Salam alaikum
I am a revert alhamdulillah I found Islam as a teenager through having Muslim friends. I would see my friends who wore hijab and was always curious about the religion and cultures and all things Islam. So everytime I would attend a lecture with my friends i would wear the hijab to “fit in” and I felt such inner peace each and every time. Coming from the typical Australian house hold I didn’t understand the concept of covering up, were they forced? Did their family make them, aren’t they hot? So I started asking questions and reading more and more and accepted Islam. When I was 21 I had my first daughter and everytime I looked at her it made me want to be a better Muslim and the best role model I can be and I couldn’t think of any other way to show her how than to wear the hijab so as she grew all she new was her mummy being a hijabi. When this beautiful pure soul grew up in front of me and started being curious just as I was I could SHOW her the beauty in hijab. Show my daughter the positives and why Allah swt has ordered this of us. So that year on New Year’s Eve I decided to put on the hijab to start the following year fresh. From the second I put it on I was overwhelmed with an abundance of joy, strength and pride in my religion. I feel like I represented Islam and it was my way as an Australian revert to announce to the world I was Muslim and so proud and honoured that Allah swt had chosen me to be guided. It has helped me overcome my temptations and want to continue my growth as a Muslim. I cannot speak more highly of the positives it has brought into not only my life but my Christian family has also seen that hijab is not oppressive, but quite the opposite it is empowering. That their Australian daughter has chosen a path of modesty, dignity and more than just being looked at as an object. But forcing people to know me for my mind and soul. It has allowed me a platform to spread a positive message of Islam to people who were like I once was. It has allowed me to show people we are human, we are kind, we are mothers, sisters, daughters just like anybody else. But most importantly it has showed me the love Allah swt has for us as woman and how we have been raised in status. I have never felt so strong as I do in hijab.