Object of Despair

OBJECT OF DESPAIR
(By Fahim Firfiray)

Emma is a lawyer
And so is Aisha too
Colleagues going into court
At circa half past two

Its 1 O'Clock right now
They grab a bite before the trial
They chat about this and that
Conversing with a smile

Aisha is in full hijab
With a loose all over suit
Emma's in her business wear
With accessories taboot

Emma's really quite bemused
At Aisha's godly ways
She looks Aisha in the eyes
And very firmly says

You're a smart girl Aisha
Why do you wear that across your hair?
Subjugated by "man"-kind
An object of despair

Take it off my sister
Let your banner be unfurled
Don't blindly follow all around
DECLARE YOUR FREEDOM TO THE WORLD

Aisha is amazed
But not the least bit shy
She bravely puts her milkshake down
And gives Emma the reply

My dear sister Emma,
Why do you dress the way you do?
The skirt you're wearing round your waist,
Is it really you?

Now that we've sat down
I see you tug it across your thighs,
Do you feel ashamed?
Aware of prying eyes?

I see the way you're sitting,
Both legs joined at the knees,
Who forces you to sit like that?
Do you feel at ease?

I'll tell you who obliges you,
To dress the way you do,
Gucci, Klein, and St. Laurent
All have designs on you!

In the main, its men my friend,
Who dictate the whims of fashion,
Generating all the garb,
To incite the basest passion

"Sex Sells" there is no doubt
But who buys with such great haste,
The answer is likes like you,
Because they want to be embraced...

They want to be accepted,
On a level playing field
Sure, with brain and intellect
But with body parts revealed

Intelligence and reason
Are useful by and by
But if you want to make a mark
Stay appealing to the eye

You claim your skirt is office-like
A business dress of sorts
Would we not laugh at Tony Blair?
If he turned up in shorts?

His could be the poshest of pants
Pinstripe from Saville Rowe
But walking round like that my friend
He'd really have to go

Why do you douse yourself in creams
To make your skin so milky?
Why do you rip off all your hair
To keep your body silky?

A simple shower's all you need
To stay respectable and clean
The time and money that you spend
Is really quite obscene

Why do you wake up at dawn,
To apply a firm foundation,
Topped with make up and the like,
In one chaotic combination?

And if you should have to leave the house
Devoid of this routine
Why do you feel insecure
That you should not be seen?

Be free my sister Emma
Escape from your deep mire
Don hijab today my friend
And all Islam's attire

Avoid all those sickly stares
Or whistles from afar
Walk down the street with dignity
Take pride in who you are

Strength lies in anonymity
Be a shadow in the crowd
Until you speak and interact
When your voice will carry loud

You're a smart girl Emma
Wear this across your hair
Don't be subjugated by "man"-kind
An object of despair

To use your very words my friend
Let your banner be unfurled
Don't blindly follow all around
DECLARE YOUR FREEDOM TO THE WORLD

Jummah...

Jummah Mubarak

I'm sending you loving wishes, for beautiful blessings to come your way and for you to have peace and tranquility, as you travel through your life each day.

May all of your days be filled with love; and may hope and faith be your strength, no matter how impossible something seems.

I wish for you happiness and laughter and for good health to always be with you.

O Allah (swt) , don't let me ever turn away from You, no matter how many trials and difficulties You test me with.

Let these difficulties serve to make me closer to You.

May Allah (swt) shower His choicest blessing on us all.

O Allah (swt), Surely you Are All-Powerful over everything, You are RAHMAN & RAHIM,

Please forgive all our sins and Please accept all our humble duas Aameen

May Allah (swt) forgive all our sins Aameen...

I can't understand this

If money doesn’t grow on trees, then why do banks have branches? Why does a round pizza come in a square box? Why doesn't glue stick to its bottle? Why do you still call it a building when its already built? If its true that we are here to help others, What are others here for? We’re just funny sometimes…

Combining style, modesty and fashion

Combining style, modesty and fashion

"You're seeing new websites springing up and these young designers coming out trying to cater to this market."

Khan says that the fashion world top brands are also starting to market their clothing to Muslim women.

A few years ago, American department store Nordstrom put on a "full coverage" fashion seminar in Washington, promising to interpret "Hot Trends for Conservative and Veiled Women."

