Update soon...

sorry about the lack of posting... school's a little crazy. but keep checking back (:

Not Your Erotic, Not Your Exotic - Suheir Hammad

Another powerful Muslim sister! Suheir Hammad is a Palestinian-American poet, activist, and author
she's AMAZING.
I love her casual-yet-oh-so-powerful style.



"Exotic" - Suheir Hammad

Don't wanna be your exotic
Like some delicate fragile colorful
bird imprisoned caged in a
land foregin to the stretch of her wings

Don't wanna be your exotic
women everywhere look just
like me some taller darker
nicer than me but like me
Just the same women everywhere
carry my nose on their faces
my name on their spirits

Don't seduce yourself with my
otherness
the beat of my lashes
against each other ain't some
dark desert beat it's just
a blink get over it

Don't build around me
your fetish fantasy your
lustful profanity to
cage me in clip my wings

Don't wanna be your exotic
your loving of my beauty ain't
more than funky fornication
plain pink perversion in
fact nasty necrophilia
because my beauty is dead
to you
I am dead to you

Not your harem girl
geisha doll banana picker
pom pom girl poom poom short
coffee maker town whore
belly dancer private dancer
la malinche venus hottentot
laundry girl your immaculate
vessel emasculating princess
don't wanna be
not your erotic not your exotic


My favorite line is "it's just a blink - get over it" huzzah! She's discussing the sexual exploitation of women of color. The concept of "orientalism" is very strong in this poem too, and if you don't know what that is, then I suggest you do some reading. I could attempt to explain on here, but it's quite lengthy and I, myself don't have a strong grasp on it. It's along the lines of how the West views everyone from the East as "the other" or "them" as inferiors... this is where being "exotic" and all that steps in. Definitely is a heavy subject - but as Muslim-Americans, we are going to come across orientalist comments many times in our lifetimes, so it's best to be knowledgeable about it!

Salaam

Chill, It's Spring Outfit

Finally, a new outfit!The top is from H&M, the tote, sandals, and scarf (howw cute is that scarf?!) are from Urban Outfitters, the new seventies jeans are from Victorias Secret, and the bracelets are from Forever21. I feel like this is a very earthy outfit. Speaking of earth, I planted flowers a few weeks ago and they started budding - but today when I checked on them, one whole pot of flowers was completely dead :( I think it was the drastic weather change that did it...

On a happier note, I received mail today! And not just any mail - this was lonnnng awaited mail. It is an 8-cd pack of lectures by Imam Suhaib Webb called Purification of the Soul. I've heard many good things about it so I am quite excited about the drive to school tomorrow because I'll start then. What a good way to begin my day! I'll report back when I finish i'A.

Food For Thought

As I was blog surfing today (yeah I'm being open about that lol, we all do it! & it's better than like myspace surfing..) Anyways, I came across this beautiful piece by mariya (<-- that's a link to her site) titled "Our Pathetic State"

Cute Hijabs, matching tight pants, perfectly manicured hands drumming restlessly to the beat of the latest Nasheed pop;

Nice rides, sipping café lattes, halaqas embraced in the depths of cozy rooms, speaking of distant dreams and privileged existences.
Do we know the real struggle?
ISNA club, throngs of fans milling air conditioned convention halls, pop star speakers glimmer in the spot light, beckoning distant hearts to spirituality and deeper lives; chastising in that “oh so mesmerizing voice”; as the crowd yells a deep bass “Takbir” followed by shrills of “Allahu Akbar”…
Do we really comprehend the Greatness of our Creator?
Trekking the globe in search of meaning, disenchanted existences within treasure filled homes, dreams of substance blocked by trivial minds; apathy radiates in different colors; squeezing potential out of our beings like deep soaked sponges inflated by muddy waters;
Can meaning seep into a suffocated heart?
Following zigzag paths of nothingness; in search of “Deen” or “the other half of my Deen” whatever comes first. So we step in style, mouthfuls of “Subhana Allah”; gleeful “Mashaallah”; echoing from empty hearts frenzied by empty lives.
Scratching the surface of submission; echoing lines from distant lives; dreams of greatness shelved away; as we pander our “Proud to Be Muslim” shirts; cheap prices for cheaper wares.
Pardon my jaded writing…perhaps I forgot the subtle depths of this struggle; as I begin to still the meaningless symbols clanging in my heart;
Please remind me:
Do rays of the Divine
ever
illuminate
these
darkened
c o r n e r s ?

just some food for thought. I did some introspection after reading this... and I've noticed it's part of human nature to try to relate everything we read/hear to ourselves... especially as this piece is eloquently written. It pushes the reader to find a deeper connection with their soul. For sure, I am guilty of some of the things mentioned above, but at the same time everyone finds peace of mind by different means. I feel most connected (body, mind, and soul) during and after a good run while someone else might find that situation to be the least fitting for them. On the subject of pop Nasheeds - I just got Native Deen's "Not Afraid To Stand Alone" album in the mail recently, and I find their lyrics to be extremely influential... there are so many decisions I've changed from wrong to right, just by having their lyrics in mind. It works for some, doesn't for others. But essentially, her words touched me, and it's soo important to reflect upon how we're living our lives - and if we see things we don't like, then insh'Allah we will take the steps to change those aspects. I think the most pertinent thing is to always be aware of what we are doing and what we are allowing ourselves to be around. In a speech I heard once, the speaker said some profound things, the line that has embedded itself into my head is "our hearts are like sponges and we absorb everything that is in our environments... eventually when the sponge is full it's squeezed and everything we've exposed ourselves to is let out from our tongue." So check yo self!

Salaam

I Haven't Seen This Much Love in a Room Since Narcissus Discovered Himself

The title is a quote from disney's Hercules (1. because it's hillarious, 2. because it's semi-pertinent to what this post is about).

How many times a day do you look at your reflection in the mirror? Many, and yeah sometimes it is more out of habit than narcissism, but we still do it a lot. So what's a good way to get more out of looking in the mirror than just the usual "you are so full of yourself" comment? Reciting this dua:

اللَّهُمَّ أَنْتَ حَسَّنْتَ خَلْقِي فَحَسِّنْ خُلُقِي

Allahuma anta hassan’ta khalqee, fa hassin li khulaqee

"O Allah, just as You have made my external features beautiful, make my character beautiful as well". (An-Nisai)

Ultimately, it is your behavior and not your external features that's valued more by Allah and by mankind right? If you're personality/behavior/character is awesome then your family, coworkers, and basically everyone will like you more, and you will like yourself more. There are no negatives about it, so yallah - memorize this tiny dua!

Salaam