Julia Tarjan

To write a few words on myself seemed easier at first.

You have written countless professional cvs, cover letters and personal statements. 

You have also spoken about your life to friends you haven't seen a while.

But to explain where you are in your deen, it's something more important and more personal.

I have lived my second half of my life, my adult life as a Muslim. In this nearly two decades I had different phases as I have reached my maturity.

I was blessed to have had the best teacher, Dr Mohamed Eisa Shubail, may Allah reward him. He is one of the few teachers who can explain Islam to non Muslims and help them understand it. 

These past few years I understood deeply by my heart what it means when we talk about "this world is not a resting place, it's a testing place".

I grew up as a person, then I grew up as a Muslim. The tests have become really tough. Loss of life and wealth, the collapse of a card castle I had been working on with all my strength, starting everything from ground zero have made me know that this life is not the final goal.

But these tests have also made me realise who I really am. I don't live in the shadows of others expectations. I don't have to turn my light off in order to accommodate others.

And the most beautiful of all, being unapologetically myself is actually the only way to serve my Creator. 

Now I'm working on a project called "Being an Eastern European Muslim". It is a missing piece in the great socio-cultural diversity of Muslims, and it is really important to address the specific issues these people have. 

So this is my "deen cv" in a nutshell.