Ramadan 2017

Photo c/o aljazeera.com

There is an estimated 1.8-billion Muslims in the world as of 2015.  This is according to research done by the Pew Research Center.  Muslims have been fasting for a month, it is called Ramadan and today marks the end with a celebration called Eid al-Fitr (the festival of breaking the fast).

In the same research it states that the Muslims are expected to outnumber Christians by 2050. They are the fastest growing religious group in the planet.  And I've personally seen, Muslim friends, acquaintances, and colleagues, how they are very devoted in practicing their faith.

Friends and family from the homeland have shown photos and videos on social media, how they've been celebrating the end of Ramadan with heaps of food and merriment.  I can see from their faces how happy they all are, in-spite of the difficulties and challenges they are facing everyday.  I'm not talking about the basic things like food, clothing and shelter.  But the more challenging ones of being safe from terrorists, fugitives, and racists.

I am happy that I've had only generally pleasant experiences with Muslims during my younger years.  Back in the day, being a Muslim was not a discriminatory factor, in fact they even got funding and resources when it came to education.  Some of my close friends are Muslims and I am, I think 1/5 Muslim in terms of family relations.  During my younger days, whenever I accompanied my mother to the wet market, there were almost always a distant Muslim family relation giving my mom something more an extra fish or two in the basket.

Happy Eid Mubarak!