by fizza | Apr 13, 2021 | Uncategorized
Hello and Assalamualaikum (peace be upon you) Friends!
Ramadan Mubarak to all those celebrating today or tomorrow! Just like last year, the next month of Ramadan will look quite different once again. For those of you who may be unfamiliar with the month of Ramadan, it is a month where Muslims around the world take time to reflect, give back to their community and fast during the day, abstaining from eating and drinking in addition to abstaining from swearing, gossiping, arguing etc.
Muslims will begin their fast just before sunrise with a meal called “sehri or suhoor” which loosely translates to a meal that is eaten early in the morning, and fasting ends just after sunset, with a meal called “iftaar”. This is a time for blessings, and is a month that many Muslims really look forward to as it is a time to spend with loved ones, give back to the community and other charitable causes, and eat lots of delicious meals!
Though we won’t gather for our big Iftaar parties with our friends and family this year, be able to go to the Mosque for Friday prayers, or attend all the Melas last minute to purchase our best Eid outfits just days before… it doesn’t mean we can’t find ways to connect with our community!
Here are some ways I’ll be staying connected and prioritizing self care, and you can too:
- Connect With a Local or (Global!) Mosque
Many mosques are finding safe ways to keep connected and support their community during this month. Connecting with your local mosque might spark ideas for you and your family about how to feel closer to community during this time. Many mosques hold great opportunities to stay connected whether that’s having a virtual iftaar party, a drive-thru pick up of your iftaar meals, social events and so much more. Look to your local mosque to see how you can get connected, or why not try something new, and connect virtually with a mosque globally! Scroll down below and see some mosques and organizations that are hosting amazing virtual events this Ramadan.
- Find New Ways to Connect With Friends and Family
Gathering with friends and family is a special and important part of Ramadan for many and it is natural to experience feelings of sadness or grief over not being able to gather this year. Collaborate with close friends and family on different ways you can safely connect this year through Zoom or FaceTime calls, to still feel close to loved ones during this time. I know I’ll definitely be hosting a virtual Iftaar party with my friends and family!
- Give Back to the Community
Ramadan is a time to give back to the community and other charitable causes! For myself personally giving back is very important as it gives me a great sense of motivation, and encourages me to find new initiatives that I can support in my community. Every Ramadan, I try to find different organizations to donate to, volunteer my time for, or support in any way I can. This helps me to stay connected, and support community initiatives which is an important aspect of Ramadan.
- Balance Between Rest & Action
Fasting can also bring about changes to your energy levels and for some that might mean needing to take more moments of rest. Others might want and enjoy getting active and getting outdoors (safely). Take a few moments in your day to check-in on what you need. These moments can be great acts of self-care.
For many the month of Ramadan can bring changes to your daily schedules and routines. As it feels comfortable, communicate your needs with those around you. For some that might be moving your lunch hour to accommodate for time for prayer, for others that might be starting your workday a bit earlier or later. Communicate what feels best for you and your needs.
Looking to learn more? Here is another great resource from Fahmida Kamali on how to support Muslim communities during the month of Ramadan.
There are so many incredible initiatives and organizations to support that continue to do great work for the community not just during Ramadan, but throughout the year. Below you will find just a few places that are offering virtual programming to stay connected!
- Naseeha Muslim Youth Helpline – Provide a safe zone for youth and individuals to talk and get the help they need.
- Who Is Hussain Toronto – A social justice movement with teams in 90 cities across the globe. They host regular events to help the homeless, provide meals to people in need and donate blood to save lives – and much more.
- Nisa Homes – a non-government, not-for-profit charitable organization that provides a safe haven and support services to women, children and families who are experiencing homelessness and/or domestic and family violence, poverty or seeking asylum.
- Reconstructed Magazine – A creative Magazine run by Black, Shi’a, and queer Muslims seeking to reconstruct what it looks like to carry closeness to Islam.
- Masjid al-Rabia – a BIPOC led, LGBTQ+ affirming, and racially accessible Islamic Community Centre focused on spiritual support for marginalized Muslims.
- The Muslim Alliance for Sexual & Gender Diversity – Works to support, empower, and connect LGBTW Muslims.
- Khalil Centre – A psychological and spiritual community wellness center advancing the professional practice of psychology rooted in Islamic principles.
Please note: The descriptions mentioned above have been taken directly from the website/social pages of these organizations, initiatives, and mosques and you can find out more about them by clicking on the links above.
Fizza Abbas, Network Coordinator
by fizza | Mar 17, 2021 | Uncategorized
Hi everyone,
I’ve had a blast these last couple months getting to meet such amazing youth and adult allies across the province! Last week, I had the chance to visit another awesome TNM group with our partner agency Open Doors for Lanark Children & Youth. I’ve been eager to visit this group ever since they became a part of our network late last year!
This group has been doing such a wonderful job building relationships with one another, and I could really tell how the adult allies have created an environment that encourages youth to be bold, and brave. It is so important in the times we are in now to really focus on building relationships since we’ve gone virtual, we’re all missing that in person connection. We spent the meeting connecting with one another, and I came to know that a youth in the group has been on TV multiple times, and will be starring in a film soon….. I was SO starstruck being in the presence of a celebrity.
