Due to the fact that almost EVERYONE asks me when/where/how did i convert to Islam, i decided to write this journal in the hopes that it would save me time whilst emailing to other naseebers. :)
i am a white girl living in houston TX (htown baby!). I went to high school in an area called Alief, which is an extremely diverse area of town.whites r the minority, with blacks and hispanics being about 3/5ths of the population --but don't quote me on that, i'm just trying to give an overview of the diversity.
Looking back on my highschool years (I refuse to say exactly how long ago that was j/j) Allah had been placing many of the right influences in my path since the get -go. A very close friend of mine was Egyptian. and another close friend of mine was Indian. I remember the egyptian's father's death and me going to her house to console her. and her family was in mourning, so they were fasting. but they (as I later learned is basically a requirement in any household) offered me some sweets to snack on. I felt bad accepting them, but i also knew it would b rude to refuse.
My other good friend in H.S. (the Hindu) showed me a very racist point of view when she started talking about muslims one day at a convo during lunch. I was shocked to hear such things come out of her mouth. but i also knew she was repeating things her mom had told her. but, lo and behold, less than 2 yrs later, she had fell in love with and married a Pakistani muslim and converted!! i was about 17 the first time i went to visit her and her husband to break fast on her first Ramadaan!!
So, all of these influences and experiences were already imbedded in me by the time that i reached the main point of this journal:: my moment of REversion.

When i was 19 years old, i was buying a car off of a genlteman here in Hoiuston TX. His name was Mike and he worked (and i think owned ) a car dealership. A friend had referred me to him to go buy a car. I had another friend of mine drop me off to the car shop, but when i got there, Mike told me I would need another $500 for downpayment. since my friend had left, i needed a ride down to the bank to withdraw the $$. so mike took me in his car.
The minute we get into the car, he has a tape of the Quran playing, and he starts to translate for me. THIS SHOCKED ME. Usually the first questions ANY man would ask when we were alone would b "so, where is your boyfriend? What? u don't have a boyfriend? a pretty girl like u?etc etc"
So, not only is this man not addressing or even caring about my relationship status, he actually takes the time to explain that he is translating the Quran because (and i quote) "On Judgement day, I want God to recognize that i was alone in the car with a female and all I did was preach the word of God." THIS SHOCKED ME EVEN MORE. I realized that this man actually cared enough about the everlasting afterlife, that he was carefull in EVERY THING HE SAYS OR DOES IN THIS LIFE. So, poof, in my mind that was my moment of conversion. True, i did not really start to study about it, or read a quran or cover or pray for another...2 years or so, but THAT MOMENT, at a stop light at Westhiemer and jeanetta in Houston, Tx was the EXACT MOMENT OF MY REVERSION.
This man's dedication to the Higher Power was so influencing to me. and that's what all the books of God state, that when u believe, it is our duty to preach to anyone at anytime. Bcuz u never know when ur deed, ur act, ur words may end up impacting another humans life forever.
feel free to respond/ write a journal with ur own conversion stories!
signed, Zaina Kareema