buried in budgets and treatments. All I had in mind is I need to race for what’s left for the holy month.
I may have not started Ramadan this year with a pole position, but I am not disheartened. My real Ramadan is just about to begin, even if it was a tad late – starting at 16*.
nb *: 16 being the 16th day of Ramadan
