Ramadan Reset – #10 The Soul Changed – Nichole Queen

Welcome to Ramadan reset with me Your host Lauren booth. This podcast series is sponsored by what handled org.uk delivering services to Syrians in need, knowing that he's watching, feeling guilty having that subconscious little voice that's in there saying what are you doing with your life like Don't you want to have a better purpose? Bismillah R Rahman r Rahim al hamdu Lillahi Rabbil alameen wa Salatu was Salam ala rasulillah salam alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakaatuh, who in today's episode, we look at the psychological impact of having a past you'd rather forget before Islam of giving Dawa with kid gloves and how to create a fully integrated daily life and Muslim life. My

guest today is Nicole Queen, Nicole was a photographer of celebrity nightlife. And since accepting Islam, she dedicates herself to filming weddings. Instead, she's a sought after public speaker and the CO creator and host of the famous us podcast, salaam, girl, Lauren, I'm so excited to be here with you and to be with all of you may all the blessings and all the fast and all the charity that you've all done to be accepted in Shaolin army at Abu alameen. First of all, how long have you been was 13 years, I was working full time. And of course, supporting myself I was single when I first came to Islam, and so had bills to pay. And I can tell you that I had no idea what the reality

behind Islam was, um, I really compared it to Hinduism, and Buddhism and isms. You know, like, I thought that it was part of a faith where people worshiped multiple Gods possibly, and I had never actually really understood what they believe. But I knew that a lot of South Asian people were Muslim, and Middle Eastern people were Muslim. And so I assumed that they didn't worship the same Abrahamic God that I knew of as a Christian. You know, it's interesting, just hearing you talk to them. So there's God in His heavens, who may or may not be three, and Jesus who may or may not be the Son of God, and we all sit down nicely, and we pray nicely, and we have little Easter

celebrations, I definitely was one of those white people who thought that brown people's religion was very dramatic. It was theatrical, that had special clothing that had to be worn, and there were special statues and flowers, and maybe you offered food to something that wasn't living and, you know, created that. And I really put them all in this group. And that all people that were not Christian or Jewish, just because I have learned about Judaism through Christianity, all of the other people were doing something strange

thing you know what said it just sorry to jump in there. But I was just thinking that didn't you learn about Islam or any other face at school in America.

And I, you know, what's funny, it's like, now I go to public schools, and I give the lesson on what Muslims believe to that. I think it's the seventh grade class when they they get introduced into that section. So I'm so happy to be able to do that. I remember that when I was in school, like, Islam was a Turkish Ottoman Empire. And it was all about the historical aspects of how they occupied territories and how they grew their regions. And all in those kinds of things. I knew nothing about what they believed as a faith. It was mainly just Muslims were this Ottoman Empire, and it was nothing but historical facts and regions, and along the same lines as learning about Napoleon. Hmm,

that's interesting. You know, the other the other fact that coal is that teachers have to multitask. So in our schools in the West, any lessons on Islam will be taught by either a secular or a Christian teacher. Yeah. So I'm, I am happy to be part of an organization, the Islamic network group, and they have

organizations in the US called the Islamic speaker's bureau, and we get to go into public schools, and during that time, at seventh grade, where they learn about what others believe, and I get to go in front of the whole seventh grade class and tell them who Muslims are, like all the different regions that we come from, what we look like all the different faces of Islam and what we believe, from a completely educational standpoint. So the schools accept it because it's completely on an educational democracy type, you know, diplomatic standpoint, we're just teaching them. We're not in their preaching or anything like that. And it's so

Great because I can answer their questions and kind of squash out some stereotypes that they might be feeling. And in a lot of them are super curious. Tell us about some of those amazing questions you must have heard. So, um, I've had even the scariest part is when I get, you know, 200 high school seniors or something in there. And you're just like, oh, wow, what are they going to ask? And I've had them ask the most simple questions. And I'm so happy, because I realized that a lot of them this is their first introduction to the reality of our religion. And I'm a, as a former Christian, and as a person who grew up just like they did here in the West, I'm able to communicate with them

in a way that they understand even with the slang terms that they use jokes that they use, you know, bring up stuff that they think is funny and relatable. And I get questions like simple stuff, like why do you wear a scarf? Did your husband make you wear a scarf?

