Dakota stopped at a nearby water fountain to wash the taste of his breakfast sandwich out of his mouth. Sheesh, it really tasted foul. He'd never found a piece of bacon he didn't like until today. Didn't bode well for the next four years...
A nagging feeling that he was forgetting something tugged at Dakota. He stopped and scrolled through his class schedule on his notes app. The times were right, and he was on track to arrive early to his next class, but he couldn't help but feel like he'd scheduled something right before that class. Something important. Was it a form to submit? He went through a mental checklist, then wondered if he was thinking of something Drake mentioned earlier. What was it...
He looked up from his phone and realized he'd stopped right in front of the school's prayer room. Didn't Muslims pray a lot? And since it was noon, Dakota figured this might be one of the times they prayed. Maybe that's what his brain was trying to remember. He took his phone back out and looked up "noon Muslim prayer."
The results led him to something called Zuhr, the midday prayer. Dakota grinned. This was a perfect time to try it out, since he had a few minutes to spare. He looked both ways to make sure he didn't know anyone around, then darted into the prayer room and shut the door. To his relief, no one was inside. Dakota found a YouTube video called "ZUHR; How to do the required lunchtime prayer of 4 rakaat" and then pulled up a linked PDF with a script.
"What the heck am I doing," he laughed to himself as he hit play. His parents weren't terribly religious, but they did swing rather conservative, and he knew they wouldn't think him praying to Allah was very funny. But college was all about new experiences, Dakota thought, and he did want a good grade. He knew it would be impressive if he went to the MSA and already knew something about their customs.
"We begin by first making the intention from the heart to play to Allah," the video said. Dakota shut his eyes and put his hands together, hoping he was facing Mecca like he was supposed to. He tried to clear his thoughts - that was hard, he was always going a mile a minute - and focus.
"Allaahu akbar," he said aloud, but the video said it differently than he did, like a song. Dakota raised his hands up by his ears, cleared his throat and tried again, then a third time, drawing out the "laaaah" and clipping the "akbar" with a rolled 'r' at the end. Embarrassed by himself, Dakota bumped the volume louder on the video to drown out his own voice, then read along with the script. "All praise is due to Allah, Lord of all that exists, the most gracious, the most merciful, Master of the day of judgment..."
Unable to hear his voice over the video, Dakota didn't know how perfectly he was following its direction. The cadence of the prayer rolled effortlessly off his tongue, flat and long, and then the strangest thing of all happened:
"Iyyaaka na`budu wa iyyaaka nasta`een, Ihdinas-siraat al-mustaqeem, siraat al-ladheena an`amta `alayhim..."
The white, blonde jock who hadn't even taken Spanish in high school was suddenly speaking perfect Arabic, his prayer loud and forceful throughout the room. He kept the video going but stopped reading the script, going off memory he didn't know he had as he worked his way through the four units of prayer. He changed positions accordingly, from standing to prostrating himself and back. The minutes passed, and his class time drew threateningly close, but Dakota was thinking of nothing else.
"Assalaamu `alayka ayyuhan nabiyyu wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh. Assalamu `alaynaa wa `alaa `ibaadillaahis saaliheen. Assalamu `alaykum wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh..." he droned, joy filling his heart. "Allaahu akbar. Allaahu akbar. Allaahu akbar!"
The video ended, and Dakota blinked as if waking up from a dream. He looked at the clock. He caught himself from saying a bad word in a place of worship just in time: "Shhhhiii- Oh no!" He flew out of the prayer room, backpack trailing behind him as he made it to his next class just in time. Though his heart was pounding when he sat down, he felt an unusual sense of peace and calm. No wonder people liked praying. It really was pretty soothing.