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The Joys and Struggles of Eid

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at UCT chapter.

It’s that time of year again, the new moon has been sighted and mothers have been hastily preparing as Ramadan draws to a close.  Eid-ul-Fitr is here once more! Eid is a time of celebration and brings about a lot of excitement, despite the fact that the yearly routine is very often unchanged. However, with all festivities comes a bit of preparation, as well as some unavoidable struggles and minor hardships that we have to endure.

Preparation:

Joy: Planning out what treats to make weeks in advance and getting excited all Ramadan to make them.

Struggle: Cleaning the house intensely when you don’t even get any visitors on Eid.

The outfit:

Joy: You look amazing all day and get loads of Instagram content that you’ll be posting for the week to come. Not only this – but everyone else looks amazing too and you can collectively slay.

Struggle: Maintaining your slay throughout the day can be exhausting, especially when you’re in heels all day, have aunties ruining your makeup with lipstick kisses on your cheek, and uncomfortably suggestive compliments from family members.

The Food:

Joy: Eid lunch in all its glory, as well as the variety of snacks and treats we encounter along the way. Each house you visit presents a new supply of treats and they always insist you take two.

Struggle: Your body hasn’t quite adjusted to eating all day just yet, so you’ll probably be lugging around a food baby by evening.

Your Family:

Joy: Seeing family members that you don’t see all-too-often, and enjoying the company of your loved ones.

Struggle: Dealing with aunties questioning you about your relationship status, “Do you have a boyfriend?” “When do you graduate? You need to hurry up so you can get married”. Oh and let’s not forget the subtle tensions of family drama.

Your social life:

Joy: Gathering with friends for some quality time; which involves taking too many selfies and eating leftovers.

Struggle: Trying to organize an itinerary so that you see all your family members and still have time for your friends.

The day in general:

Joy: A day filled with celebration, food and love

Struggle: If Eid doesn’t fall on a weekend, some of us still need to write exams, go to work or just work Eid around our daily activities. Not to mention scrambling around for last minute outfit changes if when the weather isn’t what you expected.

 

Eid Mubarak to all those celebrating today!

Co-founder and former correspondent for Her Campus at The University of Cape Town. Two-time graduate of the University of Cape Town holding a Bachelor of Social Sciences and Bachelor of Arts Honours specialising in Media Theory and Practice. Currently working towards my MA in Media Theory and Practice.  My name also kind of sounds like the chorus to September by Earth, Wind and Fire and once you hear it, it can't be unheard.