A friend of mine went to Dubai during the Christmas season and came back quite surprised. Not surprised due to the harsh heat or different way of life, but by how enthusiastically they celebrated Christmas! 🎄
Christmas lights everywhere. Christmas trees in every other hotel lobby. Christmas music playing in every other store. Not in a discreet way at all. It felt like an entire country, with predominantly Muslims, making room in their lives to celebrate another religion in a noticeable way.
When she got back home to California, she said something that has stayed with me: “Why doesn’t it feel like that here during our holidays?” 🌙
She wasn’t asking for perfection. Nor was she saying that no one celebrates Ramadan in the U.S. Of course they do. But the problem is a bit deeper than that.
There's a world of difference in celebrating quietly at home and having your holidays and voices embraced by the wider world. Tolerated vs. Embraced.
That reminded me of something I have learned and known about families for years. There are many families out there that want to do something to celebrate what it is that they believe in; yet some don’t seem to know that it’s okay to do that. They don’t want to be “too much”. They don’t want to “stand out”. And they don’t want to have to “explain” and as such, they keep it small when their hearts want to go bigger.
That's precisely the reason why we created Ramadan Inflatables.
We've always dreamed of being able to decorate Muslim families' homes to celebrate a cheerful Ramadan season, much in the same way that everyone else gets to decorate to celebrate their holidays of choice. Not as a point of contention. Not as a conversation to be had. But as a matter of happiness itself. Something to look forward to as a child. Something to smile at from a neighbor’s lawn. Something to turn a highly meaningful period of religious observance into a beloved family tradition to carry on to members beyond oneself.
Celebrations are important. Celebrations create memories. Celebrations boost self-esteem. Celebrations tell our children, "This is ours, and it's wonderful!"
There is also, especially right now, as we feel fragmented, exhausted, disconnected, a beauty in choosing to celebrate who we are without shrinking - not in spite of anyone else, but in conjunction with everyone else.
What I learned from my friend’s story is that, if anything, the world does not need less celebration, but more. More colors, more warmth, more beliefs, more culture, and more traditions that tell us that, hey, we belong.
Therefore, if you have contemplated the idea of decorating your space in the past but never acted on it due to some reservations, then
Create Your Own Tradition
Make it Joyful
Make it Visible
Be Proud of What You Believe
And the best communities aren’t the ones in which everyone is the same. They’re the ones in which everyone has the room to shine.
