The lilting calls of the Muezzin
before daybreak
wafting through the still air
early in the morning hours.
Na Ni with tasbih in hand
waking up children
for a feast before the fast
all stumbling back to bed after prayers.
Reciting the QURAN from cover to cover,
saying Salaat in unison five times a day,
cooking, preparing delicious dishes,
exchanging meals with neighbors
to break the fast at dusk.
In the evening
Mosques filled with food
for everyone, rich and poor,
mouth-watering dishes, sweets, delicacies
sold in makeshift stalls
available only once a year.
Fervent prayers throughout
the twenty-seventh night
called Laylat al-Qadr
when angels from heaven descended
to accept prayers from mankind.
Twenty-nine, thirty days of steadfastness.
Everyone clamors, peers towards the sky
for the sight
of a sliver
of the first moon
confirming the end of RAMADAN.
Cleaning, cooking, sewing,
pulling an all-nighter,
everyone preparing for the feast
called Eid-Al-Fitr.
Children, adults, all decked in fineries
bejeweled from head to toe
in dresses, outfits, shawls, topees with detailed embroideries,
a kaleidoscope of colors
gather after prayers.
Visiting home after home,
rejoicing, feasting, mingling,
jubilation, laughter, happiness
amongst friends, relatives, and families,
creating memories
. . . lasting the length of a lifetime.
GLOSSARY
Na Ni: Granma
tasbih: prayer beads
topees: caps
Poem: MIMI OO has worked in Saint Paul for more than ten years professionally as well as with the refugee community. She wrote “The Month of Ramadan” in tribute to her grandma and parents, in hopes that the poem will serve as a vehicle for the immigrant and refugee Islamic community to fill their void and create new traditions in their home called “Saint Paul.”
Photo: Nadia Linoo
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