Do you pray to the God of the moon?

Yeah, interesting. That's an interesting, it's an interesting little, you know, misunderstanding, isn't it something to do with the moon, they pray a lot. They pray to the moon, because they hear the different things like they know about Ramadan, they know about Ramadan, but they don't really know why we have Ramadan, What's the story behind it, and they know that it's got something to do with moons and that we use, a lot of times that Turkish symbol of the crescent, moon and star a lot of times you see that as a representation of Islam, or people wear that around their neck to say that they're Muslim. And so they get that confused. And they think that that is a symbol of the the

moon bond, you know,

yeah, so there's so many ways that starting at a young age that we can kind of change their perspective, you know, by listening to a happy Muslim who's up there, like happy to be there and happy to be wearing a job and all of that it really changes their perspective on everything. And the fact that also that it's a woman

telling them these things, because a lot of their questions have to do with a patriarchal society, and how women are represented in Islam. And so I'm really happy that I get to be up there doing that. And that, of course, is slowed down a lot. But in sha Allah, when everything gets picked back up, we'll be picking that back up, especially if you're in Dallas, Charlotte, you kind of wish that the parents were in the room as well. You do. In some parents? I think we're skeptical about it. But I think that has been a lot of protests actually, in the States, right? Yeah. Yeah, they. And that's what's awesome about that organization is that they are so careful to cross their T's and dot your

i's and make sure that everything that we do is in line with the educational system in the US, and then it's in line with what the teachers are teaching them and that we are really just dropping some information down about what we believe, you know, so if I've had student come up and say, I'm interested in the Quran, do you have one that I can take? And the Muslim inside me, the Convert inside me wants to be like, yes, do you want to meet for coffee, and I can kind of show you it and give you one and all of that kind of stuff. But I can't, as a representative in their schools, like I have to just say, you can ask your teacher about that, you know, maybe she can help you find that,

like, I can't leave a for on. I can't leave anything. I just have to leave information with them. And can you even give them a website? Like the website for who you work with? That would make sense? Yeah, you can give you can give them the website for the organization. But you can't give them like why Islam calm or anything like that. You have to really just kind of, you know, wear white gloves and that kind of thing. But we're thankful that we even get to do that. We do it in churches, too, because a lot of the churches are preaching against Islam, and they preach a lot of

Islamophobia, rhetoric in their services. And I don't know why. Magnus, oh my gosh, if anybody out there if you haven't been on some of these evangelical websites, the stuff they say is insane. Absolutely not. It's Cuckoo. I mean, and they say it like you know, and they they eat their children when they reach four years old. They're like, Oh, my God. I mean, you know, everything they'll say,

yeah, it's amazing that people just go wow, there's Muslims there and they'll think you're crazy. Yeah, they they definitely get people riled up. And, um, and I almost feel like they should focus on the building the confidence of who they are as Christians and to really get to know their book in a better way more pure way.

To follow their religion in its pure form, instead of just kind of updating everything to be easier for them to follow. I wish they would focus more on that instead of maybe they try to make our religion look

crazy and cuckoo so that they feel like well, what we're doing is validated. validated. You are right. You know what, you just bought back a memory to me that, you know, you kind of a lot of our past Nicole and I we won't speak about it in public necessarily. But we both have similar times when it's like a section of your life is a Stoffel law, basically, from 6pm to 6am, for about 20 years as a staff ruler. And that's a lot of hours, right that you have to block out. But when you were saying that about, about this, this, this idea of other groups making, you know, seeing people slip from belief in their way. So they make it easier, right, let's make it easier, just do anything, have a

band in the church. And for a little while there might be more people coming into the church, but then the band isn't quite funky enough so they go to the pub next door. So you know, you have these socials, so it becomes about the socials. And then, you know, God isn't such fashionable words. So you don't mention God in the church. That's what I found in the churches. In the UK, I was going to speak about Jesus but not about God, God this that, you know, this overriding figure who tells you, you sin, not so much. You're so popular, right? Yeah.

