Day 27: Breaking bread

“He who spends the night satiated while knowing that his next door neighbor is hungry does not truly believe in me.”  Hadith

We kept debating all day whether or not to have our neighborhood iftaar party.  Hurricane Irene was bearing down.  The main worry was if we lost electricity; cold chicken curry, in the dark, is not too appetizing.  But we decided we could brave Irene together, so I lit all the candles, stacked towels by the door, and prayed for the best.Neighbors arrived, two by two -- wet, but excited.  Saanya said a few words about the meaning of Ramadan, and read a few entries from our blog; Zayd read a sura and explained it, quite succinctly, and said the azan.  We broke bread with dates and samosas and feasted on pulau, chicken curry, cauliflower and potatoes, sikh kebabs, and my special Asian salad.  We welcomed our neighbors into the new family room, the construction of which they had weathered for several months.  It was a warm and cozy evening, despite the bluster outside.Prophet Muhammad said we should care for your neighbors, 40 on each side.  If we could all commit to that, what a beautiful day in the neighborhood it would be. Day 27: Deed 27: Breaking bread with our neighbors.