My Momma taught me not to say 'shut up'...so I won't...but I want to!

My parents are from Alabama, and down there the phrase "a church on every corner" is about as common as "inshallah" is here. A friend from Afghanistan commented the other day that there is a "mosque on every corner" there. She obviously hasn't looked around here. From my apartment I can visibly see four from the living room, and uncountable from the kitchen. (Next time I'm bored, I'll count for you...)

It is the mosque I cannot see from my apartment that has been pushing my culture shock buttons to the level of insanity.

You know how in the states, some young man with great intentions and a gift for public speaking decides to open a new church (since the other 124 churches in his town aren't getting the job done)? He's the new ticket in town and everyone starts going there leaving Pastor Joe confused about why his numbers are down? I don't think a mosque is any different. You're rich? Go to the big rich people's mosque. You're hungry to learn from the Koran? Go to the new kid's mosque.

The new kid's mosque happens to be two buildings over. You know he's young because he doesn't have the money to build a big building with domes and minarets, and well, concrete. He bought a trailer mobile home, and spent the rest of his money on the loudest speakers known to man. How do I know he's gung ho on preaching? His call to prayer last night lasted 30 minutes.

I walked by the new trailer mosque the other night during prayer time, and it was packed out. Men were doing their ritual washing out of buckets on the street. I wondered if it was wrong for me, a female, to be staring as blatantly as I was. What drew them to this humble mosque when there is such a bigger (and surely air conditioned) mosque just two blocks over? Must be the preaching.

It's so loud when you're right there next to it you might bust an ear drum. So loud that if I could see the mosque from my balcony I would've pitched something at it after 20 minutes of utter noise. So loud that you might read a headline about American girl going postal during call to prayer in a trailer mosque.

I love living in a Muslim country where modesty is appreciated. Where men leave me alone, and the women are so much fun to talk to. (I met two girls, both named Fatimah, at Starbucks the other day and they kept me entertained talking about their culture for hours). Where I get to have my job that wouldn't be half as interesting in the US. Where I get to be where God intended for me to be.

But this week, I don't love the super excited mullah preacher man at the trailer mosque two buildings over. I'm culture shocking, and I might just take it out on him...in my blog anyway.