Diary of a convert: 'I am forever indebted to Allah for choosing me'

I flew out of Cape Town in November 2011 to start my exciting journey here in Dubai!

I was fortunate enough to be recruited in Dubai directly from Cape Town, South Africa, after applying for a job online through a recruitment agency in May 2011. I was then selected to be a junior hostess at a prestigious one-star Michelin restaurant here in Dubai.
I flew out of Cape Town in November 2011 to start my exciting journey here in Dubai!
I was fortunate enough to meet my friend (now husband) Luis Carreno about two years ago in Dubai and his interest in Islam led me to explore and understand Islam. Both of us converted to Islam in January 2018. Luis told me plenty of amazing things about the religion through his daily readings from the Quran and multiple discussions about the topic.
I have never been interested in religion, as all that I'd known about it that people were killing each other over this topic. But with a lot of discussions with and teachings from Luis, I am very happy that I made such a great choice in my life and I wish more people would learn more about Islam, to understand the beauty and necessity of being a Muslim.
Being in Dubai for almost seven years now, I know about Ramadan. I always respected the holy month and those who were fasting, although I was not. Now, as a Muslim myself, I can definitely say that this is a great experience (this being my first fasting Ramadan as a Muslim), and I can tell you that it is a difficult experience - it definitely opened my eyes more to understand what this holy month really means. I look forward to completing my first Ramadan, and to continue to do so every year moving forward.
There were always three topics that I disliked discussing with anyone - religion, history and politics. But what I never knew is that Allah works great wonders for us as time goes by, and so it seems that Allah has surprised me yet again by picking me to walk on this beautiful road of becoming a Muslim.
The comparison of my views on religion prior to joining Islam, to what they are now, are as different as day and night. It's incredible what can happen to you once you are properly informed about a topic and I am forever indebted to Allah for choosing me to learn about Him on this incredible path as his servant.
 The message I want to give out this Ramadan is to do yourself a favour and go to an Islamic Centre and learn about Islam. No matter what your religious viewpoints are, you will be doing yourself a huge favour and you won't regret it.
(AS TOLD TO SAMAN HAZIQ)
(Laaiqah Carreno is a 30-year-old South African national who came to the UAE in 2011. She and her husband Luis Carreno embraced Islam in January 2018 at the Islamic Information Center, Satwa)

• Ramadan 2021