day 55

"a noose by any other name still kills"

The Anti-Mandatory Death Penalty Photo Project

day 10 to day 20

"alisa"

"sparrows"

"ass"

"lotus girl"

"the sun"

"meadow of death and despair"

"exploring her mouth"

"monochrome rainbow"

"untitled"

"invisible ink"

"unplugged"

love at the end of life

heard something mildly hilarious today. and yet, wildly intriguing. the person who, for the whole of his/her life, has hated, loathed you, will, towards the end of his/her life, love you the most. meaning. if i suddenly find my worst enemies being utterly nice and lovely to me, it means that they're going to die. soon. it’s akin to getting revenge. but without having to do anything.

but why? well, it’s just a superstition. an old wives’ tale. nothing to it. perhaps. but even these usually deemed ‘illogical’ systems of thought possess a form of rationalization. nothing is unexplained. almost nothing.

maybe it’s because, it’s fate’s way of allowing that person, who has wronged you your whole life, a final chance to make up for all the bad, and do good onto you. a chance to repent. for all the misdeeds. hmm. or maybe it’s just a way of knowing if you are the person who has been most mistreated by that particular person. as in, if that person suddenly dies, and he/she never did suddenly love and fawn over you, then you’ll know that you were never the person he/she hated the most. and won’t that be a good thing? perhaps.

so maybe, we shouldn’t really worry about having enemies. they’ll love us. soon. because, well. everyone dies. perhaps, just make sure they go first.

what makes a woman, a self?

i acknowledge that a person is the sum of all her attributes, her beliefs, her causes, her ideas. but i also strongly believe that in essence, we are all humans and in being human, we are all equal. or at least, should be. regardless. this is especially so in relation to who we help. who we include and exclude from our circle reflects greatly on who we are as a person. as an individual, i am not only a woman, but also a Muslim, a daughter, a sister, a friend, a postgraduate, a photographer, inclined towards activism, human. if the argument pertains to the question of the 'secular', all, except for one of the above-mentioned identities is secular in nature. if it pertains to that of gender, only three of them are gendered identities. and yet, we constantly embed gendered stereotypes onto those other traits. woman. feminized. bodily. roles within private and public spheres. perspectives. decisions. Muslim women are repressed. Mothers are mothers, not full-time professionals. Women are weak. an age old discourse that has been debated over and over again. a new discourse should be encouraged with regards to women & society, women in society. one that reflects a humanistic perspective. one that includes, not demarcating boundaries. one that enables us to dispel judgment and stereotypes. all sisters. all humans.


Woman to Woman from nuruL H. on Vimeo.