The phone rang. “Brad, could you wait for me at the door. I am in a cab.” Brad is not her husband. Brad is the doorman in her building.
“It’s my job to protect the residents,”
Welcome to My Table
I was skeptical at first. I received an email from Shoulder to Shoulder asking me if I would be interested in participating in their program, “Welcome to My Table,” …They were proposing that they pair me up with a family for an interfaith iftar via Zoom.
Miss, Mrs., Ms., or Mx
When I lived in Saudi Arabia, I was ‘wife of Dr. Khalid Rehman.’ Although everyone called me Sabeeha, this was my official name; my official identity–on paper.
Jummah Prayer in the Age of Coronavirus
Imam Feisal A. Rauf gives the Jummah sermon on-line
For most of my life (which is pretty long), I have not been regular in attending Jummah prayers at the mosque. . . An email from Cordoba House hit my inbox: ‘Jummah prayers with Imam Feisal on March 27 via Zoom.’ Yes! I got two-for-one:
Read moreA Letter to My Mother
Dear Mummy, I think of you often during these times. I wonder how you would have reacted to ‘life in the age of Coronavirus.’
Read moreRamadan In the Age of Coronavirus: Virtual Iftars
This year, Ramadan is like none we have experienced. In late April, as we were getting closer to Ramadan, we wondered how, with shelter-in-place, would we make up for the lost communal spirit.
Read moreWhat a Difference a Month Makes
I know now, what I didn’t a month ago. That school closures means that 50% of our school children would have to go without food; children would huddle in the cold under the school’s canopy to access wi-fi; and there would be no home-schooling for the homeless.
Read moreA Letter From Pakistan
We got hit before Pakistan. I am talking about the Coronavirus. January 21st now seems so long ago,
Read moreWhen It’s Over, The First Thing I Plan to do . . .
The ambulance sirens are wailing, first distant, then louder, then distant again. Another victim fighting for his life. Her life? After the Coronavirus epidemic ends, the first thing I plan to do is give my children and grandchildren a grateful hug; and my daughters-in-law. In person. Not an emoji.
Read moreThe Moment I Dread
My hands trembled as I ended the call. Someone I didn’t know had died. But what gave me palpitation was hearing of the pain his wife endured while her husband was hospitalized.
She couldn’t be with him.