Yeah, um, I think that all religions struggle, in a sense to, to gather members together and to make them feel strong as as one as unity. And we do that in our faith with our young people, like we struggle to keep them involved, we struggle to keep them focused on their faith and to keep them away from peer pressures and from the society's pressure in the West, you know, that you need to need to be cool, you need to fit in, be like Drake, instead of you need to be like the Prophet Muhammad. So

I think that that's a big struggle that that all faiths have, and you know, we're all God help us all to know him, you know, whichever path you've chosen to live your life for God, whatever path that is, whatever you were born into, maybe you just don't know about other paths, whatever you were born into, like, God help us all, to know that he is real, and that he is the truth, whether you're Jewish, or Christian, or Muslim, like God help you just to be on your path. And whatever organization you follow, if you feel like they are

bad mouthing or blaspheming, other religions, things, other religions are worshipping God. So when they do that they're bad mouthing and blasting the God. And you have to know that that's wrong. And in all aspects, and so, you know, I beseech you to seek out a different place to worship, you know,

stay there, if they make you feel like that. And if it's, again, if it's based on fear, so I guess,

yeah, and yeah, they do that, because it's exciting. And it makes people feel shaking in their seats, you know, that there, there's these terrorists out there, and they're your neighbors, you know, and a lot of that got amped up, you know, in the past four years. Interesting. Yeah, interesting. And so that got really amped up. And so the need for people to be able to go out and to say, Well, I'm a Muslim, and I'd like to share my faith with you as your brother or sister in monotheism, you know, like that we all worship the same God. And I'd like to build a bridge with you, you know, to have somebody come in and do that is just so important. Because you really want to

alleviate fear mongering, we don't want that to happen. And we want to build bridges and to show people all the things that are common between us because how is that unity that we read about in the Holy Quran going to happen that unity where we are all one if we are also divided? I'm going to take some questions and comments now because we've got a wonderful array of people so I'm really cool man. How you doing guys? Welcome to our living rooms. These are our living spaces. This is how we we do things.

Who are you sisters as some lift car adjust. Ali? Are you asking Who are you sisters? or How are you? I'm Lauren booth. I'm a journalist and broadcaster and this is I'm Nicole Queen and I am a fan of Lauren booth. Yes, that's cheeky. How can you get your cheeky

fan girl back so um, so you're looking at a podcaster and a wonderful photographer as well and somebody who espouses Islam and educates people Mashallah.

We're really glad to be here tonight, talking about what non Muslims perceive about the faith generally, but specifically about our religious practices, such as Ramadan. So Asher has been here from the beginning, I feel like you know that thing. We've been on a journey together, haven't we mean you Asher? Mashallah. She's from Malaysia and she says,

some missionary Christian said Muslim women oppress ourselves because we covered our head. And we're just modesty. But in the Bible, the women had to cover their heads. And they didn't read their own Bible.

So would you like to, to address that, Nicole?

I can definitely attest to a time where I visited a Catholic Church on a regular basis, just kind of, you know, looking around what I believed. And the women who went into the Catholic churches, to offer their prayers would wear veils. And, you know, the Catholic Church proceeds the the Protestant religion where, you know, you see that transition and that shift that kept happening in Christianity as the world changed. So it but before times, you know, before the religion transitioned into the Protestants, there was mainly just Catholicism. And the women did wear veils, and wearing a veil also even proceeding that time. And women wore veils around their hair, they covered their hair, as

a sign also that they were of a class of women who were

considered to be like that you were a person that had like a reputation or that you were from a good family that you were a pious girl, it had always in all of time, and all of history, women covering their bodies, even wearing in the West wearing bonnets, over their hair, covering their bodies, having little paracel umbrellas and walking around with lace gloves on and just revealing yourself to men was never something that was seen as a positive aspect of a woman.

