By Waheedah Kosefobamu

As Ramadan draws closer, preparation can no longer remain a matter of reflection alone. Reflection without change risks becoming a comforting routine – one that soothes the conscience but leaves the soul unmoved. With only a handful of days left before the crescent appears, a more pressing question now stands before us: what must change?

Every Ramadan arrives with mercy, but not every heart receives that mercy in the same way. The difference often lies in what we are willing to transform. If we enter Ramadan holding tightly to the same distractions, the same neglect, the same habits that distanced us from Allah before Shaʿbān, we should not expect a different outcome simply because the calendar has changed.

This is the time for honest identification.
Which sins have we grown too comfortable with?
Which obligations have we treated lightly?
Which habits quietly steal the time we could devote to remembrance, prayer, and Qur’an?

Change does not require grand announcements. It begins with quiet resolve. Perhaps it is committing to guard the tongue more carefully. Perhaps it is returning to the five daily prayers with punctuality and presence. Perhaps it is limiting what distracts the heart and increasing what softens it. Real preparation for Ramadan is not only about what we plan to start, but also about what we are willing to leave behind.

Ramadan is not merely a pause from food and drink; it is an invitation to transformation. Fasting disciplines the body, but its greater aim is to reform the soul. If we identify now what must change, we allow these remaining days of Shaʿbān to become a gentle transition rather than a sudden shock to our routines.

The most successful Ramadan is not always the one filled with the most visible acts, but the one that produces lasting change. A habit abandoned for Allah. A prayer guarded more carefully. A heart softened. A relationship restored. A sin resisted. These are the quiet victories that outlive the month.

So let us ask ourselves sincerely: If this Ramadan is to be different, what must be different about me?
And once we identify the answer, let us begin now – even if only in small steps.

Ramadan is approaching.
Transformation does not start on the first night.
It starts today.

Allāhumma ballighnā Ramaḍān