Archive for the 'Uncategorized' Category
Lady in Waiting
Thursday, January 1st, 2009
Neela toddles across the bridal suite, and finds my makeup bag. At three, she is old enough to unzip; a grey kohl pencil, a strand of pink pearls and a collection of pins spill onto the floor. From these she extracts the pearls. Looping them around her neck, she shuffles in the direction of the […]
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Turkey Diary: Let Us Pray
Tuesday, September 23rd, 2008
Originally published at othermatters.org in July, 2008.
1. Istanbul
The entrance to the mosque is hidden behind a metal door which swings. It is early, still, for maghrib; I imagined, walking downhill, that I would find a space inside, up in a balcony, where I might wait to pray.
The masjid is a simple thing with a […]
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Turkey Diary: Pulpits of Light
Tuesday, September 23rd, 2008
Originally published on othermatters.org, July, 2008.
Konya, July 7
I listen to Sevde’s breathing change as she falls asleep. Our beds form an L, such that without moving, I can study her face. Thirteen years old and wrapped up in pink, she rests on her right side. I am glad that her restlessness has ceased, even […]
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Othermatters Stories (Imported)
Tuesday, September 23rd, 2008
As-salaamu alaikum, dearest readers.
For some time now, I’ve been publishing stories on a supposedly weekly basis at othermatters.org. I am going to import a selection of them here, so that you might enjoy them. (And so that they might provide some context for stories such as “Catarina’s Garden”.)
yours truly,
AMD
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Nimrod-ish Behaviour and How to Avoid It
Friday, April 25th, 2008
This one is for my most beloved brothers. May Allah guide and bless you always, accept your good deeds, and give you Jannah.
Let’s say that you are sitting in Harvard Square, on a sunny afternoon. Perhaps you look from your spot on the grass, and you see a sister. For the sake of argument, […]
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Angela Ann
Thursday, April 24th, 2008
Angela Ann pinches her brow with sunlight on her arms. I play with my straw. The sour tea has given way to thin cubes of ice. I crush these at their finest ends, into splinters I can sip. A fine pink blush spreads over the other woman’s ears. “It is too hot in there,” she […]
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Phone Home
Friday, March 21st, 2008
I started writing a weekly post for othermatters.org; you can read all about it at that site on thursdays, insha’Allah. i intend to publish more “current event”-ish articles there, and more dreamy anna-trips here. following this note is a reprint of the article I submitted to the othermatters community this week.
“How are the First […]
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The results are in…
Friday, January 4th, 2008
Rejection #1 has arrived!
I sent out three book proposals during my days off from school; the first rejection notice has arrived.
Alhammdulilah, alhammdulilah, alhammdulilah.
Time to try again! Please, brothers and sisters, if you think of it when you are making du’a, say a prayer for me.
best wishes from your sister in Islam,
Anna
ps. […]
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Notes from the Front (of the Stage)
Saturday, October 6th, 2007
As-Salaamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh Dearest Angels and Readers.
This evening, the first graders performed a poem* I wrote for them at our school’s annual Ramadan fundraiser. I reprint it here for posterity إن شاء الله. While surely this event deserves deeper comment, I want to say briefly that the children did a wonderful job, […]
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Nature Walk Haikus
Monday, September 10th, 2007
We practice running
across the meadow like birds
away from milk weed.
I have had cause to
increase my bravery viz
preying mantises.
Today one sat on
Omar. I picked it off him,
it climbed my hijab.
We made a circle
of white twine and dead leaves,
our new habitat..
If Allah wills we
will come back to study it
again and again.
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