Sigh.  I’ve been having a hard time writing lately.  It’s gotten so bad that I find myself writing up posts and then deleting them time after time.  If I were using paper and pencil I’d have a two-foot-deep drift of crumpled-up pages around my desk.  It’s not that I have nothing to write about.  The world is chock-full of interesting topics.  It’s just that I can’t wrap my brain around what I want to say.  Actually, I can SAY it... Read more

I woke up this morning at the usual time.  I slept on the couch last night.  Sometimes, when I’m very, very stressed, when life is getting to be to much and I’m in the midst of a maelstrom, I have to go sleep on the couch.  It is smaller, cozy, and the feeling of having the strong vertical back of the couch that I can back up against gives me a feeling of security.  Sleeping vulnerable on a flat mattress... Read more

And so it begins.  Someone finally stepped forward to bury the body of Tamerlan Tsarnaev, the alleged Boston bomber who was killed during a confrontation with police.  His body was in limbo for a while because no cemetery in the Boston area wanted to take him.  The news came out, yesterday or today, can’t remember, that someone had accepted the body and he has since been interred.  Well, turns out that the grave is in my area.  I live in... Read more

I just have to share this because usually I’m not a crafty person.  First of all, I’m not terribly creative with “artsy” stuff.  Those genes went to my sister Trish, who is an accomplished artist .  Second, I often do not finish what I start.  ADD and all that.  So when I came up with an idea to make frames for my crochet work, I was tickled to be able to follow through and do it. So, here’s the thing. ... Read more

If you are a Muslim or Muslimah disheartened by recent events in the U.S. and around the world, remember to hold fast to your faith.  If you are facing challenges in your life, hold fast to your faith.  Remember why you embraced Islam in the first place.  Whether you were born into a Muslim family or are a revert, at some point you made a conscious choice to say: Ash-hadu an la illah il Allah, wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadur RasoolAllah... Read more

Not much profound to say today.  After this latest outrage, piled on top of oh-so-many outrages here and abroad, I can only pray.  Pray for Allah to bring murderers to justice wherever they are.  Pray for Allah to give comfort to the parents who have to bury a child.  Pray for those who are so misguided that they consider mass murder to be a valid political tool.  My heart goes out to the victims of the bombing in Boston.  My... Read more

I think every person of faith has struggled with the issue of suffering.  Why do we suffer?  Why must we suffer?  What good is served by suffering?  If you are not currently suffering, if your life is going well and everything is coming up roses, it can seem very condescending to assure others that suffering is meaningful and being patient will be rewarded.  It is even harder when your loved one is in pain, whether physical, emotional, or spiritual.  What... Read more

I’m a revert.  I accepted Islam almost twenty years ago, standing in the front vestibule of the Islamic Center of Greater Kansas City, gently led through my saying of the Shahadah, my declaration of faith, by the Imaam, Adnan Bayazid, while a vacuum cleaner buzzed in the background.  Since then I’ve never looked back, and Islam is firmly ingrained in my mind and my heart.  I’m one of those “fundamentalist” Muslims.  I dress in long loose clothes, I cover my... Read more