30 Days of Ramadan – Solo

Islam observes Ramadan as one of its holy months. From dawn to sunset, Muslims abstain from eating and drinking. Friends and family gather for a large meal called Iftar, which includes traditional foods. As one of Islam’s five pillars, fasting is one of the most important.

During Ramadan, I am filled with excitement. Several years ago, I started practicing Islam. Embracing Islam and wearing my hijab was an exciting experience for me. Alhamdulilah, I have noticed many changes since I started practicing good changes.

The Ramadan for this year was difficult due to the lack of hot water and heating. In order to wash, I boiled a kettle for hot water and filled up a pan with water. It was challenging to do wudu in the colder weather conditions.

This is my 30-day Ramadan 2022

DAY 1

On the first day of Ramadan, I felt energised and did an aerobics workout at home.

DAY 2

Praying Dhuhr صَلَاة ٱلظُّهْر – the second prayer of the day out of the five daily prayers.

DAY 3

I bought an iPhone cable from Holloway Road

I visited a halal butcher close to Finsbury Park

DAY 4

Today I felt unwell and phoned my GP for an appointment. I spent most of the day on the sofa and fasted.

Ramadan is a time to increase one’s knowledge which is what I did

DAY 5

I prayed & prayed like every day in Ramadan

Winston Churchill lived on my road once upon a time

DAY 6

Documentary mood board for my final major project for university

DAY 7

DAY 8

I visited an Algerian shop in Finsbury Park

The dreaded locked gate. I have to climb over when I return home. It’s been like this for several months now.

Climbing over with my bags is challenging when my trolley is heavy

DAY 9

My bath. I feel down today 😦 not having any clean hot water is frustrating. I have not washed my hair in over a week

DAY 10

DAY 11

Today I felt sad as I have to find somewhere to live again due to my ongoing harassment and islamophobia.

DAY 12

I went shopping at Tesco in Vauxhall. The lady scanned all the products at the till. My bank card was declined. I had to leave the shopping behind. I’m so broke I have no money for food. I’m in my overdraft, behind with my rent and can’t pay my bills despite applying for 100 jobs

I asked my local Afghan shop to fill my bottles with water. As I have no access to clean hot water in my flat

After Iftar, I decided to log on to a Muslim matrimonial app and exchanged numbers with a man named Bilal

DAY 13

I need to clean my patio. Locals threw their rubbish on my patio. On two separate occasions, a man brought a bag of leaves and emptied them on my patio

Someone let themselves into my flat again. It happens so often and yes, I have reported it many times

DAY 14

I had no money for bottled water tonight. I filled up an empty bottle in Sainsbury’s toilets. Since we are in Ramadan, I need to pray, which means I need to perform wudu (ablution) several times a day. Having access to clean water is essential. Not having access to clean water is taking over my life

DAY 15

I had no money to buy food, so I went to the bureau de change with the 40 euros I had from my last trip to help refugees

On my way back home, I visited my local fruit stall in Pimlico

DAY 16

DAY 17

I prayed Maghreb prayer on my clean patio

DAY 18

I booked a hotel so I can have a shower. After showering, the water started to sting my skin. I told the staff, who did not believe me. They refused to change my room or offer a refund. I left very upset and £80 down, having to book another hotel

I bought my Iftar dinner from this lovely takeaway in Paddington.

I arrived at the new hotel around 10pm, down the road from the previous hotel. I paid £52 for the night

I had another shower and this time, my body did not sting.

DAY 19

I gave a homeless man in Whitechapel some money. He told me he does not have anywhere to live with his cat and dog

I received my student loan which means I can afford some decent food Alhamdulilah

DAY 20

Today I went to Brixton for food shopping. When you fast, all you can think of is food 🙂

DAY 21

I was unwell and could not move from my sofa for 24 hours.

DAY 22

East Ham for food, haha. I’m not fasting, as when women are on their monthly cycle, they are exempt from fasting.

I went to Primark and bought some makeup & tights. Then treated myself to a lovely chicken curry from a Pakistani restaurant

DAY 23

I bought a new bakhoor burner a couple of weeks ago from Tooting. The smell is divine.

DAY 24

The UBER driver knew me. He dropped me outside New Scotland Yard for my university project some months ago.

I arrived at my hotel. I had to book a hotel again to have a shower

DAY 25

I left the hotel in Bayswater and caught a tube to Edgware Road.

DAY 26

I took a train to East Croydon to buy dinner for Iftar. I started fasting after five days of not fasting due to my monthly cycle.

DAY 27

My cat Cookie was killed recently. Today I finally donated all her toys and beds to a local charity. It was emotional as it felt like the final goodbye. I did keep one toy and her blanket. Ramadan is a time for giving to those in need. Cookies toys may likely go to Ukraine

I’ve donated items to Mike’s charity on a couple of occasions. He does some fantastic work in Pimlico

DAY 28

After several days of not having a shower, I decided to join my local gym. After a workout on the cross-trainer. I had a shower, scrubbed my body and washed my hair. It felt amazing and refreshing

DAY 29

I joined another gym—the Dilly Hotel in Piccadilly, London. I had a better experience at the Dilly than at my local gym.

I met a Syrian man on my way to a coffee shop. He converted to Christianity and left Islam some years ago. I explained to him how the bible is one of the books for Muslims and how Christians are Ahlu Al-Kitab which means “people of the book

I drank tea at Starbucks on Edgware Road

DAY 30

Today is the final day of Ramadan. I prayed. Tomorrow is EID SubhanAllah 🙂

2 responses to “30 Days of Ramadan – Solo”

Abdelrahman

May 3, 2022 at 2:28 am

Omg what a wonderful emotional journey filled with strength, emotions, presistance, kindness and godly light in the heart.
I felt so small and humble in front of your passion and faith.
May Allah bless, ease and enlight your path always.

LikeLiked by 1 person

1. PA
  
  May 3, 2022 at 6:22 pm
  
  Salam Hello Abdelrahman thank you so much for your kind words. I’m so happy to read that you liked my 30 Days of Ramadan project. Ameen ya rabb for your dua. May the Al Wadud accept it from us InshaAllah.
  
  LikeLike

Parveen Ali