I have to stop myself

Attorney and advocate Rabia Chaudry, author of the NYT bestselling book 'Adnan's Story', says "it's ok to feel stressed and traumatized -- but also to never forget that we are safe, we are fed, we have Internet. That really is the trifecta right there."This Ramadan, we are all thinking about isolation, and feeling the weight of quarantine, whether alone or with family. And there are days when your heart and spirit really sink, and you start feeling sorry for yourself, impatient with the circumstances.But I have a nanny, who is the most amazing woman. She and her family are refugees from Syria, and they’ve been in the US for the past six years. She has nine siblings, and when the war started in Syria, her siblings scattered as refugees all over the world; she’s the only one who made it the US. She still has siblings stuck in dangerous situations in different parts of the world. So for me to complain about being stuck at home, with clean water, electricity, food, internet, safety - I have to stop myself. I try to remind myself about the very dire situations that people actually face in the world.And, of course, I also think about Adnan, and other incarcerated people who have spent not just years, but decades behind bars, alone, without any human touch from those they love, without the comfort of family and friends they left behind. Without the luxury of cooking what they want, hopping online to connect to others, hugging someone when they're sad, scared, lonely.It’s ok for us to feel stressed and traumatized. That’s human, it’s natural, it’s expected whenever there is a loss. And we are collectively, globally, feeling a loss. But when possible, try to remember that for us, this too shall pass, but there are those who live in isolation and separation, with no control over it, for much of their lives. This Ramadan, my heart and prayers will be with them.Rabia Chaudry is also host/producer of two podcasts, Undisclosed and The 45th, and is working on a new podcast with iHeartMedia and her second book, "Fatty Fatty Boom Boom".To read all '30 reflections for our times', please follow the Facebook page '30 days 30 deeds', Instagram @salmahasanali, or subscribe to the newsletter at www.salmahasanali.com.