Dubai: I’m not sad, exactly, that Ramadan is over, but I’ve always loved this month and now feel even closer to it.
When I began fasting, for the purpose of gulfnews.com’s Tasting Ramadan blog, I saw the month stretching before me, a dry desert that felt endless.
I was wrong about that.
Ramadan was a personal challenge that was at times difficult (but never impossible). I love it for the peacefulness I found not only around me but also within. (By “within”, I mean lots of naps. I’m not that introspective.)
I love it for the smiles and connections I’ve made. I love it for all the books I’ve been able to read this month when I’m awake at 4am drinking suhour smoothies. (My recommendation: Wild, by Cheryl Strayed. Someone else is always thirstier than you are.)
I love feeling like Wonder Woman when I’m doing a barre class before iftar, watching others guzzle water as I pulse serenely. (OK, smugly. I will admit a certain amount of pride, but hey, what’s a spiritual month if you don’t have a deadly sin to work on, right?)
Now it’s over, I see the rest of the year stretching in front of me, with less patience and courtesy and understanding and permission to eat copious halloumi-bread dishes.
Please let me be wrong about that, too.
Perhaps the difference I found during Ramadan wasn’t that other people were behaving better — it was because I was behaving better.
So I’ll work on that one now. But I’ll remember one more thing I learnt during Ramadan, from the folks at the Shaikh Mohammad Centre for Cultural Understanding: We are all human, none of us saints, and let’s not pretend to be; forgive yourself and each other and just try to square away the business of doing that before the sun sets on the day.
Eid Mubarak, everyone, and thank you for following me on this journey.
