Muslim Angel: A Poem

       

        So, today is May 5th. When I woke up this morning I had nothing more than thoughts of foolish acts and enough liqour to make me forget about what I did.  But as my luck would have it…. it didnt turn out that way.

        I was minding my own business on the Washington, D.C. subway/metro system when something outrageous occurred. I witness Americans discriminating against a Muslim woman who was merely seeking help to get to another metro station.  She was no taller than about 5’5, 5’6 at the most, and between the ages of 48 to 54. She posted no threats whatsoever. When I tell you that I was soooo disgusted that I had to step in and do my part….. you cant even imagine what was going on in my soul.  As a black woman it clicked, as an American I was ashamed, and as a human I felt compelled to do whatever I could. All of this just 2 days after the news broke that Osama bin Laden was killed.

        I went to twitter and I posted the following status: “Dear Muslim woman dressed in full attire, I saw the looks we got on the metro as I helped you find Van Doren. I now understand.” Immediately upon writing that I wrote, “Pardon me….. I am inspired to write a poem.” And I did.

        Work was not a concern of me at the moment. I took to my computer and wrote the following poem:

Muslim Angel

By: 2Deep the Poetess (www.2deepuncensored.wordpress.com)

May 5, 2011

 

Rush Hour

Dim light

The sound of the hustle and bustle of destined feet rush by

Head bobbing to the rhythm of modern complacency

Conformed to public transportation etiquette

Confined

Blending

Silenced

Until

Muslim angel,

Because such a thing exists,

Dressed in full, all white garb

Hijab edges outlined in sea-foam blue,

Magnifying her faith 10 times over,

Wonders towards me in a 5^th attempt to gain assistance

Previous attempts brushed off by head turns

Flaps of Express newspapers in response to her

Popping like bullets of insults

As headlines of Osama’s demise dangle in her face

As if to say, “Look at what we can do to your kind, here inAmerica”

I saw this

In that moment, I was not proud to be an American

If this was, in fact, the way an American should act

I knew it was not her Farsi trained tongue exercising broken English

That made them ignore her requests

I understood her just fine

“Help me”, sprang from her lips

And translated to comprehension via my eyes

Before I even removed my headphones

I asked if she could repeat herself

“Good Morning”, she said

“Help me, please.

Van Doren.”

Without second thought I took the metro map out of her hand

Took her hand in my other and said, “Follow me.

I will take you.”

A gasp schoolyard bullied its way out of the throat of the Caucasian woman standing next to me

Eavesdropping getting the best of her

My original mission of getting to work on time escaping me

This was bigger than me

Something greater inside of me whispered

“Do not let go of her hand.”

And I obeyed

Seemingly safe within the metal cage

Transporting civilians into the breast of the Confederacy

Older Black woman sang disgust

Like a house nigger gawking

As if I was a field nigger threatening to bring mud into the big house

Exercising her Jim Crow

Removing herself from the front of the car, next to us, to sit elsewhere

Muslim Angel and I stuck out like sore thumbs

Comparison to Freedom Bus rides

We sat front seat at society’s counter

Demanding we be served respect

Express newspaper under my thigh

Feeling guilty for seeking out current events

For today I now knew

I was not proud to be an American

She was I and I was she

And here we sat

Traveling to a place where only one of us knew how to get to

Me to Van Doren

She to a place where she could brave the prejudice and still keep her chin high while seeking help

She needing to know what I knew and vice versa

Yet we sat in silence

Communicating through squeezed palms

Praying to one another for remaining true to who they were

And though she spoke Farsi and I English

We both managed, somehow, to speak human

And we continued to hold on to one another

“Next stop Van Doren”, rang over the intercom

Promised land for her and I

As I walked her out to the platform of her destination

Allah shook God’s hand

Hugged

And said many thanks

All the while I noticed we never said bye

Never shared names

Yet knowing we were sisters just the same

Understanding our coexistence in the midst of those who merely exist

I hope that you enjoyed the poem. I want to hear your thoughts on it. Your thoughts on the situation and anything else that you have to say. I pray that there are other people out there who think like I do and would have done the same thing.

Sincerely,

~*My Mother’s Daughter*~

200 Men Said….There They’re but Not Their

        I think I was a grammar teacher in another life and all of the red marks I placed on the homework of  Students of Flunkies Past have come back to haunt me in my current life. lol. No, seriously, I am going to drag this topic through the mud so that we can see what people think about or even know about the English language.