It was definitely practiced throughout all generations, that women had some sort of covering over themselves. And then things change, like as the world changed, and women covered less and less than men, also, their responsibilities in this world became heavier, you know, where they needed to be able to get out and work and run and do all these things. And so I think that's fine, changed a lot. But if you look at the biblical times, definitely women identified themselves as believers of God, as worshipers of God. By having these veils. They, there were women who didn't, and they were representing themselves as people who were available. There were women, they would wear ornaments

around their ankles, you know, like belts or little bracelets and stuff. So when they walked, you would hear them and there were women that were like that, that were kind of making themselves available for, you know, monetary reasons. And I believe that things just kind of progress with that, but it's always been there. It's always been there in Christianity. Even when I went to church. We it was considered kind of taboo, if I were to show up to church wearing pants. When I was really young, we didn't wear pants to church we were scarred which which meant trousers, by the way for the rest of the world. Yeah, knickers,

we, we wore skirts. If we went to the church camp, we had to wear only skirts and dresses and shorts, maybe that went over your knee that looked like skirts. And you know, there's always been modesty that has been promoted in Christianity. And so when they say like, Oh, you putting that scarf on is what's causing you to be oppressed. And that's just showing maybe an out of touch with their own past or their own history that they have, that they've really become so modernized, or, you know, assimilated into the society today that they've lost touch with kind of that beauty that that was in their own history and their own religion. Nicole, tell me, how did it feel? Can we just

talk a little bit about how you would dress up just a vague idea in the week before Islam, and then what that modesty felt like when you picked it up, maybe it came gradually, or was there it was a revelation of I don't want to do this anymore. Because going to the clubs and taking photographs.

We has an expectation

have, you know really minimal, minimal covering, you're young, you're attractive, you're in the clubs, you don't wear much. So we can we can hold it like that, right? Absolutely. That was how I got a lot of the positions that I had, or the accounts that I had with different clubs and different restaurant openings and things like that was because I was an attractive woman who could also do this job that was mainly done by men. And, and being that person allowed more of the high profile people to allow me to take their photographs. And because it was I was a more approachable person. And so they would say, yeah, sure, you can take my picture, you know, whereas a man probably they

would have been like, data, your pictures.

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So that was part of my lifestyle, the more I can tell you this, that the more that I got closer to God. And the more that I got my heart or my insides closer to God, the more embarrassed I felt, by my appearance when I was being very revealing. And it was like this kind of baby step process where I started to feel like I didn't want to have shirts that were low cut, I didn't want to reveal cleavage, I was more aware of the things that I used to be proud to promote, you know, that I definitely was one to promote. So it got to where I felt inner shame that I hadn't really felt before.

I would go in my closet to find something more modest to wear. Like if I wanted to go to an Islam one on one class, like, I would be like, Oh my god, I need to have like a long skirt. And I needed even just sleeves that went down to my elbows was really difficult to find in my closet. So I really had to slowly purchase things that were more modest. And I took baby steps to get used to this idea that I didn't want to show off and that I had a new kind of outlook on myself. And that was something that I'll always be thankful for no matter, right? Is that my view of myself and how I felt the way other people saw me

changed. If you did you still buy into this

westernized because it's not just the West, but westernized ethic, bollywood and Hollywood ethic that the more you show, the more liberated you are as a woman. So I think that liberation is about freedom, it's about the ability to represent yourself in whatever way that that makes you feel the best. So some women, that is how they feel liberated,

because they may be, or maybe have covered themselves for different reasons before and it wasn't because they want it to. So taking off the clothes is liberation for them, then I understand what's going on in their heads with that, I understand that for me, I had no rules and could wear anything I wanted. And so it wasn't a big deal to dress like that to be, you know, showing off and things. So I wouldn't say that dressing sexy would have liberated me, because that was something that I took for granted. It was something I did every day. And I felt a little more liberated in the sense of Wow, it's so different for me to not dress that way. It's different for me to wear long clothes and

to wear a scarf. And it's still different. And I've been doing it for now. 12 years, it was about six to eight months, I think after I converted that I started to wear the hijab. And so it's still knew it's a because it's not a natural part of my brain of what I have a concept of getting dressed and stuff. It's something I do.