We spent the meeting having conversations on recruitment strategies, school mental health, and so much more! We also spoke about the work we’re doing at The New Mentality surrounding anti-racism and mental health. Something that really stood out the most to me was when a youth in the group shared about the reality of speaking on topics such as politics, race, and religion were something that folks would never discuss in the past because they were considered taboo in society. More recently, we’ve been able to give these topics more attention, encourage them to be discussed, and have had healthy conversations surrounding them.
Having these conversations can be uncomfortable for many, but this group has created an environment where everyone is cared for, where they are encouraged to learn and unlearn together. I was incredibly impressed and proud to see the group share with me the growth they’ve experienced during the pandemic and have created a virtual space that has felt safe and comfortable for them.
I’m so happy I got the chance to spend time with the group, and am looking forward to visiting them again and continuing our conversations together. I’m also very much looking forward to seeing our celebrity youth on TV soon!
See you all soon on zoom,
Fizza Abbas, Network Coordinator
by fizza | Mar 5, 2021 | Uncategorized
Hello everyone,
I’ve really been having so much fun visiting all our groups across the province virtually, and sharing with all of you my experience! I’ve heard from many youth and adult allies that they have been inspired by the awesome projects our groups are working on.
Last week I had the chance to visit another incredible TNM group in Brantford with our partner agency Woodview Mental Health & Autism Services! Before the pandemic, I was eager to meet this group in person and was so happy to have the chance to visit their group virtually. It was also their first time meeting one of their new adult allies who was joining the group!
We began the meeting with a great check in question, check in questions are a great facilitation technique as they help to ground us and see how folks are doing and adjusting the way we facilitate accordingly. The question asked was “what is your brag/drag?” My brag was definitely getting to meet the group, as I had been eagerly waiting all week! From the check ins, I learned that I definitely need to start watching WandaVision, and that there are so many new Pokémon that I had no idea about…..I wish I had the chance to quickly go grab my Pokémon card collection from 17 years ago….
After checking in, we heard updates from the adult allies and it was so nice to see that the group encourages and promotes events happening in other New Mentality groups. In the updates they shared that our New Mentality group with The Maltby Centre in Kingston will be hosting a Men’s Mental Health event! I really appreciated this, as it furthered showcased how amazing and supportive our network is of one another.
After the updates, I came to know of the many projects our group is working on, from creating social media content, to hosting a talent not required show for Children’s Mental Health Week, working on a podcast, creating a brochure for adult allies to know how to best support youth and so much more, that I don’t even think I can capture in one blog!
The group spent time discussing each of their projects, but their main focus was on reviewing a draft version of their brochure. I really appreciated how youth were supporting one another through the conversations on how to better present the brochure. I was incredibly impressed by the youth who created the brochure using Canva, and I’m starting to notice a pattern of all the awesome Canva and PowerPoint stars we have in our network. Definitely giving up the Canva Crown to all the amazing youth in our network.
After working for a bit, we spent the end of the meeting playing a game of Psych! If you haven’t heard of this game you have to play it, it’s so funny and the responses that the youth came up with during the game were so creative and hilarious!
I’m so happy I got the chance to meet these brilliant changemakers that make up our network, and can’t wait to visit them again… and hopefully try out our lip syncing Brady Bunch style Zoom show!
See you all soon on zoom,
Fizza Abbas, Network Coordinator
by fizza | Feb 26, 2021 | Uncategorized
Yes, yes I know what you’re thinking….She is still travelling Ontario virtually? I’m just getting started!
Last week, I had the chance to connect with our New Mentality group in Peterborough that is with our partner agency Peterborough Youth Services. It was my first time meeting a group virtually through Microsoft Teams, and not Zoom… I felt like I was truly a fish out of water!
It was so nice to connect with the adult allies before meeting the youth and to hear how they’ve been adjusting to the virtual world. Fun fact: Peterborough Youth Services’ Executive Director is one of the two adult allies than run The New Mentality group, how cool is that?
There were no introductions needed! The group and I got straight into talking about all the shows we’ve been binge-watching lately, and the Netflix parties we’ve been having with our friends. We collectively decided that we needed to finally add Bridgerton next on our shows to binge watch list.
The youth shared with me that they are working on two murals for Peterborough Youth Services. I could tell how thoughtful and intentional the youth and adult allies were when having discussions around what type of message they would like to push forward both at the agency and community level. They want to highlight themes of growth, inclusivity, and equity! One youth took time to design visuals for what the mural could look like, and I was stunned by how beautiful the designs looked. In fact, I thought the images were taken from Google, but I was mistaken!
These youth are always looking for new ways to advocate in their community, and to get the word out there of amazing work that they are up to! In addition to the mural, the youth are also working on planning to host a talent show in the coming months, which was so exciting to hear.
I still can’t stop laughing about this, but the funniest part of it all was when I was trying to take a group photo, but couldn’t figure out how to take screenshot and still have everyone be a part of the picture on Microsoft Teams! It took many….many tries, and I appreciate the youth for being very patient with me and laughing along the way.
I can’t wait to meet the youth again, and hopefully take a “real” group photo in front of their amazing future mural!
See you all soon on zoom,
Fizza Abbas, Network Coordinator
