Ramadan Kareem folks or as we say in Arabic ‘كل سنة وأنتم طيبين وبعودة الأيام بالخير على الجميع’!
Since Ramadan is here, I want to seize the opportunity to share with you a special note regarding the Holy Month.
Ramadan is a month that gives people the opportunity to redeem themselves. It also has some certain physical and mental constraints due to the traditional custom of fasting and all. However, I’m pretty sure people can handle it.
I understand that we all want to finish reading the Quran, and to be keen on not missing a prayer. However, we should keep in mind that we have a job to do. It is true that in the midst of the day, we are drained, tired and might probably turn into a serial killer who’s about to attack anything that passes in front of him, which can be close 5 inches from you, but please do remember you still have a job to do.
Here are some Do’s and Don’ts for Ramadan:
- Do try to go to work on time, focus on your work and try not to get distracted by what other people are doing.
- Don’t waste 1-3 hours reading Quran verses you missed reading last night because you were busy watching the TV series!
- Do try to be cool towards people who are intimidating, or who are just trying to annoy the hell out of you. MAKE THEM LOSE!
- Don’t waste your time chatting because the day is already short. If you want to chat with your colleagues and discuss what happened in any of the soap operas, you can talk about it briefly or discuss it after work. You still have 4 hours at least until Iftar after your work. A phone call will do the trick!
- Do understand that the location of your job is public, especially the toilets since company employees and visitors use it. When you are going for ‘Wudoo الوضوء’, you are not going to take a bath; water should not be reaching the ceiling. You should also try not to leave the floor wet because other people will still use the bathroom. In addition, you should make the job of people cleaning the bathroom easier since kindness is one of Ramadan’s virtues, right?
- Do try to abstain from cursing people at work or outside work. I know sometimes it’s just such a delight!! Oh and I know that some people really deserve it! Yeah, sometimes there is that obtrusive person who keeps taking your stuff, and, unfortunately, he thinks that he is the smartest and the funniest person alive. Whereas, they actually need their… Ahem… Never mind (See Control 🙂 )
- Don’t try to think about coffee and cigarettes. I know it is a difficult task, but, psychologically, the more you think about it, the more you torment yourself. You should try to occupy your mind with other things. You should also stay away from strangling that dude next to you! Be positive, Ramadan is about finding positivity. Try to be positive; it will not harm you! 🙂
- Do smile in Ramadan because it is such a nice gesture seeing people smiling rather than the angry, hulk and grumpy faces people show at work. Sometimes their heads carry a sign written on it ‘Hulk Smash!’
- Don’t spend all your time in Ramadan praying to the extent that it may exceed 45 minutes. It is true that prayer is a key to success, but also work is another key to success. You already work 6 hours per day out of which at least 1 hour is allotted to your chit chats, and 1 is allotted to your prayers. Consequently, this leaves you with about 4 hours! Be fair 🙂
At the end I will just highlight something that you probably know and understand, but it is still worth mentioning.
No one is trying to control your life; if you want to watch a TV Series, please do. If you want to read Quran, please do. No one is against any of these, and no one has the right to tell you how to make use of your time. However, you should comply with the rules of work environment. You are paid to do your jobs and not to waste your time. If there is enough time at the end of the day to read some Quran verses, go ahead. However I am pretty sure that it will not be a frequent act.
Tarek Hassan Refaat
Photography: Mahmoud Mansi
Origami: Fabrica Art
EDITED BY: Nada Zeyada