My Muslim Father

From the kitchen sink, washing the dishes, she heard her cellphone's personalized message alert tone ring.
Who could that be? I hope it's a good news from home...
Even if her fingers were itching to open it, she resisted the urge and continued doing her chore.

1 message received

#####Opening#####

message: "Assalamualaikum!"

That brief message made her smile. He remembers her and doesn't mind spending Php 15 for that "sms". He didn't forget the teenage inquisitive girl who lived with them for a week just so she could write her baby thesis about the Muslims and Islamic culture and traditions. He didn't forget his agnostic chinky-eyed daughter.

And she remembers him. Her Muslim "father". Datu Mangayao to his people, Papa Mike to this girl. The message triggered the memories she had, the days she spent living with them.

For a week, she woke up at 5AM, observing as the family get ready for their first sallah at 6AM. It amused her as they clean themselves while reciting something she can't comprehend. She enjoyed wearing mahlong and putong just like all the other women in that village. The bamboo catwalk scared her wits as she walked there to get to the masquit, only to be disappointed because she can't go inside for she didn't shave down there, and didn't want to too. She read some of the Islamic books lent to her with enthusiasm. She learned that Muslims and Catholics share almost the same faith. Almost. She was disgusted by some of their traditions, the drinking of the water used to wash a dead man's body, but was later relieved when she was told it was no longer being practiced. She was annoyed by their sexist culture. She's a feminist. She can't bear the thought of her friend, the Datu's daughter, being decapitated for having a Christian boyfriend, for having sex with him, and for having an abortion. It's a disgrace to their clan. A dishonor, when a Muslim girl have an amorous relationship with a non-Muslim guy whilst it's not if a Muslim man marries a non-Muslim woman. That's why her mouth's zipped and she knows nothing when asked. It irritated her when women in the family have to wait for the men to finish eating before they can eat. The Datu's family were nice and very hospitable and accommodating to her, she doesn't despise them, she loathes their gender discrimination, their bigotry. She loves her Muslim extended family.

The girl replied to him by typing the first sentence she learned in Muslim. It doesn't have anything to do with being glad or anything like that, it's a profession of faith for the Muslims, but for the Datu and the girl, it has a hidden message saying, "I never fail to remember Papa Mike..."

message: "Ashadu Allah illaha ilallah wa ashadu annan Muhammaden rassoulullah"

Message Sent!