Major European fashion houses have also courted Muslims.

The famous fashion house D&G and other big names in the industry, like Paul Smith, Vera Wang and Jean Paul Gaultier, are now incorporating headscarf into their designs.

In the United States Nyla Hashmi, 23, and Fatima Monkush, 25, are uncommon women with a lot in common. They grew up best friends in Hartford, Connecticut. Both of them have Muslim fathers from South Asia and American mothers who converted to Islam.

And now, both are committed to designing chic clothing that offers Muslim women a way to dress both modestly and fashionably.

The two hope to launch their new clothing line, called Eva Khurshid, in February 2009. Although the designers have a specific market in mind, they also hope to reach a broad base of potential customers.

"The name will be recognizable as Muslim, but any woman would look great in our clothes," said Hashmi. She describes the line as "American clothing for working women 25 to 34 years old with an on-the-go lifestyle."

Clothing Dilemmas

Hashmi and Monkush first became interested in clothing design in their teens. Hashmi's family moved to Pakistan in 1995, when she was 10, although she continued to spend summers in Connecticut. (The family moved back to the United States permanently after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.)

"When we came back the summer I was 13, I went through a huge culture shock," Hashmi said. "I saw how different the Pakistani and American adolescent cultures were. My parents wanted me to start dressing more modestly, because I was growing up. I wanted to dress cool like the other kids, but there was nothing in the stores."

Monkush had a similar experience. "It was really difficult to find anything ready-made that I could wear," she said. The girls often resorted to layering, "the Muslim girl's best friend," Monkush said with a laugh.

Both Hashmi and Monkush learned to sew from their mothers. "My mom taught me to follow a pattern and also to change it to create something completely different, something that was exactly what I wanted," Monkush said. "I was 16 when I started making all my own clothes. That was the summer Nyla and I set our course."

Comfort And Clothes

Both women have developed their own definitions of appropriate attire. "I grew up in a very conservative home, and my parents were adamant about dressing modestly," Hashmi explained. "I eventually found my comfort zone. I will wear short sleeves, but nothing low cut or body hugging. Everyone has their own comfort level."

Monkush’s approach “is not about rules, but about what feels right,” she said. “For myself, I'm not going to walk around in a tank top or a short dress — I'm just not comfortable. I do cover my hair and have since I was 14."

Growing Up In A Mixed Family

Nyla Hashmi's mother was raised a Catholic. Her father, a Pakistani, came to the United States in the 1970s and is a U.S. citizen. "My mother was studying to be a nurse when she met my father, who's a heart surgeon. My mother was so inspired by him — he is so kind and generous — that she became interested in his religion and converted," Hashmi said.

Hashmi attended Islamic school on Sundays in Hartford, along with her three siblings.

Monkush's father is from Bangladesh. He came to the United States in 1971 to stay with a cousin in West Virginia. Monkush's mother met him while visiting a friend, and she, too, converted to Islam before the two married.

Path To The Fashion World

After public high school, Monkush went to the University of Connecticut and Central Connecticut State University, where she majored in art. After graduation she moved to New York City and shared an apartment that first summer with Hashmi, who was a student at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT).

Hashmi and Monkush have been working in the evenings and on weekends to put together their fledgling collection. It's a struggle — Hashmi lives in Queens and Monkush lives in Brooklyn with her husband — but both women are committed to their dream.

The thought behind their clothing extended to their choice of a name. "Eva is the name of Fatima's maternal grandmother," Hashmi explained, "and Khurshid is my dad's mother's name." Like their designs, it marries the two cultures.

The Eva Khurshid line will debut in February at Coterie, a major fashion trade show in New York City.

Hashmi and Monkush aren't quitting their day jobs just yet, but they're hopeful their collection will fill a need in the industry. "We want to be the biggest and best in what we're doing," Hashmi said. "This is not like any other brand."

Acknowledgements

This article was compiled and edited from the following sources:

1. "Fashionable, Modest Muslims", Islam Online

2. “Muslim Designers Create Clothes That Combine Fashion with Modesty”, By Howard Cincotta and Deborah Conn Special Correspondents http://www.america.gov/st/diversity-english/2008/September/20080918111528maduobbA0.3181116.html