Abigail is a quintessential sweet as sugar Southern Belle born and raised around the swamps of southeast Louisiana. She is quintessential in every way but one-Sweet Southerner, Warm-hearted American, and Muslim. Abigail is hard to miss.
When I met Abigail a few years ago, I remember thinking she was unmistakably creole. She had olive skin, dark eyes, and an easy attitude. Her turban head-cover was reminiscent of the Caribbean women who have populated New Orleans for centuries.
To me she seemed the kind of person who would be voted most popular in high school, but still feel at home hanging with the “unpopular” crowd.
As I observed her for the first time in the masjid with her vibrant young son, I thought she reminded me of my mother-warm, beautifully swarthy, magnetic. I learned that she was the wife of an Indonesian Muslim man who frequented my local masjid. And I wondered if she herself was Muslim.
My question was quickly answered when I found out that she was a rather new convert. Abigail says: ”What ultimately led me to choose Islam was coming to an understanding through conversation with my now husband about Islam. Knowing and believing that there is only One God.”
Abigail writes about her life, family, and her journey to Islam in her book My God is Your God. Her book is an in depth story of her family’s history and how she came to know the One and Only God of all things from her Muslim husband.
On Social Media
Time passed, as it always does, and I stumbled upon Abigail once again- this time on social media. It was here online that I learned more about Abigail and her love for Islam. Abigail says:
“Life before Islam, for me, was misdirected because I had made choices that led me to living a wrong life morally”.
Abigail brings her life lessons with her into Islam and is never ashamed of the hard earned wisdom they have given her. Many converts feel shy to speak about their path. But Abigail is more than willing to share the lessons she has lived.
We became better friends and I messaged her to come to the halaqas on Friday nights to meet other sisters and learn more about Islam. In all my interactions with Abigail, her sincerity to God is always evident.
As we got closer both on and off-line, I realized that Abigail was everyone’s cheerleader, recommending everyone, even herself, at all times to trust in God’s plan. Abigail says:
“After becoming Muslim, I feel closer to God and feel more connected to God. Through my mistakes, there’s always a chance for repenting”.
At the Cinema
One evening, my husband and I went to the movies for a date where we ran into Abby and her beautiful family. She was going to see the same animated movie we had just bought tickets for. Her smile was ever present and her bubbly attitude was contagious. I, being more like a cranky cat, was and have always been mesmerized by her ability to be energetic and cheerful at every moment.
In her life as a Muslim, Abigail has never met a challenge she couldn’t face. Abigail says, “[the] challenges of conversion were none. After converting, realizing that I still made mistakes and life will never be perfect because this world is only temporary”.
Abigail is the kind of person we all wish we could be like. She has never met a stranger. She always assumes the best of people. And she somehow only see the good in life.
She says, “I have learned so many lessons since reverting 4 years ago. I have too many of my own faults to worry about other people’s mistakes, which I never judge anyone! [I] try my best at everything I do but know there’s a consequence… consequence to everything good or bad that I do”.
Abigail is one of those few souls who are a striking reminder of what the Quran says in Chapter 24:
{The only statement of the [true] believers when they are called to Allah and His Messenger to judge between them is that they say, “We hear and we obey.” And those are the successful.} (Quran 24:51)
(From Discovering Islam archive)