Hello all. I am a white British woman (for context) living in a predominantly white British city and i have been interested in Islam for a good while now.
Most recently I have had a few troubles (I can't speak too much about them as I will be outed) and have found much faith and guidance from reading the Quran and trying to put my faith into Allah and his plans for me.
I have spent many years not being at all religious and identified as a Christian growing up - though we didn't really attend church or anything like that through my formative years. I did explore Christianity in detail in my teens but it never sat right with me, I found some aspects very contradictory (like the insistence that God and Jesus are the only available names which I don't fully understand in terms of a holistic religion).
Around 18 months ago I discovered Ramadan on tiktok (random I know) and I was overwhelmed by all the beautiful Muslim traditions of fasting together and eating together, it is something I want to parktake in though I failed this year due to travel and the fact I have some disabilities which make it a difficult task.
As I have read more of the Quran I have taken so much from it, for most part it seems to speak back to me in a way I haven't discovered from any other religous text. For example the idea that Allah has 99 names I took as not literal but as an example of how graciously and considerately we can praise Allah in a number of languages and names.
The war in Palestine has pushed me closer to Islam and I have even started wearing a hijab out and about from time to time though sometimes I feel very self-conscious doing this although recently I have felt more conscious without my hijab, it has become a security blanket for me.
i would love to have a mosque to visit but there is not one in my town and so I am sort of going at this alone. I did had online support but that has waned recently and I am looking for guidance and affirmations.
I have, this week, stopped eating products from pigs and I think I will become a habibi (is that the right name for full-time hijab wearer?) very soon.
I wanted to introduce myself on this board and ask for any favourite verses or readings of the Quran which would further my learning. Right now we are very tight on money and I find myself praying every day that we will have enough food on the table for our children. I am the only Muslim in our household which is tough, especially without the community support but I feel very strongly that this is my path and I will continue to follow it with ease and with small steps to being a better Muslim.
So hello! Any advice greatly received, especially those who are Muslim but do not have family who follow the same guidance.
Inshallah i will find my tribe and my connection with Allah will continue to grow as I can study and learn more about Islam as I go.