Letter to Julia 20110822

No, that couldn't have been my first spiritual moment, but it was certainly distinct, that it sticks out in my mind. Life is full of spiritual moments that we miss because we are so consumed with ourselves- I believe it's called arrogance. It happens to all of us, always in a big hurry to get nowhere. I don't consider myself to be more elevated than anyone else. The best we can be my love, is on the edge.

As you know, my grandfather's house is right next door to mine. It has been abandoned ever since he passed away. It looks like it could be haunted, in fact I saw some verses of the Qur'an pinned to walls of some closets there- specifically verse 255 of "The Heifer", a very famous verse used to ward off jinns. I have that verse memorised, and I have had many encounters with jinns, but I put my fear in Allah, so I'm not too worried. Anyway, I told you about the ancient amra tree by my front gate, which also happens to be the front gate of my grandfather's house. My parents wanted me to clear out some vines there which were climbing up the old tree. However, these vines were getting leverage from some smaller trees on the ground, so all of it had to be cleared out. Some of those tress have been there for decades, so it isn't an easy chore for me. Added to that, my grandfather put up some construction there which includes steel rods, barbed wire, bricks, rocks and shattered concrete, plus some ancient trash like an oil lamp and the skeleton of a foot-driven sewing machine. What's my point? There is no point, except Allah. But those who do not understand become enemies, simply for the reason that they do not understand. Their minds become limited by their own desire, which they desire not to abandon.

Meanwhile, I found some young mangos of the high quality kind, so I transplanted them over to my side. I think my side of the compound is going to be filled with fruit trees, insyaAllah. When they mature in about 10 years or so, you can help me set up a stall by the side of the road, and we can sell mangos and chilled cashews. We can sell honey-roasted cashew nuts for extra expensive! With your beauty, we could attract millions of patrons to our roadside stall. You can help me wash the roasted cashew nuts in detergent, and crack them open with a hammer. Please wear gloves! I wish I could plant strawberries here. Sigh! Sometimes I miss the 4 seasons.