Yesterdays event was a year end lunch for a pharmaceutical company. There were 250 guests in total, although we only catered for 20 people. My aunt operates a home-based catering business that provides halaal food. In the last few weeks, I have worked for her on a temporary basis. I have gained a fair amount of experience and I am extremely happy that I was given this opportunity. I am studying Bcom, with specialisation in Tourism Management and this serves as practical experience to complement the theory that I have studied. Although catering constitutes only a minor part of my studies, it does benefit me to have worked in this field.
The flip side to the benefits is that as a young, Muslim girl there are certain sacrifices that I have to make. One of them is intermingling with strange men, although I try and keep this to a minimum. At the same time though, I cannot appear to be aloof and unfriendly, as in this business people skills are absolutely essential. I also make an attempt to greet staff from other catering companies, be it women or men.
The next aspect is hijaab (head covering). I have been wearing scarf for the past seven or eight years. I will not compromise on this and remove my hijaab if anyone asks me to. Initially, when I did my first corporate function, I was very nervous with regards to the reaction that I might receive. Out of approximately three hundred people, I am always the only one that is wearing hijaab. It does get me strange looks from people at times, but I am getting used to being the odd one out. I am proud of the identity that I carry along with me, and the non-verbal message that I am proud to be a Muslim. People need to accept one another and respect each others religion.
Music and liquor also play a very major role in these Western events. There are times when you have to block out the music, concentrate on your work and make a concerted attempt to make thikr (remembrance of God) instead. Although it might seem disrespectful, our Creator knows what our intentions are and will hopefully reward us for our efforts. It was Jummah (Holy day for Muslims) yesterday, and in the salaah (prayer) time slot there was a live band, continuously playing music. I’m assuming that this continued until late in the afternoon, long after we had left.
Reading salaah (prayer) becomes a minor challenge. The first issue is finding a place to make wudhu (ablution) and the second is to find a suitable place to pray. I was fortunate yesterday that I was able to read in my uncles office (he works at the company). The non-Muslims find it unhygienic to make wudhu (ablution) in public bathrooms, as they do not realise the significance of this action and see it as taking a bath in a basin. Thanks to my Creator, since the Ramadhaan (fasting month of Muslims) of 2006 I am now in the habit of carrying my salaah (prayer) clothes and musallah (prayer mat) with me wherever I go. There was a function that I did in November, which was held at a lake. My aunt and I walked to the border of the property, far away from everyone else and read salaah under the trees. The music continued to blare, but we had to once again try and drown it out to concentrate on our salaah.
In this everchanging country and with the population becoming more accustomed to Western culture, as Muslims we have to continue to be strong and carry out our religion. I pray that our Creator make us strong Muslims and let us be an inspiration to other young Muslims as well as to help us to maintain what we have and to become better Muslims with each passing day.