        One thing that tickles me is to open up a note where a guy has written the wrong version of pen ( pin) and has no clue that “an” should not be used as a conjunction. These are the things that raise red flags to me. And when you point them out to help the guy from looking foolish in front of someone else, he curses you out and calls you superficial and stuck-up. I fight back the urge to yell.. “WELL, NEGRO, I CAN SPELL!!!”  But it still bothers me that there are grown men who do not know the difference between these homophones.

hom-o-phone n : a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir  and air

        The most popular homophones are affect/effect, capital/capitol, to/too/two, pen/pin, then/than, you’re/your, principle/principal, and my all time favorites they’re/their/there. These are the top words in the American English language that get misused on a daily basis. Somewhere along the way a person learned one and not the other, or they learned them both but not the difference between the two.  Often times, the misuse of these words can be as huge of a mistake as that twix commercial where he called his boss Dumb-Ass instead of Due-Mass simply because it was spelled Dumass.

        Each word has its own meaning, although they sound alike, and English speakers must respect that at all times in order to be properly understood.  For example. If I said, “I’m going to the capitol” in an email to my cheating boyfriend, he may think that he had a few days to cheat because the “capital” of our country is hundreds of miles away, rather than the “capitol” building downtown which is only a few minutes away.  When I was younger I learned that “capital” with an A was for places, cities and letters because place has an A in it and A is a letter and a city is a place so it just all runs together that way. Also, capitol with an O is for the building because capitol buildings have the round dome on top.  Or how the principal was never your PAL because he always called my parents about my behavior & how my parents believed in the principle of respect. Other examples are:

Affect & Effect:

The weather didn’t affect the pilot’s ability to land the plane.

Special effects make movies seem more real.

Then & Than:

She ate too much, and then she felt sick.

She ate more than the rest of the people in the group.

To, Too, & Two:

• I drove my children to school in the minivan.
• There are too many people in the room.
• The two boys were always in trouble.

You’re & Your:

• You’re a shining example of a good business person.
• Your writing needs to be the best it can possibly be before you submit it to an editor.

So, 200 of my amazing men were asked:

Many do NOT know the difference between Their, There, and They’re. Can you use ALL 3 words in a sentence? If so, please write a sentence using them correctly.

And by the time my deadline to post this blog came around….. they responded as such:

• Boots: I spoke to Mike and Erica and they’re going to the show tomorrow./Give housing a call, we need to find out if that vacant building is their responsibility or ours./Hey, lets go see why all those police cars are over there.
• “Duke” Banner: hello how are you is ms .story in she over there while you going that way go threw their and get check in .where is the report they’re over here
• Code Name Bigsexy: some 1 is over there.they’re going to the movies and their in my favorite movie
• Live And Love or LAL: Why don’t you do it and stop asking these stupid questions [2deep: Did I mention that I don’t like this asshole?]
•  Mr.Swaggtastikal: A lot of ppl dont knw their place in life. …….why u feel as though I cant come over there? …….They’re are to many ppl in my hose right now.
•  DJ Urban Cowboy: THEY”RE often over THERE in THEIR house, across the street.
• Lateef25: I want to know their location There they go get them They’re always running out of soda at the store
•  Chris C: She was protecting their business. I left the money over there. They’re all guilty. Did I pass?
•  Cut From A Different Cloth: LOL smdh at the fact you are giving people a grammar test on [website] but here you go. Why are you over THERE on THEIR computer giving people on [website] a grammar test ??? Im sure THEY’RE plenty of other productive things you can be doing with your life. [2Deep: I’m sure THERE ARE…but this is much more entertaining to my soul.lmao]
• Don L: lol! english class! I wish I was there with you right now. I promise you their neighbors know my name. They’re going to love my cooking.
• Allen O: So, there they were, showing off thier assets–if you know what i mean–and God knows if they realize the kind of naughty crowd they’re attracting … they certainly got my attention.

My Favorite response came from :

• H.O. R:  TO BE HONEST I DON’T REMEMBER WHICH IS WHICH BUT I NEVER STOP LEARNING

This is my favorite response because he was honest enough to tell a complete stranger that he did not know the answer, but was humble enough to mention that he will never stop learning. SO I sent him a note with the following examples in it:

There, Their, & They’re:

Their house was devastated by the hurricane.

There are twelve eggs in the basket.

They’re happy about their new home.

Their: shows ownership. As in “THEY” own this so it is Their house

There: is a place or location real or imaginary . As in she lives there, right there is your answer

They’re: a combining of the words They Are. SO instead of saying “They Are here”… you would say “They’re here.”

