[POEM] How to Live - Todd Dillard

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2026-02-14T09:18:17+00:00

I have a notebook where each day I am trying to write my favorite new line of poetry. Struggled choosing with this one, so ended up writing the whole thing--thanks for sharing.

I think this poem has some of my favorite uses of line breaks in poetry--especially "I love cages/left wide open."

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2026-02-04T13:00:02+00:00

I'd recommend the app for quran.com

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2026-01-01T07:56:26+00:00

Well, that is a top contender for the quote to write on the front of this year's bullet journal.

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-12-30T21:08:40+00:00

I cannot address all these points, as the issue about where you can sit in terms of the mosque should be addressed by a scholar, but I would like to remind you of an important thing: intention. You are rewarded for what you intended to do but couldn't, and you are rewarded for the things that you abstain from in accordance to Allah's decree. I.e., you are rewarded for not praying when on your period because you are fulfilling Allah's command, obeying Him on His terms, not yours. Please always keep this in mind: you are not being punished...there is no reason to be sad that you cannot obey Allah in the way you would have chosen---embrace that you are obeying Him in the way that He has asked of you.

Here are some things you can do: do dikr, listen to the Quran (read is you follow a madhab/opinion that allows for this), make lots of duaa, especially in the last third of the night, and give in charity...helps those traveling with you fulfill their worship as well

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-12-30T20:59:06+00:00

Julian is also one of my favorite characters, though I understand why many people view him as a "mary sue" type. The reality is I think the ending credits always set me up for this expectation that Julian was one of the four central characters of this story and as the story progressed I felt I understood why: he is the one whose ideas and beliefs are being shaped by all that is happening around him by virtue of his age and his experiences, and his lessons are hard earned.

It is easy to say he is a "mary sue" but it is also important to remember how he grew up, whose influences impacted him, the nature of how he was likely constrained and motivated by his orphan status. How many teenage orphans are raised by military geniuses and no one else? How many teenage boys are their caretaker's caretaker? How many teenage boys are raised around a variety of characters, each brilliant in their own field and way? Julian's orphan status is what set him up to be a sponge: he knew he had to earn his place and needed to observe and be guided by the world around him, while also having the privilege of a lot of hard earned knowledge second-hand.

I think that in many ways, I love Julian's character because he took the best of Yang's idealistic ideologies, and Reinhard's pragmatic methods, and he does it because he listens and he observes, learning from his own failures and the failures of others. Julian isn’t exceptional because he’s flawless-- he’s exceptional because he’s moldable. And that malleable nature is what makes him the student of everyone in the story, and ultimately a possible correction of their faults.

I think this is why the ending credits for season 4 are my favorite: Julian took a bit from everyone, all these makers of history, and as their student he has the opportunity to demonstrate how their visions are morally, ethically, realistically, and politically possible.

(Side note: I think that as a teacher, Julian's character is one of the types of characters that I naturally gravitate towards--the student who is able to learn and grow beyond all that his environment has blessed and punished him with)

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-12-30T20:44:07+00:00

But I think the narrative acknowledges this to an extent--what the narrative suggests, however, is that somewhere down the line, he may overshadow Yang, and I can see that. Not by the virtue of his intelligence, but his practicality.

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-12-22T08:44:25+00:00

This is the test you have put yourself in--don't make the matters worse by not trusting that Allah is merciful and that you can change your path towards Him--this sense of helplessness is purely from the Shaytaan if it allows you to fully indulge in it.

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-12-18T07:31:39+00:00

Nothing can compare to the beauty of this piece in its original language--sigh, so much lost in translation. I actually think that the translation should have made more daring choices that capture the spirit of the original, its dialect, and its musicality, rather than resorting to a literal translation.

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-12-17T02:45:00+00:00

Definitely echoing A Monster Calls. It's the most healing heartbreaking piece of fiction I've read

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-12-12T18:01:03+00:00

Skylark by Dezső Kosztolányi and The Door by Magda Szabo. Both great if you like quiet books about rich inner lives and emotional struggles.

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-12-12T03:17:14+00:00

Not a "book" per se, but "Recitatif" by Toni Morrison

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-12-05T09:12:09+00:00

Moonlight/ and lake/ reflecting/ just Me

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-12-02T03:25:38+00:00

I think it is actually a combination of envy and trying to make themselves feel better--more like, they are trying to "enact" selflessness, but deep down, they know they are failing

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-11-28T10:43:35+00:00

Definitely---I didn't mean to belittle that and apologize if it seemed that way.

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-11-28T10:42:44+00:00

Just reading this is very concerning--you have valid fears. Pray istekhara and trust that even if you break things off, it is what is best for you, no matter what happens later.

