“No food during the day at all?” asked Phurnell.
“Nah, dude,” replied Malik. “We eat as a family to prepare for the day. And then no food till sundown when we break fast as a family.”
“And you got through 30 days of that?”
“Yeah, 30 days plus a half day waiting for the new moon.”
“That’s hard,” mused Phurnell. “Reminds me of my grandma talking about the dry season. Back where we’re from, the herd had to migrate with the rains. Forced fasting until they hit the flood lands up north.”
“You guys got any holidays related to that?”
“Not so much now. Used to be we all celebrated the rainy days, or the first foods after migration. But now we live in cities with grocery stores.”
“Aren’t you afraid you’ll forget the old ways and your heritage?” asked Malik.
“Bruh, we’re pachyderms. We remember, trust me.”
“Come on, nobody ditches tradition that easily.”
“Alright, look. I mean, we’re conflicted right?” Phurnell performed a complicated shrug with his trunk. “You know that saying, elephants never forswear.”
“I heard something like that,” Malik nodded.
“So we don’t want to lose our traditions. But to forswear food and drink voluntarily seems wrong when we don’t have to.”
“You mean you’re struggling to adapt to current circumstances?”
“Yes, does that make sense?”
“Well, it’s not easy being Muslim right now,” Malik spread his hands. “I mean, my cuz Abdulrahab, they messed with him at the airport last time. Saw his name and freaked. And he’s only coming from the UK.”
“That’s crap man, I’m sorry,” Phurnell frowned.
“Or like, my job let me shift my schedule for the month to make fasting easier. But if they hadn’t I would’ve needed to cheat.”
“You toughed it out, though, stuck to your faith.”
“Yeah, dude, and now we get to celebrate,” Malik smiled.
“The rains are here, time to feast with the herd!” trumpeted Phurnell.
“Eid Mubarak to all.”