 

But my most eye-opening and inspirational response came from: 
 

• Mr. Mayor**DARKSTARZ INC PREZ**:  There will always be people who believe their way is best, but if they’re incorrect they could lose people they love and care about.

        It helped me to see that I shouldnt judge people just because they don’t know what I know, and I even took the scores off of the guys who responded. I could be wrong… and I don’t want to lose these amazing guys who chose to respond.  I applaud them for doing so and I appreciate them even more. They are helping me teach the world… and they deserve a round of applause for that! * Gives them a literal standing ovation in my office*  My fidora is off to you fellas. I bet you never knew that by answering a question in your free time could help another man, another boy, another woman or girl to understand the difference in a few words.  So, thank you for answering. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

        My original intention in writing this blog was to see how simple words are misused daily and to possibly educate those who misuse the words. It really is a soft spot in my heart for guys and their education. I feel that we spend more time on our girls and not enough on our guys. If I have to do it alone, I will let our guys know just how important it is for them to appear just as intelligent as they truly are. I want them to value education and learning at any age. And I dont say that just because I think that an educated man is a sexy man,but because everyone deserves the benefits that come with being intelligent and appearing intelligent. I dont want opportunities closed to them because they misspell a few words. I know this first hand.When I was a teenager, my cousin’s ex-husband wanted to get a promotion but he misspelled every word he came in contact with so he hired me to re-write his notes and help with his paper. I was more than happy to do so because he is an intelligent man. VERY INTELLIGENT and I am proud of him. And as a person who saw it first hand, just the way he spelled things could have kept him from getting a job that he earned. Sucks, but it happens. Now he has been in that job for years. SO I just want to help, and I hope that no one takes offense to this post. It really is to help. I love everyone… even the ones who dont deserve it…lol.  I’m not even going to spell check my own writing in this one….just to make it fair.

Sincerely,

~*My Mother’s Daughter*~

200 Men Said…. :Internet vs Grammar

     There is nothing sexier than an intelligent man…..besides a man who can cook. But we can always order out if he at least knows how to pronounce hors d’oeuvre. And yes, I know, intelligence is not displayed merely by the graduate degrees he has placed meticulously on his wall to showcase what his intelligence got him. I know that it is much more than that. Common intelligence, also known as common sense, can get you to some far away places that people with degrees can only fathom because they can’t get those places out of their doctoral theory phases. So one may be intelligent and not look it, while another looks it and not truly be it. But, if you are indeed intelligent, wouldn’t you want to appear intelligent as well?

        Many times, I hate people who do not know what the HELL they are talking about and try so very hard to use big words, their verb-noun agreements are disagreeing daily, and their double negatives keep multiplying like BeBe’s kids. You automatically deem them unintelligent, correct? Because an intelligent person would showcase themselves in an intelligent manner. Now, I’m not saying that they must use big words or pronounce everything properly…though that would be nice….but the execution of their thoughts must be intellectual. As a person with degrees, I don’t know how NOT to write as if I went to college and actually paid attention in class. My inner coding won’t allow me to write as such. Yes, I do mess up and should use spell check or grammar check my comma usage, but for the most part…I think that I am very well understood in both my lingual/spoken and written formats. Is it too much of me to wish that others would do the same?

        Now, before I go any further, I would like to say that I wanted to see what 200 men would say about the topic of spelling and proper grammar usage….so in no way is this to bash them and their writing techniques. Everyone is entitled to their own slice of reality and to function in that reality how they please. It really did make me wonder why most people, particularly guys, didn’t see the need in having proper writing skills. It is almost etched into a girl’s head that she must be intelligent and scholarly, so who is to be my mate if I possess these skills? It is almost a turn off to see guys speak to me at, what I deem to be, a 5th grade level. I want a man who writes his thoughts out and I can read them with ease, and understand his truth. It is so sexy, actually.  So, I guess this blog is to bring forth the reason behind why so many people are not writing properly, the reason why some give, and the effect that such improper use has on people.

        When I am on the internet, daily I get messages that I simply delete. Having done so I had to search for a few examples of this foolishness that I still had in my inbox. Messages such as:

baby, am very impress to talk to you [name] bu name,nice to meet you again…….Can you send your email address to me know so that we can talk better…. hisname@yahoo …….. his phone number….. Love you  [2deep: I’ve NEVER met this dude, soooooo why did he say meet you again? ]

Or this

dam luv your sexz as shit

Or my favorite is when people get mad at me

and girl was was mesg back and forth so i don’t see how u went pass my note cuz when u don’t answer a note it still shows up when u log on and don’t give me that people make mistakes crap im not a child and god bless u

This one was angry at me too…lmao!

