A Festival, A Feeling of Two Worlds

Writer: Niaz Murshed Chowdhury

Ever since I came to America, every new festival stirs a quiet, double-edged feeling inside me. Festivals now begin 12 hours earlier in Bangladesh and reach me here 12 hours later — as if time itself reminds me that I belong to two places at once. It’s a sweet ache, this feeling of being connected yet apart.

If I look back on 2013, measuring what I gained and what I lost, the year feels heavy and gentle all at once. Losing my father at the start of the year left a hollow place inside me that nothing else can fill. That loss brought worries and sleepless nights I still carry within me. But when I step back from that grief, I see how much light the year gave too.

Despite strong opposition from my family, I trusted my own dream and applied to universities in the USA. When those acceptance letters came — four in total — and I was granted a full scholarship, it felt like a silent victory whispered to me by faith itself. I remember praying so earnestly that there would be a mosque near my campus, a reminder that I am never truly alone. I never imagined I’d be so blessed that the mosque would stand just outside my window — when I stand there and look, gratitude fills my chest in a way I can’t quite explain.

I thank the Most Merciful for guiding me through moments of doubt and loneliness. Now, as I stand at the door of a new year, I carry hope that 2018 will be kind to all of us. May it ease our burdens, keep our loved ones safe, and give our hearts reasons to smile.

Wishing everyone a blessed, peaceful New Year — wherever you are, may your prayers find you.