Eid-ul-Fitr is usually the happiest time of our year, in celebration of a month long fasting in Ramzan. The beautiful and blessed month of Ramzan itself is a huge treat and Eid right at the end makes it absolutely fulfilling for your soul. Fasting cleanses our body and mind, teaches us self-control, and gives us the chance to give as much as we can and do as much good as possible. The way Muslims help other during Ramzan is awe inspiring. Millions of people are given free meals, charity in the form of Zakaat, and ration by Muslims across the globe.
Now we partake in all of these activities but back then we had no idea what Ramzan actually meant. Back then all we knew of Ramzan is that everyone wakes up in the middle of the night, have food, and then don’t eat for the whole day. At that time, it was the most fascinating thing in the whole world. The only thing on our minds is that we want to fast too. I remember back when I was around 6 years old, I made everybody’s life miserable during Ramzan. I would fight with my family all day just so that they would let me fast. Every day the same thing would happen. I would try to convince my family to let me fast, since I’m such a big boy (At 6 years old), and they would say no I can’t. when they would see that I’m not going to let this go, they started making fake promises. That they would wake me up for Sehri. But guess what, they wouldn’t. For my baby self, this kind of betrayal was intolerable. It took an Oscar level performance for me to convince my parents to let me fast. Even when they did let me fast, they introduced me to a chiri roza. I’m not sure what it was exactly like but as far as I can remember I could drink water and open my fast at 12 noon. I really wish I could have those chiri rozas back now. Life was good back then.
Now we move on to the night cricket times. Ramzan Gully tournaments used to be the highlight of our Ramzan. All the kids of the block would gather money for tape balls and the matches would begin. The owner of the bat would always get the first batting and would be the most powerful person on the pitch. There would be endless arguments on the umpire’s decision of petty things such as wides and run outs. Sometimes these arguments would even turn into big fights and would need elderly intervention to resolve. Another one of the biggest issues was losing all the tape balls and then cursing the batsmen for hitting too hard. Those hunts for the lost tape balls were a whole adventure of their own. Despite all that, those were some of the best times of our childhood and will never be forgotten.
As Eid-ul-Fitr starts to approach, there is excitement everywhere. Shopping sprees are at a peak as people want to make sure that they look their best on Eid. My parents always got me oversized kurta’s so that I don’t out grow them too soon and can wear them later as well. Even my Eid shoes were always a size or two bigger than my actual size so that the shoes wouldn’t go to waste after Eid. The only time of the year where we used to happily meet our relatives used to be Eid-ul-Fitr. If you’re guessing why, it’s cause they’re Eidi targets. We meet all our relatives happily and go to their houses in the hopes that we’ll get some Eidi. Every time one of our relatives had to play a prank on us by giving us an empty envelope and then laughing out loud. Trust me chacha jee, it’s not funny to play with a kid’s feelings. Finally, when we would get our hands on that sweet Eidi, our moms would have their eyes set on it. Then they would slowly gain out trust and tell us that they’re just taking the Eidi for safe keeping. That’s the last time you’ll ever see your Eidi again and I speak from experience.
These are some of my fondest Ramzan and Eid childhood memories which I will cherish forever. I’m sure all of you guys have similar memories from your childhood, so share them with us in the comments section below.
