By Sophronia Spicer
Trust Allah and wear your hijab no matter what. That’s what I did. I had returned home to the Southern, Bible-Belt state of Virginia from having lived in Germany for three years as a military spouse and mother of three. I taught math at a high school there.
When I returned to the US from Germany, all math teaching positions had been filled in my hometown. One day, while driving through a neighboring town, I decided to go inside a high school that I was about to drive by. I told the secretary that I was a Virginia-licensed, certified secondary math teacher who was seeking a job. It just so happened that they were pretty desperate to find a math teacher. The new school year was beginning soon, and they needed a math teacher.
I was invited to interview for the math position. Being in this Southern city, I definitely felt some trepidation and angst about how they might react to my hijab. Nevertheless, I made up my mind that I was not going to interview without the hijab; then I would show up at school later, wearing it, if I got the job. I did not want to deceive the employer, thus creating another negative impression of Muslims. More importantly, removing my hijab for the interview would have been unjust to my own soul and conscience. One of my favorite sayings, then and now, is: “What’s for you doesn’t miss you, and what misses you wasn’t for you.”
After I completed the interview, I was told I would receive a call that evening. The principal called to congratulate me for getting the position. I was pleased to accept it. Then he asked the question that shocked me. He asked, “Will you remove the scarf [hijab], because wearing it could be a problem for the students and their parents?”
I told him, “No, I will not.”
I reminded him that I had interviewed with it on, and that it is part of my religious obligation. I also added that students are very adaptable and would be fine. As for their parents, we will cross that bridge if they bring up this matter, but the hijab stays. Not one student or parent complained about my hijab that entire school year.
I know it is not easy to stand out in a space where you would rather blend in and look like everyone else. But the reward for obeying Allah ﷻ and His Messenger ﷺ when it is difficult will bring you a priceless treasure: You will become firm in your heart that you can indeed trust Allah, and you will not lose anything. It is a type of knowing that removes fear, strengthens your īmān (faith), and brings you closer to Allah.
So the next time you face a dilemma about wearing your hijab or some other aspect of Islamic ʿibāda (worship), know with certainty that Allah, the All-Seeing, the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing, will help you. Trust Him!