"I know what that means!" he remarked, with a hint of excitment.
"It says 'Allah'. " I explained.
"Yeah! Aalaa!". I wasn't going to argue with a security guard at BWI over the correct pronounciation of the Arabic word. We were in the in the 'High Security' line.
"I know why they placed me here," said the lady before me. "It happens every time I don't check in any luggage"...
"Well," I replied, "It happens every time they read my name."
She gave me a quizzical look.
The New Zealanders behind me looked at me. "Do we really have to take off our shoes now?"...
"You're better off taking them off now than later." I felt I owed them more explanation. "This is for our security, you know. It's better to be safe than sorry"...I wanted to add, especially with the elections approaching...but I bit my tongue...
"So why do you wear it?"
I turned to the almost childlike innocence in the eyes of the African-American guard. I wanted to mutter something like..."Well, why would you wear a cross or the star of David?" Instead, I replied with all the calm I could muster.."For protection."
"There are other things that Muslims wear" I added. "They may wear tiny gilded boxes that look like a tiny Quran cover. They actually have a tiny little book with some verses, put in there, which means if you don't take it off every time you shower, you end up with book mold all over your cleavage!" He stared at me this time. "That of course was an exaggeration," I added, with a small smile. 'Did that really come out of my mouth?'
"What's this?", he digs into my 'carry-on', and produces one of my favorite books, 'The Cat Who Cried for Help'.
"Animal behavioral science", was my prompt reply.
"You have cats?"..."Two" I replied.
He smiled as he handed me my belongings. I was a 'different' muslim. I did not wear a head cover and I read about animals even though I still carried "Allah" around my neck.
One more person...perhaps, enlightened? I wished...
"It says 'Allah'. " I explained.
"Yeah! Aalaa!". I wasn't going to argue with a security guard at BWI over the correct pronounciation of the Arabic word. We were in the in the 'High Security' line.
"I know why they placed me here," said the lady before me. "It happens every time I don't check in any luggage"...
"Well," I replied, "It happens every time they read my name."
She gave me a quizzical look.
The New Zealanders behind me looked at me. "Do we really have to take off our shoes now?"...
"You're better off taking them off now than later." I felt I owed them more explanation. "This is for our security, you know. It's better to be safe than sorry"...I wanted to add, especially with the elections approaching...but I bit my tongue...
"So why do you wear it?"
I turned to the almost childlike innocence in the eyes of the African-American guard. I wanted to mutter something like..."Well, why would you wear a cross or the star of David?" Instead, I replied with all the calm I could muster.."For protection."
"There are other things that Muslims wear" I added. "They may wear tiny gilded boxes that look like a tiny Quran cover. They actually have a tiny little book with some verses, put in there, which means if you don't take it off every time you shower, you end up with book mold all over your cleavage!" He stared at me this time. "That of course was an exaggeration," I added, with a small smile. 'Did that really come out of my mouth?'
"What's this?", he digs into my 'carry-on', and produces one of my favorite books, 'The Cat Who Cried for Help'.
"Animal behavioral science", was my prompt reply.
"You have cats?"..."Two" I replied.
He smiled as he handed me my belongings. I was a 'different' muslim. I did not wear a head cover and I read about animals even though I still carried "Allah" around my neck.
One more person...perhaps, enlightened? I wished...