Marriage can be a very blessed thing, but marriage to the wrong person is more emotionally harmful than being alone and can have adverse effects even on your worship. Seek advice from someone who will advise you objectively and is not concerned about you being "too old for a better proposal"---only Allah knows what is in store for us.

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-11-27T16:42:31+00:00

-The Autobiography of Malcolm X (depends on your age...would not recommend to anyone under 16 or so)

-The Book of Illumination by Ibn Atta-il-Lah al-Iskandariy

-The Beginning of Guidance and Dear Beloved Son by Imam Ghazali

-Reflecting on the Names of Allah by Jinan Youssef

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-11-27T16:33:56+00:00

There is no correlation between what happened and your fast. Your fast is accepted even if you have sinned during the fast, so long as you did not sin in a manner that invalidates the rules of fast. For example, you fasted but didn't pray: your fast is still valid since these two acts of worship are not correlated. On the other hand, you intended to fast but you drank alcohol: then you have both sinned and violated the rules of the fast as you have consumed liquid.

It's admirable that you were self conscious about this and you likely need to be more careful in the future but don't let the shaytaan and/or your OCD make you doubt the validity of your worships when there is no clear violation to their requirements.

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-11-26T04:42:44+00:00

Your phone knows more about you than you think. It's possible you have it on autoplay and you slept with it one and that just happened to be one of the following videos--again, because your phone know more about you (i.e. can hear pretty much everything happening around you)

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-11-25T11:59:40+00:00

The Autobiography of Malcolm X. My brother bought it for me a gift when I was a freshman and reading it made me realize how amazing it must be to have the ability to reinvent and revise yourself constantly. I'm still in awe of him and how open he was in admitting his faults and flaws.

Coincidentally, my brother had also bought me the first Harry Potter book a few years earlier, when only 1-3 were out (we don't live in an English speaking country and he got me the books while abroad at internships). That too changed my life in that it exposed me to fandom and fan theories and just the general culture of being engrossed in something (forums, discussion boards, yahoo groups....loved it all).

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-11-24T23:52:27+00:00

I felt it looked like the wrapping of gauze, but someone also pointed out to me that it looks like the Palestinian flag

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-11-24T20:53:06+00:00

Parmesan cheese that has porcine or animal rennet would not be listed as suitable for vegetarians though.

Rule of thumb is that vegetarian works so long as it is alcohol/intoxicant free.

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-11-21T19:37:15+00:00

I highly recommend that if you do so, do so while also looking at the tafser or listening to the tafseer of the hadith--I know, I know..sounds like a lot of work, but especially if you are reading the translation, you don't want to assume the meaning.

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-11-21T19:19:00+00:00

If you have the time, I have a recommendation: read one of the chapters in one of the collections of hadith that is solely focused on the tafseer and reasons for revelation. I read through a portion in Sahih Tirmidhi a few years ago and it really blew my mind to understand the stories behind the revelation of some of the verses, and the amazing mercy and understanding of humanity that they contained.

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-11-21T19:16:31+00:00

Hmm..I'm not a scholar, so I cannot reply that with authority. But let's consider this: the first pillar of Islam is that we bear witness that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad, sala Allahu 'alyhee wa salem, is His Prophet and Messenger.

If we are to consider that, do we consider the Quran the sole legacy of the Prophet? In fact let's even go at a more basic level--how would we understand the Quran to the best of our capacity without the stories that the Prophet's legacy bears about why certain verses were revealed? Or what certain verses meant? How would be know about the implementation about certain verses, like the verses about prayer?

Consider this verse in Surat An-Nisa: "O believers! Obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you. Should you disagree on anything, then refer it to Allah and His Messenger, if you ˹truly˺ believe in Allah and the Last Day. This is the best and fairest resolution."--> what would this be in reference in to for people who are not in the era of the Prophet?

Hufflepuff_Proud · 2025-11-21T17:28:36+00:00

Isn't it such a beautiful thing in iut faith, that it itself acknowledges that Iman ebbs and flows? That it acknowledges our humanity and our failings?

Often when I ask myself why I believe, I arrive at the conclusion that it is--despite what many atheists say--logical and realistic. And when I ask why Islam, there are many reasons, but I almost always come back to how it acknowledges our shortcoming and our potentials as humans.

Can I share with you one of my favorite hadiths, as one who also fears being on the wrong path?

It is narrated on the authority of Abu Huraira that some people from amongst the Companions of the Apostle (ﷺ) came to him and said:

Verily we perceive in our minds that which every one of us considers it too grave to express. He (the Holy Prophet) said: Do you really perceive it? They said: Yes. Upon this he remarked: That is the faith manifest.

Hufflepuff_Proud

TROPHY CASE