And I used it almost in a tool. Because I was vain in a sense. I was very self reliant on how I looked it to the world and that was how I had moved ahead in my life I had lived on my own for so long. That was how I moved ahead to give myself a whole

new idea of worth or what I needed to do to get ahead in life and that it wasn't about how I presented myself as an attractive person. And that was new. That was exciting. And that was liberating to learn how to represent myself in a completely different way. And it was very exciting. And I use wearing the hijab more as a tool to awaken an inner revolution in my brain. So if I saw my reflection in the mirror, it was like a shock every time it was like, oh, who is that? You know? Yeah.

I wanted to bring myself on this journey. And I used the head job to make that easier, because when I saw myself as this girl in a scarf fully covered, then it awakened the things in my mind and in my body that told me that that's how I should behave. When you've gone from this libertarian, not liberated libertarian means anything goes lifestyle, to there's gonna be a restriction for 30 days, were you terrified? I knew Muslim people, like I was, you know, still learning and researching and stuff. And so I did practice Ramadan, I think twice before I had ever done my Shahada, the first 30 days, yeah, fasted for the full 30 days, and it was more of this day, I can do that, you know,

because the Muslim people would be like, it's really hard. You can't you know, we can't have water, we can't have food, it's really difficult. You're not, you're all alone, you don't have a family to break your fast with or anything. And, and I took it on, not in a religious standpoint, I didn't worship during that time, I wasn't reading on or praying. So I was literally just hungry and thirsty. But it was more of a mind body kind of spiritual journey for me. And I just felt like I wanted to see if I can do it. And I loved when people would tell me that something was very difficult and very self disciplined, and that I wouldn't be able to handle doing that, because that

to me was supercharged motivation that would be like, totally handle that. So it was more Ramadan was more of like this fun challenge that I took on. But Ramadan as a Muslim was completely different.

And there were a lot more expectations on meaning. And there was a lot more rules that came with it, you know, a lot more regulations about how to fast and what you should abstain from and how you should be extra prayers and, you know, going to each other's homes and providing if tours for other people. And you know, I kind of missed the Ramadan before where it was just me and him just kind of taking it all in.

What about the that big change then with that with the first real Ramadan, where as a Muslim?

Yeah, it's really hard to remember it. You know, like I said, I've been in this for more than 10 years now. And even now, it's really hard to remember that Ramadan is not just fasting. But it's really not just fasting, that's just part of it. It's we become almost obsessed with it, just like his job is not just covering up with a scarf, you know, there's so much more into it than what meets the eye. Ramadan is so much more than just not having food and water. And we forget that I think we forget that and we get so involved in the things that we're not doing. And then we don't really pay a lot of attention to what we are supposed to add during that month and what we're supposed to be

enjoying. And so I think that that part was difficult was just learning that okay, not just about the fast, there's so much more going on. This is more about me becoming ultra connected to myself and ultra connected to my faith and then even that realization that you truly are doing this because you want God to see and you want to know for yourself like that you have Taqwa that you're not gonna sneak in there and eat food when no one's around, because of the fact that you tell yourself like I truly believe that.

