An Ode to my Hijab

(An Ode to my Hijab) A man approached me one day and tapped on my shoulder I turned around to see someone I had never seen before He stood there and said he wanted to thank me How unusual, I thought, who is this stranger and what is he saying? He went on to say, I admire you so much You wear your headscarf, so strong with your chin up While so many women in this society have no real ideas to express So instead they cut their dresses low and let their cleavage hang So thank you for being a role model and staying afloat in a predator-infested tank See this scarf that I wear This piece of cloth placed on top of my hair Stands for dignity, strength, and all that I bear To cover my beauty and all that’s apparent So you can approach me as a human instead of seeing me transparent Know me for my soul and take me as I am So I dare you to judge me as in solidarity with my beliefs I stand I do this for my Lord and my religion comes from peace Islam is I and that “I” in Islam starts with me It covers all that is external and protects my modesty Don’t tell me I’m oppressed and that I didn’t have a choice Don’t tell me I can’t speak for myself or that I have no voice ‘Cause my head scarves range from Burberry to pashmina sleek God knows how many designs and colors… every single pattern unique Wore my hijab through basketball so at games my identity would speak Through it all I stood my ground, kept my cool--I handled the heat It’s hard to believe such a small piece of fabric can say so much Or that just because I cover some can hate me so much I love you, hijab, but there sure are some haters you create Yet I remain steadfast and have tawwakul (Arabic for firmness of faith) For you do far more than just cover my hair You keep me humble in my affairs and heedful of my daily prayer So here is my ode to you for all that you do Al- Hijab you keep me grounded and preserve me like a jewel