Being A Jasmine is A Struggle

Tags

Beauty, Education, Heart, Humor, Life, Love, Women, World

“Arab, huh…that’s pretty exotic!”

“Are you sure you’re Arab? You don’t look Arab…”

Um, white folks, you may have forgotten, but you colonized the shit out of the Middle East (still kinda do). We come in all different shapes and sizes.

You ALWAYS get “randomly selected” for extra screening by the TSA.

Pulling an old white woman aside for extra screening doesn’t pardon your racism.

Who is this diet you speak of?

Food is our first love. Mensaf. All day, err day bruh!

You feel obliged to give a disclaimer when you start dating someone new.

I’m sure it’s a lovely restaurant but it’s in my uncle’s neighborhood. Lets go somewhere else…perhaps another city?

“Oh that’s interesting that you go to school. Your family is ok with it?”

When you bring friends home you have to give them a mini orientation about your family’s unusual…rituals.

Baba, can you please stop yelling at the TV, you’re scaring Tiffany!

People assume you’re Muslim by default…

NEWS FLASH: We’re not all Muslim! We’re Christians, Jews, Atheists, and Beliebers. Get it straight.

Your siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins, their spouses, and offspring have the capacity to populate an entire village.

As an Arab girl you get categorized into one of two groups, you’re either a Haifa:

Or a Nancy.

When your grandmother calls – you answer reluctantly.

Hey Teta, I just got a new job!

“If you loved me you’d get married, yalla…I’m going to die soon!”

We share an unspoken language with other Arab women.

A three second gaze can translate to: Yeah we should go soon, I’m down for pizza after. The score is 4-1. They say it’s going to rain tomorrow. Can I borrow that top? Of course I recorded Love & Hip Hop Atlanta.

Your parents typically have nothing nice to say about you…unless it’s to other people.

“My daughter had a full scholarship to study abroad and now she works at the top firm in the state.”

During your college years you had the luxury of using the library as a cover for just about everything.

I hope my mom isn’t reading this.

“Girl, why are you so conservative?”

It’s called class.

You get called awiya for speaking up.

Brains, beauty, and sass. BOOM bitch!

Western media has fooled the world into thinking we’re oppressed.

Don’t believe everything you read, except this post…everything I wrote has been scientifically proven*

*This post has not been reviewed by any scientist

When your aunt tells you there’s an ‘3arees’, you’re secretly lightweight curious.

He doesn’t sound like a complete loser…All right, I’m listening.

But after you meet said 3arees you feel the need to pay your aunt a visit

Every birthday some jerk-off relative has to suggest that you’re ‘expired’.

“You’re running out of eggs…When I was your age, I already had five kids.”

Don’t you have a cliff to drive off of?

You give people a simpler way of pronouncing your name but they insist on pronouncing it the ‘ethnic way’.

“Speak in Arabic…it sounds so sexy!”

ye3lan youm eli shoftak fi.

“Sooo how do you feel about America?”

That’s like asking us how do we feel about pie. We love pie. Who doesn’t love pie?! End of discussion.

When you attend weddings, you’re hit with waves of “you’re next!”

At any given moment a stranger will approach you and ask if you’re blah blah’s daughter

“I remember you when you were this little!!”

You must feel honored.

When you were younger, going out used to be more agonizing than going to the DMV.

“I don’t know if you can go out. Ask your dad, ma khasne.”

“So when are you going to show me some belly dancing moves?”

You, sir, are out of pocket.

“My friend is Arab — maybe you know them!”

Don’t assume we know all Arabs…although I probably do.

Being asked our opinion on the Arab Spring, Palestine/Israel conflict, Iraq War…

Do you have 17 hours to spare? It’s not exactly small talk.

You take advantage of people’s lack of knowledge of the Middle East and tell people you’re somebody important whenever the opportunity presents itself.

Because what the fuck do they know?

Your mom has tricked you into revealing secret information when reading your fortune in cup of coffee.

Shit.

But at the end of the day, we have our habibis and our hummus and we wouldn’t trade them for the world!

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http://www.buzzfeed.com/samaraburahma/31-things-only-arab-girls-understand-snmr

The Flute

Tags

Beauty, Heart, Life, Lovers, Poetry, Relationship, Sufi's

The Flute

Listen to the flute a-speaking,

Tell the tale of wretched exile,

Weeping for this world of sorrow

Using words of truth to spin it.

Since the day they seized and took me

From my friends and my companions,

Men and women have been weeping

At the echo of my sobbing.