i don’t want to learn a lesson if i cant get to kno u better as a friend then never mind im not here to learn shit thats y i finish skool but like i said if i cant get to kno u better then never mind somebody mite need that lesson not me i kno how to talk to a woman i kno how to treat a woman n last but not less i kno how to RESPECT a WOMAN n also woman is not QUALITY they are queens

        I wish I could find the one of the guy from Michigan who told me that he was a “lowya” for 5 years. TRUE SHIT! I couldnt make this up if I tried! You see what I am working with? I am not asking for a guy to write to me with Shakespearean sonnets, but can he write to me in Standard American English? What is this trend of lowercase and run-on sentences? Can you help a sister out? Fake like this sentence is a night after unprotected sex and you can’t wait for me to have my period. Don’t worry….the messages above aren’t from any of the guys below. I wouldn’t do that to them. But I would want them to write to me like grown men. Like, the intelligent men that I know they are based on the advice that they give. I actually smile when I get a message from a guy who writes well, not perfect, but well. Like the time when I had a conversation about skin color and the guy wrote back with this:

Damn. It’s sad that anyone would have that mind state but I understand where you’re coming from.  It’s crazy that the green eye test is still having its effect on Black people. To think Blacks would let something as vague as skin color to completely separate themselves from each other and dictate how they treat each other. I wouldn’t treat anyone any different because of their skin color even though I might prefer a certain tone. Unfortunately, for too many of us, we allow anglos, latins, etc. to tell US what true beauty is because of our history. It’s just so stupid to me.

        I SWEAR I ALMOST TOUCHED MYSELF!!! He was able to keep my attention ( And he is one of the men replying below…lol). I think guys forget that women are mental (then emotional) creatures. We live a good percent of our day in our own heads. If you can take our attention from whatever we are dreaming up then you are half way there. Something about a guy who can write well would lead me to BELIEVE that he can speak well. Then, in my mind, I picture him teaching our kids to become baby Einsteins while I read a good Eric Jerome Dickey novel while sipping on tea on the sun porch. I guess that is what it all boils down to, are you smart enough to entertain my intelligence and should we ever procreate, are you smart enough to keep my babies out of Remedial English or Special Ed? 

So, 200 men were asked:

I’m BIG on proper spelling and grammar use! Actually, I’m turned off by its improper use. Do you feel that writing properly is important when conversing on the internet or is it overrated? Why?

        I would also like to point out that, usually, I edit and correct what the guys write so that my readers can read fluently and grasp the concept faster. Today, I’m not doing it. It actually takes more time for me to edit than to write my long drawn out version of why I chose to write the post. So….. after sending the question out….the ones who made it back in time for my deadline said this:

1.  Chris C: Not really. I believe you can tell a person’s level of intelligence from their conversation. After all, I was graded on my spelling and grammar for seventeen plus years and excelled at a high level…by the way, you forgot the apostrophe after “its”…lol [2deep: See, I love a man who knows that I made a grammatical error….so sexy! lol]
2. ”DUKE” BANNER: yes i do my queen that shows intelligents
3. Sincere: yes it is important, because i shouldn’t have to break a code to understand what you are trying to say
4.  Tony Raymond **Thank El Grego**: on the internet…its okay to use internet grammar but on the phone r in person its a diff thing….
5. Young ’84 T2G: I feel it isn’t that important, as long as the person you are talking to understands what you are saying. Some people know how to spell perfectly but choose to break down words because its less typing or because they’re just used to texting on there phone.
6. H. Xavier: overated,because i say,lol
7.  Blackstallion: I don’t think it’s overrated do to the fact that some people just would not like to spell the full word out, this is just like texting (short and straight to the point.
8. Kip S:  With the internet and texting, whatever gets the message across the easiest. Now, if it is formal writing…IT HAS TO BE PROPER
9.  Simon B: a lot of my stuff is run off as long as the person can understand what he are she is saying i don’t think it should be a problem ez up a lil bit
10.  DJ Urban Cowboy: I feel its proper to an extent. If your too much of a stickler for grammar, you can come off snooty. At the same time if you text sounds like something from a rap lyric or trailer park party invitation it can come of as uneducated or trashy.
11. *~ MR SPONTANEOUS ~*!!PEACE!!: Well to me conversing online with proper grammar speaks a lot about that individual. Some people knows how to switch it up, but proper grammar does intrigues me about that person.
12. Black Kryptonite aka the KID:  it is not overrated, we all make typos though and if you can get the simple sentence structure down then. Move on to the next person who can is proper when communicating on the Internet
13. Lateef25:  depends if you just small talking ot are you speaking on a important topic
14. Aries Brotha: I feel it’s nessessary to only when carrying on a conversation with someone that’s like-minded. And can appreciate proper edicate be it in a conversation, email, or letter. Too many times misspelled words and hidden meanings cause a disruption .
15.  P Reddz: Sometimes it is easier and more convenient to just ;how should it freessyle type.It it good to use proper grammer though.It shows that you are well educated
16. James F: i would like to understand what a person is saying but if i don’t its not a big deal to me…its overrated if they you use proper grammer cool if not thats cool too..its whatever with me
17. Hit me up on facebook-UB:  Its important because when writting on the internet you would want to understand the information that person is trying to writting. Some people would write like “wats up mi boi” or “wat it iz”. That why I think its overrated…..
18. RANDELL the caribbean prince[R]:  a little over rated
19. Nigi “Pistol Star” Pu Yi: Overrated cuz its Just casual chat! ppl type faster with less attn on grammar n spelling…they want the quickest n shortest route 2 saying wateva the want 2 say!…
20. Delonte M:  No I personally don’t think it’s a big issue. Depending on how I feel, I’ll type proper or with slang. I’ll talk to you proper since that’s what you like though
21. Young fresh to D:  not really only when handling businees
22. Horace J:  I think it’s overrated. As I tell my creative expression students “you are writing talk”. The importants lies on communicating yourself. Being understood and being understanding is paramount on this medium.. Ya gettin dat der gurl? Southern Slang.
23. Live And Love or LAL: Its overated, because you are talking to friends not business men and women. There is a time to but your business mind on and there is a time you just relax your brain