I'm showing him that I have this belief in him that I have this I'm doing this just for him. There's no one else here to witness it, you know. So it's it's definitely something to realize. And that's how I explained it to my kids. Like when we talk about fasting. I'm like, it's all about you. Having this close relationship with God and saying, This is how I can show you that I love and believe in you is that I know that there's no one here but I still abstaining from these things. And it's just this ultimate portrayal of what you believe

because

I spent many years of my life knowing that God is real, knowing that he's watching, feeling guilty having that subconscious little voice that's in there saying, what are you doing with your life, like, Don't you want to have a better purpose, you know, or else I wouldn't be here. Now, if I had never really had that ability, there's no way that I could have changed my entire life to live for Allah.

So this idea that God needs to fit into our lifestyle, instead of our lifestyle needs to be surrounded around him. That is kind of the new norm in the US, for sure, or in the West period, in all of the West period.

And that's what people want, they want everything to be fast, available, ready, just like it is on your smartphone. So they want their ability to say that they are worshiping to be accessible, fast, easy, and you must fit into their lifestyle whenever it's convenient for them. So if they don't have time to think about buy, and they don't have time to make their lifestyle decisions, like who they spend their time with, what they put into their bodies, how they treat other people like their wives and their children, and how they treat their friends, how they run their businesses, how they socialize, whether they're, you know, taking in alcohol and making really big mistakes, because of

that, taking in drugs and making really big mistakes, because that in hurting other people because of those mistakes, all of these things like they want God to fit into all of that, and they want God to accept all of those things about them, like love me, anyway, even though I don't abstain from anything, even though I don't really put you in my lifestyle choices. In the bare minimum, you know, even though I want you to just love me no matter what, and accept me and I should have the same place, you know, in the end date as anyone else. And we're not going to do anything to earn that. That's that's kind of an idea that people have today like that God should just accept you exactly

the way you are. And it's not that he doesn't love you. He loves you. In all your sin in all your mistakes. God loves you for him to you, no matter what, no matter how many times he forgives you. But what about never actually coming for forgiveness? What if you just think that this should just be accepted? And you don't repent? And you don't ask for forgiveness? Then do you truly believe that he's there? I don't understand how you can truly believe it. If you never feel like you should ever have to be held accountable for anything that you do.

But it's this idea of nature being God, I'm always fascinated by you know, secularists will say, you know, nature is amazing and amazing system. Oh system. Systems always have designers always wait. There is no system that happens by accident. Because it's that's how systems work. They have to be triggered, they have to be set in place, they have to be set up. So Pamela, I was just thinking then about how loving the practice, loving the practice of Islam, loving the practice of going without things for 30 days, loving the practice of saying no to ourselves. I don't know about you. But that was something that I would I don't I don't have great willpower. If Allah wasn't telling me to do

this, no way I do this. No way.

You're different. You're stubborn.

Yeah, I think willpower and self discipline in these things are so attractive. You know, it's so attractive to me. I remember even I would look at videos of monks, for instance, who had just, you know, given up the world, the materialistic world, they dounia and all the qualities, their beliefs, then they live their whole life based on their beliefs and how beautiful that is, you know, I'm so attracted to that kind of

being, you know, and that because I understand how messed up we are as people, as humans, like we are such a hot mess. That's like a southern phrase. We're a hot mess. And for someone to be able to overcome that and to live their whole life devoted to what they believe in is their life's purpose. I think it's just the ultimate that's the ultimate way to live and the rest of us are just out you're flailing in the ocean trying to figure out which boat is close enough. You know which one do we which one of these boats is close enough and has enough room for me and I'm going to jump in that boat and I'll just kind of cruise along for a while.

