KidSpirit

Eid: A Colorful Celebration

HappinessGlobal Beat

My city, Lahore, is renowned for its extravagant celebrations and beautiful sights, both of which are steeped with culture and colour. As a nation, we stand united through thick and thin, and it is this unity and cohesion which is reflected in our festivals and celebrations.

If you asked a Muslim child living in Pakistan (such as myself) to name the most eagerly anticipated, exciting, and colourful celebration of the year, they would unblinkingly blurt out, “Eid.” We are, in fact, fortunate enough to have not one but two Eids a year, but it is Eid-ul-Fitr which I look forward to most.

The night before Eid is a wonderful prologue to the festivities called “Chaand Raat” (Moon Night), when the crescent signifying the day ahead is sighted. Girls adorn their hands with beautiful henna arabesques and wait patiently to achieve the perfect chestnut imprint on their hands. Last minute shopping and special bargains are offered by pop-up stalls on roadsides, selling an array of enticing, varicoloured jewellery. Frantic hands sew stubborn brooches onto magnificent, brand-new dresses, impeccably crisp and perfumed, and add other last-minute touches. The young children scramble onto rooftops with binoculars, anxious to see if it really would be Eid tomorrow, and whoop and high-five each other when the anticipated moon finally grins down at them. They squirm in their beds, too excited by the prospects of the day ahead to sleep.

The next day, everyone in every household wakes up for the Fajr prayer before sunrise, and a couple of hours later the men don starched, smart white shalwar kameez and leave for the mosque for a congregational prayer. This prayer is one of the most intriguing ways this celebration binds us together. After the prayer everyone embraces the person next to them regardless of class, race or age.

A sumptuous, simmering assortment of delicacies await them at home: kheer (a sort of pudding), seviyan (vermicelli), and ghulab jamun (brown sweat meats soaked in sugar syrup), just to name a few.

By this time, everyone is immaculately turned out, and the round of calls commences as people visit their friends and relatives and exchange greetings, affection, and gifts. The young children, some sheepish and some bold, then find ingenious methods of procuring “Eidi” money from their elders. Some resort to outrageous flattery and attentiveness to coax the it out, while some boldly advance with outstretched hands. By the end of the day, each beaming child swaggers around nursing a bulk of notes, ready to be spent on toys, chocolates and ice cream.

Everything about this festival makes me feel engaged and elated. Perhaps it is the fact that everyone, at least for a day, is relieved of their day-to-day jobs to enjoy a nationwide holiday, and can take time out of their busy schedule to share treasured moments with their loved ones. Eid is a time for family and friends, a festival of love, affection, and unity. For a little while we all forget about the terrible things happening in the world around us. For a little while we overflow with happiness and pure joy. We have a glorious glimpse of what the world would be like if peace pervaded, and conflicts and differences like class, race, and religion ceased. That’s what I like best about Eid; it keeps me dreaming.

Zainab Umar is a 16-year old student at the Lahore Grammar School in Pakistan. Her hobbies include writing, reading, art, and public speaking.

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