Ramadan Series: A New Ramadan
As we all know, life has been quite different lately. When this first happened, we were all hopeful that it would be over by Ramadan and Eid. Soon we all realized, it would be a very different Ramadan this year. One of the best parts of Ramadan is community and not having that this year will be quite difficult. We recently moved back to NJ where all my family is and I was honestly looking forward to seeing our families often and hosting our friends for Iftar. What I can say is, I’ve had similar Ramadans the past few years living in CT as I had young kids and not much support nearby. Even then we had friends to celebrate some Iftars with. This year, it’ll be just our little family. We can let it get us bummed out and be sad throughout Ramadan or we can choose to be thankful that Allah has gave us health and a chance to experience another Ramadan. This is truly a blessing. I will miss my moms Iftar and hosting Iftar for my loved ones, however, I will focus on increasing my worship even more then before and spending time with our family. I’ve created some ways we can make this Ramadan special for myself and I hope this can help you too. At the end are some resources I’ll be using.
Write out your Goals
You want to make a list of goals for your entire month & then break it up day by day. These should be attainable and not a huge list. Remember consistency is key. Even if you perform 4 extra nafl daily that is better Some of mine are: completing the Quran, listening to Tasfeer, reading Tarawih every night, working out & listening to one Ramadan series. Being at home will actually be helpful as my husband won't be leaving for Tarawih and we can do a lot of these goals together.Create a Routine
During this pandemic, keeping a routine helps decrease anxiety & gain a sense of control. This will be really important for all family members to meet their goals. Working from home, making sure Safa attends her classes online, cooking and so on. For example, my husband & I want to workout around Iftar. This will only work if we make a plan & routine to work out on alternate days. Talk to your spouse & family so you can plan ahead.
A Special Musalla
One of the first things I thought of was creating a special musalla. I’ve always wanted a space like this in my house but did not get time to create one. We have a loft upstairs that I decided to convert into a small musalla. I ordered special prayer rugs for all of us. On the bookshelf, I placed all of our books, our Quran and learning materials for Ramadan. In the corner, I wanted an area for us to sit and read Quran, listen to lectures and study. I got this floor pillow from Urban Outfitters and a little pillow for our backs. Since this is on the top floor this is more for my husband and I when the kids are sleeping. It’ll be our little masjid without any distractions.Make a New Tradition
Our new tradition I started last year was the Ramadan Calendar. Even though I have fond memories as a child of Ramadan, most of them were surrounding food. While that is great and I want to continue that, I also want to add that for my family to have the focus on increasing good deeds and Ibadah. Since we’ll be home the good deeds inserts I put together are intended to take a little longer. Another tradition I have thought about is talking about what we are grateful for that day before Iftar time and thanking Allah for all of our blessings. Lastly, we’ll be having Iftar party Saturdays since we won’t be going to any this Ramadan.
Keep meals simple and share responsibilities.
Don’t overindulge & waste too much time cooking. We have a small Iftar with fruit & samosas & then our regular dinner! Everyone should help in the kitchen, not just one person. If possible, try to have different family members take turns cooking. I usually do most of the cooking for Iftar but my husband typically will make Suhoor and help out during Iftar. Days.I don’t feel like cooking big meals we’ll usually get take out! This is also going to be really important to support our local muslim businesses.
Donate and give Sadaqah if you can. The last and most important is to donate to and give sadaqah as much as possible. We won’t be able to donate at the masjid but we should continue to donate to our local masjid, local muslim businesses, shelters, food banks and so on. There are many organizations to donate to locally and if possible we have to try to support them as much as we can. Look for non profit organizations, diaper banks, food banks etc.
Resources:
My Free Daily Printable: Save the Image below and print!
Islamic Relief Planner: https://www.islamicreliefcanada.org/what-we-do/ramadan/agenda/
Yaqeen Institute: They have amazing articles and daily lives for Ramadan.
Seekers Guidance: If you’re looking for a course to take on a specific topic, they have so many and all are free.
Qalam Institute: This is probably what I’ll be utilizing the most. They have provided all online learning for free! I’ll be taking the women’s class about spiritual and self development. My husband and I will take the Prophetic EQ Class on Sundays. Every night they’ll be having Ramadan Reflections as well.
Ta’leef Collective: They will also be having some great courses
ICNA Relief: They have an awesome schedule for every day and for all members of the family!!
Family & Youth Institute: Ramadan Readiness Toolkit. AMAZING Toolkit for everyone and anyone.
Miftah Institute: Another amazing institute provided classes online throughout Ramadan.
