Praying at Work

I have been at my current job for about a year now. This entire time I have been praying during my lunch hour in the chilly warehouse, and missing prayers because I have been too self conscious and afraid to ask my boss to put time in my schedule to pray. This was really affecting my feelings about my job. Everday when I got home exhausted from working, I would have generally three prayers to make up. I really started to resent my job and was seriously thinking about leaving. I longed for a Muslim workplace and a job where my hours were flexible. My job is extremely scheduled, down the the half an hour. Finally I got up the gall to ask my boss if he would consider letting me come in early or what have you so I could get my prayers in on time. At the current time I was working 9:30-6:30pm, which made me miss everything but fajr and dhur. I went in his office and spoke with him privately. I stated that it would be a huge burden off me, and that I would only need a break in the afternoon. He told me that he couldn't guarantee anything, but he would do his best. I felt worried, and dissapointed that he did not automatically say yes, but I went back to my cubicle hoping to get an answer.
Not only did he change my schedule from 8am to 5pm, I now have a break for Asr. Al hamdilillah. My boss is allowing me to pray every single prayer on time. I have been on this schedule since the new year, and I have never felt better. I feel at peace and at ease. My work performance has improved significantly, as did my feelings about my job. If you are having trouble at work, just ask. You never know how you might be heard.

Drawing the Line Between Who I Was and Who I Hope To Be

I'm probably not alone in the fact that my conversion to Islam has severely dampened my social life. I used to not be able to go five minutes without my phone ringing....now...days go by....I have been isolated from my previous world....At first I blamed the fact that I had changed my ways so people needed time to adjust, and that it was just something I had to get over. Now I am realizing that I have not completely let go of my old life.

I discovered this notion last night as I was sitting in a restaurant with my coworkers. None of my coworkers are Muslim, or really knew to much about it until I came along. As we were sitting there at the restaurant table on a friday night celebrating our recent certification, all of them downed beer after beer. For the past two years I have been tricking myself into believing that I needed to somehow make them feel comfortable with Islam by "bending" my comfort zone. If they see me in a place like this restaurant on friday night...somehow they wont think Islam is super strict and will maybe soften their resistance to it a bit. I realized that all this was accomplishing was changing their opinion of ME not the religion. A coworker actually slipped alcohol into my drink thinking that I was "trapped" and needed to be "freed" from my cell of non alcoholic nights out. I know this person (well at least I chose to believe) that this person did not mean anything by it, and were just trying to see if I liked alcohol, in some way that didn't have me consciously choosing to drink. I felt so terrible and violated. These people were not learning about Islam by being around me at all. I thought that if I "infiltrated the front lines" of DC's youth, than maybe even one of them would come out of this with something worth my discomfort. NOPE. All I have been doing is ruining my progress in my deen. May God forgive me and them.

 

Work Environment

There are people at my job that are just ridiculous. Every day I get asked things about being a muslim. Al hamdulillah, at least they are asking me to my face and not talking about me behind my back...but it is getting really annoying. Everyday someone asks me " Does it get hot in there?" talking about my hijab...or why do you wear that or "do you get hassled?". I feel so ostracized. I know it is with pure intentions and these people are just curious but it really makes me feel different. The people that are my age don't even talk to me like a normal human being. I guess it is because they are in the drinking stages of life...and the dating stages of life...the misunderstanding other cultures/religions stage of life. I feel like they think I don't enjoy my life...or have any fun....or that I'm naive or stupid and don't know what they know......

AH! Well at least some people here are respectful...there is one guy here that is very educated about Muslims...he isn't one but at least he is familiar....of course everyone else in the office does not like him...for SOME reason....

I also get asked a lot..."If your hair is nice...why do you cover it...why don't you let everyone see it.." ...because they don't deserve to see it! And I do not need to prove my beauty to anyone else!

Why is my worth in the work placed based on whether or not I'm beautiful or not...or what my hair looks like......or whether or not I have hair...


Why am I treated like a different kind of human being because of the clothes I wear???? Because I don't show skin? Because my cleavage isn't hanging out for all to see????

Why do people see these things as a sum of who I am...


and even if they do...why do they view modesty as a bad thing? Shouldn't they view me as a BETTER person...?

Does anyone else have work related issues like this???