Seventeen, Muslim, and Tired of Explaining
I’ve answered ‘but why can’t you drink?’ approximately four hundred times. Here’s my actual answer.
I’m seventeen. I was born in Dublin to Iraqi parents. I have an Irish accent, an Arabic name, and a permanent cloud of questions following me.
Why don’t you drink? Why do you fast? Why do you wear that? The questions are exhausting. Not because they’re offensive — most are genuinely curious. But because I’m a teenager who wants to worry about exams, not conduct interfaith dialogue at every house party.
I don’t drink because I don’t want to. I fast because Ramadan is genuinely my favourite month. I wear hijab because it’s my choice. And no, I’ve never tried bacon.
I’m not a representative of 2 billion people. I’m just a girl from Dublin trying to pass her exams.