I have rent my breast from beating,

Gaping holes have made within it,

How I’ve wept and have lamented,

Thousand sighs my heart has rendered.

I’m a friend and blithe companion

Both of this world’s happy people

And of all folk sad, embittered,

With them do I make alliance.

Whate’er be the situation,

I can weep and mourn in longing,

At any time and any place will

My heart sigh and be a-moaning.

All the world does listen to me,

Sees though only my appearance,

Of my wishes they know nothing,

Nor the fire that burns within me.

People come and gather ’round me

When I weep and tell of longing,

Yet they do not know my secret,

Thus I find no consolation.

Those abandoned, hearts forsaken,

Of the flute become companions,

Some, its mellow scales a-hearing,

Lose their minds, their wits completely.

Human falsehood and illusion!

The flute’s voice is not mere wind, it

Has the fire of love within it

When that lowly reed is fingered.

When it plays, the heavens brighten,

When it plays, do hearts take courage,

When it plays, the summer blossoms,

When it plays, the soul’s ecstatic.

To the rose it lends its fragrance,

And to beauty adds an aura,

Gives the nightingale its music,

Charm bestows upon the cosmos.

Of that fire to the heavens

Rising, flickering and flaming,

Does it make the sun and stars which

God within his hands is holding.

From that fire, true God Almighty

All the firmament he fashioned,

Sent the spark of life, creating

Humankind after his likeness.

Fire, oh blessed fire a-blazing,

I with you have been united,

Thus am purified and blended.

Never leave me, my beloved!

 

                                                                                                                                                      Naim Frasheri

 

 

Simply Think!

Tags

Civilisation, democracy, Education, History, Human Rights, World

Cost We Are Paying,

You can’t liberate the FREE.

 

The Legendary Robin Williams R.I.P.

Tags

Death, Films, Heart, Legend, Life, Peace, World

NEVER say GOODBYE

Because saying Goodbye

Means giving Away,

and Going Away means

Forgetting…

…

Left behind the legacy of films…

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RIP Robin Williams

Tags

Death, Life, Peace, World

…

R.I.P. American actor Robin Williams dead at 63 in apparent suicide. Oscar Award-winning‪ American‬ ‪actor‬ Robin Williams has been found ‪dead‬ at his ‪California‬ home in what the Marin County Sheriff’s Department says was a ‪suicide‬. He was 63.

Ramadan Mubarak

Tags

Allah, Beauty, God, Islam, Life, Sufi's, Wisdom, Women

Every year, #Muslims observe a month-long fast during the 9th month of the #Islamic calendar: #Ramadan. Muslims believe that this month is filled with blessings, and it is appropriate to wish them well at the beginning of the month. Friendly words in any language are welcome, such as “I hope you have a blessed Ramadan,” or “may you have a peaceful Ramadan.” There are some #traditional or common Arabic greetings that one may use or come across:

“Ramadan Mubarak!”
(“Blessed Ramadan!”)

“Kul ‘am wa enta bi-khair!”
(“May every year find you in good health!”)

At the end of the month, Muslims observe a holiday called Eid al-Fitr (the Festival of Fast-Breaking):

 

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Just Digging

Tags

Happiness, Humorous, Life, Love, Relationship, World

Have a great weekend all of you guys….

I dig,

you dig,

we dig,

he digs,

she digs,

they dig.

It’s not a beautiful poem,

but it’s very deep.

 

 

RIP Maya Angelou

Tags

Beauty, Life, Love, Poetry, Women, World

RIP #MayaAngelou, the American poet and author, died at her home in Winston-Salem, North Carolina on Wednesday. She was 86.

 

Her son, Guy B Johnson, confirmed the news in a statement. He said: “Her family is extremely grateful that her ascension was not belabored by a loss of acuity or comprehension.

“She lived a life as a teacher, activist, artist and human being. She was a warrior for equality, tolerance and peace. The family is appreciative of the time we had with her and we know that she is looking down upon us with love.”

Johnson said Angelou “passed quietly in her home” sometime before 8am on Wednesday.

Bill Clinton, at whose inauguration Angelou read her On the Pulse of the Morning, said in a statement: “America has lost a national treasure, and Hillary and I a beloved friend.”

Angelou’s failing health was reported as recently as Tuesday, when she canceled an appearance honoring her with a Beacon of Life Award because of “health reasons”. The ceremony was part of the 2014 MLB Beacon Award Luncheon, in Houston, Texas, part of Major League Baseball’s Civil Rights Games.

