The Manrilla Blog | Life. Art. Religion. Culture.

I just wanted to inform all of you that I will be taking a short hiatus from the blog in order to go forth with a surgical procedure to fix the herniated disc and pinched nerve in my back this Friday. I have not been able to work for the better part of two weeks as well as previous spots before the new year. I just spent the better part of the weekend in the ER for pain treatment and decided that enough was enough. I most likely will not return to work before the procedure so you may still contact my by email. I greatly appreciate the kind words of support. As you may or may not know, I have been dealing with sciatica [the nerve pinched/trapped by the disc] since October 2007. It has simply become too painful to “work through” any longer. I hope to be out for only a short respit and then back to the task at hand. For those who have it, my office line has been forwarded to my cell so you my contact me at either my cell or my office number, which are listed below. I also have access to email on my phone [c’mon, I work in IT - whaddayaexpect?].  I do not know what room I’ll be in yet but I’ll follow up with that as soon as I know more. I hope to see all of you soon, and please keep me in your du’ahs/prayer lists.

I finished teaching my Fall term Web Publishing course at Moore College today. All of my students put in a lot of work. They all work and hold down lives and still put in a great effort. I really enjoyed interacting with them and I hope that the class will serve them well. My heartfelt thanks for a wonderful ten weeks! A short blurb on the home page, for your reading pleasure.

Best of luck to all of you!

It was my supreme pleasure to play host to Charles for the past few days. My only regret is that it was far too short. I hope Charles can find his way back to Philly to visit again soon.

Charles is one of those rare creatures in which you can strike up any mode or subject of conversation with. From religion to politics, traveling, food - you name it. It has been such an unexpected joy to get a chance to see him. He looks good and is taking his condition well, with a spirit that is well-tempered. I have found a tremendous amount of inspiration just observing how he carries himself these days. I can only hope to match his temperament. I’ve included a couple of small shots from his visit. We all had a great time with you, Charles. Philly is all the more lonesome without you. Please grace us with your presence again.

One love little brother,

“I personally believe that U.S. Americans are unable to do so [locate the United States on a map] because uh, some people out there in our nation don’t have maps and I believe that our education like such as South Africa and uh, the Iraq everywhere like such as and I believe that they should our education over here! in the U.S. should help the U.S., should help South Africa and should help the Iraq and the Asian countries so we will be able to build up our future for our children”. Lauren Caitlin Upton - Miss South Carolina.

Just want to wish my mother a very happy birthday! You’re the greatest!

Life has been coming down the fast lane these past few months. Time and time again I am reminded that we’re promised no time on this rock. I just received a text from a friend stating that a close friend of mine had passed away. He was not even ten years older than I am. His name was Hamza and he will be remembered by many.

I think back now on those who have left. By those, I refer to the first individuals that I met when I took shahadah. Brother Ron [a.k.a., ‘Imran], God rest his soul, is no longer with us. An unidentified car struck and killed him during the night as he rode on his bicycle. His killer remains a mystery to this day. Ron had a great spirit about him. He was a cheerful fellow who’d always take time to talk with people. I miss his spirit. And now, Hamza. Hamza was also part of that same initial core group of individuals who taught me some basics about Islam. I first met Hamza one day as I was on my way to meet some brothers at a very small musallah [prayer room] when I saw this tall, broad shouldered man outside, practicing martial arts with a wooden practice sword. With his dreadlocks, Hamza made quite the first impression. But he was a very easy going, gentle person who enjoyed talking with people. We shared a lot of time together over the first several years after my conversion, hanging out, talking, laughing, philosophizing, the whole bit. I will also miss his spirit. He was a good brother. May God grant him Jannah.

A very good friend of mine, Charles, has just been diagnosed with an aggressive form of end-stage cancer. Charles is like my little brother. He is only 26 years old. Unbelievably, we spoke perhaps a little more than a week ago about him moving to Philadelphia to stay with me. I am in shock, to say the least. So please, keep him in your prayers, du’ah, thoughts and all.

[1] Sherman “Abd al-Hakim” Jackson’s, Islam and the Blackamerican [re-read]. [2] Planning a review of Irshad Manji’s, [the lesbian Muslim woman] The Trouble With Islam Today. [3] Olivier Roy’s, The Failure of Political Islam; [4] Hamza Yusuf’s, Purification of the Heart; [5] Michael A. Gomez’s, Black Crescent; [6] Ira M. Lapidus’, A History of Islamic Societies; [7] Frantz Fanon’s, The Wretched of the Earth [re-read]; [8] Ghazali and the Poetics of Imagination by Ebrahim Moosa; [9] Muslims’ Place in the American Public Square, ed. Bukhari, Nyang, Ahmad, and Esposito; [10] al-Ghazali’s, Ayyuha’l-Walad [Letter To a Disciple]; and finally [wew!] , [11] the Sidney Poitier and [12] Miles Davis memoirs, too. Needless to say, with a reading list like this, it’s obvious I’m not married!