 And my favorite one of all is:

• …….:  Overrated,it’s only the internet not english class.

         True, it is the internet, but the internet is apart of this world; was English Class not to prepare us how to properly communicate with the rest of the world? Someone said that it’s overrated because I am talking to friends. What kind of friends do you have? My friends are geniuses!!!! lol. One friend of mine, since 3rd grade, has her doctorate in Chemistry, another stays in school so much that I have no clue what her degrees are but the girl is a knowledgeable beast! My guy friends give the best wisdom ever. And one of my big brothers didn’t go to college, but every time he hits a mic and spits he shuts the room down with his lyrical genius and word play. He gets paid to use his words and he does so beautifully. I honestly cannot think of anyone in my inner circle of friends who does not speak the way in which I type to them.

         Yes, I use shorthand when conversing online, but I also make sure that I establish and separate myself from the people who may appear less intelligent than I. And it wasn’t until now that I realized or even confessed that I did such a thing. I guess I wanted everyone to appear smart. I wanted them to put their best foot forward at all times and wait until you get completely comfortable with someone BEFORE you get lazy with the typing. I know that spelling and grammar doesn’t mean that you are smart or purely intelligent, but it sure doesn’t hurt, right?  And I know that there are a SEA of mistakes on my part running all up and through this blog, but for the most part…..you can somewhat get a glimpse of my intelligence…. I hope. And I hope that you are still able to see the true intelligence of my guys who participated. They have kept me cracking laughing, thinking of more questions for them to answer because they keep giving me so much insight and wisdom. I just don’t want their wisdom and insight to be lost in a sea of grammatical errors. Its hard enough in this world.

         Especially when it comes to guys, I want them to know that to appear to being intelligent is just as important as actually being intelligent. You don’t want a golden opportunity to pass you by just because you didn’t see a need in properly expressing who you really are on the inside. And I could be making a big deal out of nothing, but I don’t think that I am. Making our guys see their worth at ALL times is such an important thing to me. I don’t want them to be passed over because a judgmental wench, like me, deletes your notes because I don’t want to get a headache trying to read a massive run-on sentence. I want them to be able to capture every woman’s attention, every boss’ attention, hell…the world’s attention every time they write, the talk, and they walk into a space. I think that they all deserve the extra level of awareness that I have. I don’t feel I am being an elitist, but I do feel like I might be an heir to Grandison, and it is just in me to go back and get the people who are still back home and help them to freedom.  That’s all. [Click Here to read The Passing of Grandison by Charles W. Chestnutt. its a Short Story….one that all Africans and African-Americans need to read.]

         If you have kids…..please let them read this blog… or pass along the message. Teens are the #1 culprit when it comes to internet typing and texting and it is hurting their true education because they can easily hit spell check and never really learn how to spell or check their grammar. We are letting the internet make our people dumb… and that is all that I have to say about that!

Sincerely,

~*My Mother’s Daughter*~