24th May 2020

Post date: 24-May-2020 17:29:53

We’re early risers, but even we were still in bed when Lucy rang us at dawn to wish us Eid Mubarak! I was on the ball enough to wish them a happy Aldersgate Day! Technically, Eid started at sunset last night, but she knew that we’d be too busy preparing Jonah for bed then, so she waited until Ibrahim and Mariam got up to say their first prayers of the day (salat al-fajr). We joined them via Zoom for a lunch feast. Then Lucy and her friends all went out to meet up with Ibrahim and Mariam’s parents in the car park at Burtonwood Services.

Abdul and Tahmina decided not to fast during Ramadan this year, in order to be able to play a full part in caring for their patients at the hospital during a particularly busy time. They were inspired by a Sikh colleague who shaved off his beard and cut his hair in order to wear the PPE that he needed to work on one of the COVID-19 wards. As a sort of “thank you” to them for their dedication, their managers allowed them to have this weekend off so that they could fast for the final day of Ramadan yesterday and have a proper Eid celebration today. Tahmina made some of her special dahl and managed to give it to them by leaving it on a bench and then standing back while they collected it. In exchange, Lucy left some of her vanilla fudge and Dom brought a box of dates, which are traditional for breaking the fast during Ramadan. Then they all ate their picnics keeping the statutory 2m apart. Peter advised them to make sure they had their driving licences with them, in case the police questioned them about being together in a group, but as it turned out nobody asked to see proof that they all lived together at the same address.

We had our usual do-it-yourself Sunday service with Stan and Sylvia on the line and the three of us gathered round the piano, with me picking out the hymn tunes with one finger or else just giving a note to get started. Then this afternoon Father Damien rang and we all (even Jonah!) said the rosary together. These are certainly strange times!

This is Penny the Prayer Bear - Ibrahim's Eid present to Lucy last year. He called us all to prayer this morning. This year, he gave her a copy opf hte Qur'an (in translation) and she gave him Lady Julian of Norwich's "Revelations of Diven Love", which she says are particualrly relevant at the moment because they were written at teh height of the Black Death.

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