Last month, forced to cancel an appearance at a library in Arkansas, she wrote: “An unexpected ailment put me into the hospital. I will be getting better and the time will come when I can receive another invitation from my state and you will recognize me for I shall be the tall Black lady smiling. I ask you to please keep me in your thoughts, in your conversation and in your prayers.”

Angelou was born Marguerite Annie Johnson, in St Louis, Missouri, in 1928. She described in an NPR interview how her brother’s lisp turned Marguerite into Maya.

Share your story: What did Maya Angelou mean to you?
To celebrate the life of one of America’s most influential poets, we’re asking you to tell us how you’ll remember her. Were you lucky enough to meet Angelou? Have a favorite quote? Share your story with us and we’ll feature select contributions on the Guardian

Contribute
She survived several personal trials: she was a child of the depression, grew up in the segregated south, survived a childhood rape, gave birth as a teenager, and was, at one time, a prostitute.

She wrote wrote seven autobiographies, including the 1969 memoir I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, and was a playwright, director, actor, singer, songwriter and novelist.

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings was an indictment of the racial discrimination she experienced during her childhood. “If growing up is painful for the southern black girl,” she wrote, “being aware of her displacement is the rust on the razor that threatens the throat. It is an unnecessary insult.”

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings has had a wide appeal, particularly to younger female readers and continues to appear on school and university reading lists in the US and the UK.

In 1993, she read On the Pulse of the Morning at President Clinton’s first inauguration, a performance that made the poem a bestseller. The poem celebrates the diversity of ethnic groups in the US, and calls on the nation to leave behind cynicism and look forward to a new pride in itself, and a new dawn for the country.

Clinton on Wednesday said he would “always be grateful for her electrifying reading … and even more for all the years of friendship that followed.”

Angelou was a long-time Clinton supporter. One month before his inauguration, she told the New York Times: “Since the election, I have found it easier to wake up in the morning,” and “there seems to be a promise in the air.”

And her loyalty to Hillary Clinton has been steadfast, even as Barack Obama campaigned to be America’s first black president.

“I made up my mind 15 years ago that if she ever ran for office I’d be on her wagon. My only difficulty with Senator Obama is that I believe in going out with who I went in with,” she told the Guardian.

Actors, writers, directors, activists and politicians shared thankful and mournful notes in response to Angelou’s death.

JK Rowling called her “utterly amazing”; Lena Dunham thanked Angelou for “your power, your politics, your poetry. We need you more than ever.”

Angelou had lived in North Carolina since the early 1980s, when she became a professor at Wake Forest University, a private liberal arts college. A statement from Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem called Angelou “a national treasure whose life and teachings inspired millions around the world”.

The mayor of Winston-Salem, Allen Joines, said the town would probably remember Angelou best for her commitment to health and theatre.

She supported the founder of the National Black Theater Festival in Winston-Salem, and eventually became its first chairperson in 1989. In 2012, the Maya Angelou Women’s Health and Wellness Center opened in the city. A street in Winston-Salem is named after Angelou.

Despite her many accomplishments, the mayor said small moments seemed to touch the poet.

In April 2008, the town threw Angelou an 80th birthday party. Despite entertainers and speakers present at the party, the mayor said, “The thing that seemed to touch her the most was a group of little kids.”

Indefinitely

Tags

Life, Love, Poetry, Quotes, Sufi's, World

Someday our souls will be one
And our union will be forever.
I know that everything I give you
Comes back to me.
So I give you my life,
Hoping that You
Will come back to me. …

5 WHORES WHO CHANGED THE WORLD

Tags

Life, Relationship, Sex, Whores, Women, World

5 WHORES WHO CHANGED THE WORLD

For most of us, performing sexual favors in some dark alley for grocery money is about as low as life can get. But history is full of stories of prostitutes who parlayed their skills into positions of prestige and power. And some of them changed the world.

#5.

Rahab the Harlot

Where: Jericho.

When: 1400s B.C.

How She Got Her Start?

Rahab probably came from a middle-class family in Jericho. She was an intelligent, independent-minded woman, and in those days there was only one profession for a girl like her to go into. A married woman was a slave to her husband, but a prostitute lived her own life and made her own decisions. As a scarlet woman, Rahab had freedom.

The cost of freedom, circa 1400 BC.

By all accounts, she was good at it, too. By the time she comes up in the Bible, she had her own house and made a comfortable income. Comfortable enough that she began to long for a career that didn’t involve, at best, being fisted by middle-aged men who bathed once a year.

What Made Her Great?

