Thursday, July 26, 2012

Sunrise to Sunset


Ramadan is here, a time of fasting during the daylight hours and breaking fast with family and friends in the evening. After a long hot summer day, the streets empty as people scurry home around 7:00pm as the sun sets, the call to prayer goes off, and people take their first sip of water for the day. I was watching today as boys from the nearby coffee shop ran out to the street to give juice for the drivers of the few cars on the streets just as the call to prayer finished.

People like to remind each other throughout the day that they are fasting though it may not be as difficult for many as it may seem considering many peoples’ work schedules change and people are up most of the night eating and drinking and then sleeping during the day or watching one of the 55 Ramadan special TV shows. 

This is a religious high time for people as many read through the Koran during the month and spend an hour praying each night. One of my friends was surprised to see me tonight wearing a pair of pants that came 6 inches above my ankles as opposed to my regular long pants. Especially during the month of Ramadan a higher moral standard is expected. “Do you ever get tired of the law,” I asked. “I mean does the law bring life or only death?” I do work hard at being “above reproach,” but maybe sometime more as a slave of the law then out of love as one who is freed.

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