24.02.2021 Shelf-Confidence book Photo Challenge - If I could learn any language

Once Upon An Eid edited by S.K. Ali and Aisha Saeed 

Mirage by Somaiya Daud 

Love From A to Z by S.K. Ali 

We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal 

The Light at the Bottom of the World by London Shah 

The Candle and the Flame by Nafiza Azad 

The Weight of Our Sky by Hanna Alkaf 

The City of Brass by S. A. Chakraborty 

A Pocketful of Stars by Aisha Bushby 

This Green and Pleasant Land by Ayisha Malik 

Amal Unbound by Aisha Saeed 

The Love and Lies of Rukshana Ali by Sabina Khan

Amina’s Voice by Henna Khan 

The Henna Wars by Adiba Jaigirdar 

The Gauntlet by Karuna Riaza

Throne of the Crescent Moon by Saladin Ahmed 

Sofa Khan is Not Obliged by Ayisha Malik 

The Girl and the Ghost by Hanna Alkaf

Sunbolt by Intisar Khanani

Growth is about stretching, trying new things, and setting small, realistic goals for yourself, not picking a “good habit” you’ve decided you will be doing always and forever from now on. That’s not discipline. That’s pointless self-torture and unhealthy resistance to change.

Too often I’ve heard the phrase or something along the lines of, “Learn Spanish, it’s useful.” And I’ve got to say, as a hispanic/Latin young woman, these kinds of words leave a pit in my stomach. I am so tired of the Spanish language being put in one of two boxes, “It’s useful” or “put that away. We speak English here.”

[ 003 / 100 ] days of productivity. [10/2/21].

can you tell i’m a little stressed out? i found out today that my literature essay had now been pushed forward from next monday to this friday. a day away.

(This is written entirely within the dominant white/western culture - about traditions that have neglectful stewardship rather than those actively suppressed)

The anxiety makes sense. You’re seeing, too late to do anything about it, that there’s no foundation - no space - for the traditions you expected to pass on. Your kids _can’t_ take your mom’s fine china. So now instead of enjoying what you have you worry about its future.

I see a pattern in these op-eds though - a pattern in what’s left unsaid. There were responsibilities tied to these traditions. You collectively assumed they _would_ be passed along. So collectively, what did you do to ensure those traditions _could_ be passed along?

Op-eds never speak for everyone, but it’s worth acknowledging the pattern in what speech is deemed worth sharing widely.  And in this particular pattern, there’s an answer: that answer looks like “nothing.”

You want the china passed down but your kids have no room in their rentals. You want grandkids but your kids don’t have the financial stability. You want that cross-country RV neverending road trip but you’ve had decades of wanting lower taxes more than you wanted infrastructure.

The bleak outlook for traditions is a direct result of the unmaintained foundations for them. The second best time is always now - if it’s important enough to op-ed about, what are you willing to change to get it back? What will you give up or re-prioritize?

The bleak outlook for traditions is a direct result of the unmaintained foundations for them. The second best time is always now - if it’s important enough to op-ed about, what are you willing to change to get it back? What will you give up or re-prioritize?

I follow a Facebook group of “Memories of …” for my hometown - a rustbelt community that has gone from a thriving hub of industry to a much-less-thriving place.

The group is a collective lament.   Decades-old pictures of well-kept churches.  Aerial shots of the main intersection downtown, lined with big cars.    Scanned advertisemetns from local stores featuring pictures of their interiors.   These alternate with the drumbeat of news:  the Catholic diocese is closing churches.  Selling them.   Tearing them down.   STores downtown are closing.   The traffic light has been replaced with a four-way-stop.

“That’s the church my parents were married in!” “How could they tear down that beautiful building.  Such memories!” “All the businesses are closing.  It must be the taxes.” ”They’ve sold the old lodge downtown.” “They’re not opening the skating rink this year.  We always used to go.”

And sometimes I chime in. 

“Do you attend that church?  Do you give? Or do you just want the building to look pretty for you? “ “Do you volunteer at that park?  Why not?” “Did you vote for that recreation bond issue?” “Are you a member of that Lodge? Why not?” “Do you shop downtown?   Or did you start shopping at Walmart and Amazon to save a few bucks?”

If you feel something is worth preserving, why do you not participate in its preservation?  

Welcome to February- there are a ton of cool books coming!

As always, you can check under the cut for more on each!