Ramadan is always known as a ‘light guest’, it always flies by, leaving everyone feeling a little bittersweet, because it is the month of mercy and forgiveness, yet at the same time, everyone is ecstatic about one of the most important holidays celebrated by Muslims, at the end of Ramadan, which is Eid Al Fitr.
So today I have decided to break the ice a little, and introduce you to the fun facts about Eid that only an Arab girl would know so well. So, if you aren’t one who appreciates jokes, this article is not for you!
One of the questions that you might be hearing a lot among Arabs, this last week of Ramadan, is “Eid is already here???!!!!”, as if it is a surprise to everyone who has fasted the last 30 long days of Ramadan. As if no one knew that after 30 days of fasting, you will get to have a fabulous festival marking the end of everyone’s struggle. Well guess what: Yaaay Eid IS HERE indeed, lol. And here is a little sneak peek at what will happen:
1 – If Ramadan was all about fasting, Eid is all about eating! It’s as if you want to make up for all those Snickers bars that you have dreamed of but couldn’t enjoy, or all those secret cravings you have had every day after the sunrise, yet you completely forgot about once the night had fallen, just to remember them again the next day when you are again FASTING! So, at Eid, you make sure you eat every single time you get a chance, whatever it is, you’ll just devour it, because now you can!
2 – Please brace yourself for all those boomerang videos that will flood your Instagram feed! The same videos over and over again, yet very different people. The silly dance with that fluffy skirt, the tea pouring little scene, the opening and closing of that beautiful box of chocolates …etc. You all know what I mean!
3 – Also be aware of the ‘Eid outfit’ pictures, that will pile up in all social media platforms! And I will not lie: Guilty as charged here!!!
4 – Nine women out of 10 will have some henna on their hands! It is mandatory, in order to fit in with the Eid fashion guidelines. I used to be the one out of 10 who would never use henna (like ever! Not even on my wedding day!) but this year, I will indulge in a fab stylish little henna tattoo and tick one of the must haves for this Eid.
5 – Since we are still talking about women and their habits before Eid, please allow me to warn you, and strongly advise you against being anywhere near any beauty salon, anytime in the last couple of days before Eid! All salons will look like fish markets! Every sweet and gentle woman (in other circumstances) will turn into a monster, waiting for someone to even think of taking her turn! Remember I warned you!!!
6 – Before Eid, every Arab person should sit down for about 10 minutes and rehearse what he should say back when people wish him a happy Eid. There are, like, a million things you can say, to wish someone a Happy Eid – in Arabic – and therefore, there are about a million other things to reply. And if you just misspell one word, you might be saying something like “My condolences to you” and we don’t want that, do we? We will not be pointing fingers here but believe me it has happened.
7 – Of course each one of us will receive an average of 500 messages the day before Eid. Probably half of them will be the same, all Eid wishes/prayers that someone took from some random website, and all of us lazy users will blindly copy and paste and resend again without even checking if we even copied and pasted the name of the original sender. So please make sure the message you send this Eid actually has your own name on it, and not someone else’s!
8 – Every single kid you know will be awake from the crack of dawn on the day of Eid. Not only are they are excited at their new outfits that they will proudly wear, but also they are thrilled at thinking of the small fortune they will make out of that Eidiya usiness. (Eidiya is the money kids receive from friends and family the day of Eid, and believe me it’s a serious business!)
Truly though, and all jokes aside, Eid is unquestionably one special holiday for all of us Muslims, we cherish it deeply and it is always a source of joy and great memories. May you and your loved ones have a wonderful blessed Eid!
Chanelmama