Back in 1422 B.C., the Israelites were living on a barren tract of land appropriately named, Shittim. Joshua, king of the Jews, didn’t really like living in a place that reminded him of his own bowel movements, so he set his sights on the city of Jericho.

Better than Shittim.

Joshua sent out two spies to scout out the defenses. The young Jews did their job and then sought “refuge” at Rahab’s place. The Bible doesn’t state why they chose to stay there, but it’s pretty obvious Joshua’s spies were “scouting out the defenses” for a “full frontal assault.”

Their sweaty reconnaissance was cut short, however, when the king of Jericho sent his men out to look for the two Jewish spies skulking around his city. Rahab hid the young men, and convinced the king’s soldiers that the spies were hiding elsewhere. Because of Rahab’s kindness, Joshua’s spies survived and were able to bring back crucial information that lead to the conquest of Jericho by the armies of Israel.

That’s right; believe what you want about the Bible, but it’s right there in the Old Testament that the course of world history was turned by a hooker with a heart of gold.

#4.

Aspasia

Where: Athens.

When: 470 B.C.-400 B.C.

How She Got Her Start?

Like a lot of whores, Aspasia was born into a bad situation. She was a foreigner in Athens, which meant she had close to nothing in the way of civil rights and would almost certainly never marry.

The only area of Athenian society that was more open for women than men was in Athens’ legendary brothels. Prostitution was neither illegal, or frowned upon in Athenian society. Both men and women could be whores, although men had to quit when they became adults. Yes, in Athens they’d only bust you if your clients weren’t pedophiles.

Aspasia took advantage of this and became a hetaera, or really high class hooker. Hetaerae were generally well-educated and, under law, they were independent from any men, and were even allowed to pay taxes and own property. In short order, the beautiful Aspasia was at the top of the hooker hierarchy and renowned through all of Athens.

What Made Her Great?

Aspasia knew she was hot, and she knew how to use that beauty to get what she wanted. Soon, she began to court Pericles, the First Man in Athens (that is, a famous statesman and orator–kind of a mix between Obama and Oprah).

She and her husband became the center of a great group of philosophers and thinkers from all across the city. She not only knew Socrates, but many credit her with being one of his teachers. Some scholars even suggest she had a hand in the origins of the Socratic method though, for some reason, they left that one out of our philosophy textbooks.

#3.

Nell Gwynn

Where: London, England.

When: 1650-1687.

How She Got Her Start:

The same way most of us did: giving handjobs to aristocrats in the back of a theater. Nell Gwynn was the daughter of an alcoholic brothel owner in dire financial straits. She started working at an early age, selling snacks during plays and delivering messages to randy young noblemen. Most historians seem to agree that the girls often ended up delivering more than refreshments.

One lucky day, when Nell was a young adult, she met King Charles II during a play. The king was impressed with the young harlot’s wit and moxie, and invited her back to the castle. One thing lead to another, and pretty soon Nell Gwynn was a regular attendee of the king’s court (by “court,” we mean his penis).

Unfortunately for Nell, King Charles was a bit of a player. At the time the two met, the king had a wife, a mistress and a string of former and aspiring mistresses all vying for his attention. Nell was clever, though, and by a combination of wit, charm and poisoning her rivals with laxatives, she managed to become the king’s most beloved concubine.

What Made Her Great?

Nell Gwynn never denied her past, nor did she seem the least bit guilty over it. At one point, a fight broke out when one of her detractors screamed that she was a whore. Nell broke the fight up in short order by saying, “I am a whore. Find something else to fight about.”

This wasn’t the first time Nell had admitted her ho’ness in front of a massive crowd of strangers. Another time, a large crowd mistook her for a rival mistress, the Duchess of Portsmouth, and began to shout at her carriage, calling her a Catholic whore along with a laundry list of funny-sounding British insults that no one born in a sane country could understand.

You gobshite tallywacker!

Nell stuck her head out of the carriage and corrected the mistaken commoners, “Good people, you are mistaken. I am the Protestant whore.”

This mixture of wit and bigotry won the crowd over, and lead to her becoming the only one of King Charles’s many mistresses to become popular with the mob. Nell was a shrewd woman, and she used her favor with the king and the people of England to secure her son a dukedom, and convince Charles to approve the construction of a Royal Hospital for ex-servicemen in the city of London, one of the precursors to our modern VA Hospitals.

Thanks, terrifying ceramic version of Nell with an amazing rack!

So, yeah, keep that in mind the next time you’re congratulating yourself for never having touched a man’s wiener for money.

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