A Mosque-erade

I have decided that Utah Mormons have nothing on Saudi Muslims. We joke that there’s a church on every corner in Utah. Here there’s a mosque on at least every block. The Muslims pray five times a day at set times: one beginning before sunrise (what we think is for the extremely devout), one at sunrise, one when the sun is highest in the sky (noonish), one mid-afternoon (complex calculation involving shadows), one at sunset (when the sun dips below the horizon), and the final prayer is at darkness when there is no longer any scattered light. Each salat (prayer time) has its own name that we are learning. During salat (pronounced sah-lah) everything stops. If you are in the middle of shopping, you are given a twenty and then a ten minute notice before prayer to get to the checkout. If you do not make it, you have to wait. Almost all stores are closed during salat. Many stores also shut their doors so you cannot exit during prayer. It’s a real incentive to get going. Then adhan (pronounced ah-than), the prayer call, can be heard. Since there is a mosque on at least every block, the adhan can be heard from wherever you are…even in my bathroom as I’m getting up in the morning. Honestly, though, I told Dano the other day that after only ten days I already know I’m going to miss hearing it when we move. There is something serenely reverent about it…granted it’s no Mormon Tabernacle choir, but it has already become a part of our daily expectation. If you're interested in hearing what it sounds like and what the words to the adhan are, here's a sample. (By the way, I am feeling so very impressed with myself for being able to actually copy and paste a youtube clip! I can now go to bed empowered!)