Nothing compares to ending your fast with family

Name: Shereen Malherbe

Age: 30

Occupation: Author

Nationality: British-Palestinian

Emirate of residence: Sharjah

In the UAE: For 5 years

“Ramadan as a celebration is a fairly new experience to me. We do not have any specific traditions or things we do together as a family every year. I am still learning about all the benefits and blessings of Ramadan. For example, how to calculate Zakat, the blessings on the night of Al Qadr and other aspects like the night prayers.

“My last Ramadan was spent in the UK. The days were long and fasting didn’t end until 9.30pm at night. I don’t have many family members that fast so it was difficult to feel part of a community because the nearest mosque was over half an hour drive away and with young children, it wasn’t easy for me to be involved. However, this did come with blessings of its own as it allowed me to spend more time reading the Quran and reflecting on what Ramadan meant to me. In a way, ending my fast alone and late at night made the month more poignant. You have this overwhelming feeling of appreciation for water and food and that makes you try to understand and contemplate what others don’t have.

“This year I am spending the month in UAE. It is different here as there are mosques close to where I live and the sound of the Adhan fills the air. As my children are still young, I want to instil a love of Ramadan and Eid in them so it becomes something they grow up with. We will be spending the days learning more about Islam, practicing our Arabic during the day as well as learning about charity and good deeds to set a precedent for the rest of the year.

“Being an author, my debut novel, Jasmine Falling is set in Palestine and attempts to bridge the gap between the West and the Islamic narrative. It relays some of my experiences through a fictional story, and I think it is a great privilege to be able to showcase a different narrative of Islam to the West. This Ramadan, I will gift copies of my book and find a charitable cause to back in Palestine, the country that inspired it. I want to give something back to Palestine, the country that introduced me to the strength, beauty and generosity of Islam.”