As long as it fits into my life, you know. So I just think that we, we are such a mess as people. And I think that it's it's a gift or a privilege. As a person, if you are able to devote your life to living for God and putting your life around God instead of expecting God to fit into your lifestyle, I think it's a privilege. I think a lot of people don't live in a capability where they are able to do that, or they don't have the mental capacity to just let go, and to say, let go and I give myself to you, God. That's the thing we've been that Christians used to preach, they used to, when I went to church, that the end of the of the church, they would say, all who are sinners, come

home, come down, and offer yourself in prayer and tell God that you're ready to come home. And what they mean is that you're ready to give up this world, that you're ready to expose all of the sins that you've done in your life, and that you're ready to devote yourself to just living for him. And so it's a beautiful thing to love God in whatever path you've chosen. And I think that I so important that we learn to let go to come home and sensing as much let go, the sense of of that you're doing that you're partaking in. Ramadan is such a beautiful time to do that we have 30 days that someone's saying, Come home, come home to me, like go of your life and come home to me give up

this and if you're doing let go of it, you have this time to do that. And we want to remember always about the people who wish that they had the privilege of having a problem drinking alcohol or having a problem letting go of drugs or having a problem with bingeing or, you know, obsessive shopping or, you know, whatever is plaguing you, there's so many different kinds of addictions. There are people out there though, where all their main concern is, is feeding their children. Their main concern is having something to wear that covers their potty that is covered in filth and discuss, you know, people who want to patch up that hole that's in their roof so they can sleep drive through the

night, there are so many people where we're so plagued by having too much we have too many, we have too much freedom and too much power. And there are others on the opposite end, who have nothing at all. And we have to sit here every year and convince each other to help them. We have to every year so here videos and do talks and say please could you be someone who doesn't have food? Like let's just do it? Let's just do it. Just give, buy those food baskets. Don't Don't make people have to choke me to do it just be people who don't even have the privilege of suffering, the way that you suffer with your with your issues with your obsessions. You know, they wish that that was their

problem. The fact that we can have those you know, first world problems may Allah to Allah, forgive us and bless you, sister, Nicole, may Allah bless all of you who are struggling in the West, to raise your children to be proud of the faith that we're in. All of you who are new Muslims, may Allah subhanaw taala bless all of you, who are fasting in your rooms, sneaking out, you know, after dinner has already been served lying to your family saying your stomach hurts and you're going to eat later, you know, all of you who are who are hiding what you're doing, we almost wanted to make it easy for you and make me open the door for you to be public about your faith. Speaking of things

that we take for granted, just imagine all the Muslims out there who are hiding and praying in their closets you know, who are wearing scarves when they go out and then taking it off. Because they don't want anyone to know that they've decided that they want to do this you know, appreciate what you have appreciate the freedom to worship the faith that you want. appreciate the fact that you you have a family who supports you as a Muslim, and in pray for the ones who don't to make it easy for them. May Allah subhanaw taala make it easy for those who who have lost loved ones because of the COVID virus. May you make it easy for those who did not make it to Ramadan this year for their

families. And may you all give in that sense to give for your families that you have lost gift for loved ones who have been lost to this virus and give for neighbors who have suffered a loss maybe they're not even Muslim, give on their behalf. You know, pray for them.

To have peace pray for them to live their life for Allah subhanaw taala we ask a lot to open the door for all those to come home to him to come home and to give up anything that they want to give up. Nice

Are those that you're having right now, in any of those trials and tribulations that you're facing that nobody even knows about? You look like supermom, you look like the best Muslim in the neighborhood, you're volunteering and you're doing all these things, but you have an inner turmoil. Maybe you have an abusive situation at home, maybe your son is, is running out the door and you don't know where he's going. You never know what you're facing in your home, but Allah knows he knows what you're doing. And we ask Allah subhanaw taala to bless all of those families who are dealing with these situations, to make it easy for all of us and to accept all of us in the

positions that we're in to increase what we're able to give increase our worship, increase the prayers you know, if you're only praying two prayers a day, this is your year to increase it to three increase it to four. This is your year to learn in your surah if you're a new Muslim, you know this is your year to to add to that and this year you're here to add to your life by giving if all of you in sha Allah have all of you get a basket imagine you know how many people are watching with each person gave one basket imagine the amazing people amazing now you're going to feed all the children's happy faces that you're going to see inshallah We ask Allah to bless all of us.

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