Ear to Ear

Earl Sweatshirt - Guild Feat. Mac Miller

Thu, 23 May 2013 16:53:54 -0700

Earl Sweatshirt - Guild Feat. Mac Miller

boo.

Thu, 23 May 2013 16:20:00 -0700

boo.

Some blessings can take years to blossom, and even more importantly, years to realize and...

Thu, 23 May 2013 15:41:16 -0700

Some blessings can take years to blossom, and even more importantly, years to realize and appreciate. We go through so many progressions and so much maturing as we grow up, that it’s humbling to look back at where it all stemmed from. A lot of times, it originates from a place we resented in that moment and time. For me, this moment was when my family relocated to Palestine as I began college.

I didn’t grow up around many Muslims or Palestinians. The only connection I had with my culture and my faith was my parents and their values. Our household was the only semblance or reminder of my background. During my youth, I struggled to define myself as a Muslim or a Palestinian. Those two things were only part of who I was and my feet weren’t really planted in either.

You don’t really learn much about your character until you’re truly dependent on your own judgement; left to make your own decisions and carve out your own path that you want to follow.

After my family left, I soon found out my feet weren’t planted into anything. And it’s hard to march forward when you don’t have any real confidence in what you’re currently standing on. And I really struggled with that. It’s hard to feel good living your life with no real conviction.

So I needed to find my foundation. Something to stand on. And the strongest foundation I ever had was and always is my family. And even though they were far away, I rediscovered those simple values they taught me. But now I needed to dig a little deeper to understand where those values came from. I needed to give them more meaning. And only then did I begin to gradually embrace and discover my identity first and foremost as a Muslim, as an Arab, as a Palestinian. I’m still learning a lot. But learning is beautiful when there’s pride and love embedded in it. And learning is progress and growth.

It’s strange to think…I see family once a year these days but my love for them is infinitely more than what it was when I had them here with me. So I’ve discovered that being away from them, even with its difficulties, was a necessary adversity for me to finally wake up.

Alhamdulillah for the circumstances that are hardest to swallow but end up being the most nourishing.

Photo

Wed, 22 May 2013 22:35:22 -0700

Russian Hill, SF, California.

Wed, 22 May 2013 22:25:11 -0700

Russian Hill, SF, California.

Chico, California

Wed, 22 May 2013 22:18:00 -0700

Chico, California

you remind me of my bimmer.

Wed, 22 May 2013 22:04:24 -0700

you remind me of my bimmer.

the lower east side.

Wed, 22 May 2013 21:58:27 -0700

the lower east side.

Lazio, Italy

Wed, 22 May 2013 21:54:00 -0700

Lazio, Italy

coffee x rain x scooters

Wed, 22 May 2013 21:47:21 -0700

coffee x rain x scooters

Jerusalem, Palestine

Wed, 22 May 2013 21:23:00 -0700

Jerusalem, Palestine

Ramallah, Palestine

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:23:00 -0700

Ramallah, Palestine

Jay Electronica - Anakin’s Prayer (Prod. by J Dilla) I can...

Tue, 21 May 2013 22:07:00 -0700

Jay Electronica - Anakin’s Prayer (Prod. by J Dilla)

I can drill a hole at the Earth’s equator
Fill it with dynamite and make another moon with craters
See you later

One of my goals when I started sharing my photography online was to not try to put it in any sort of...

Tue, 21 May 2013 11:14:01 -0700

One of my goals when I started sharing my photography online was to not try to put it in any sort of context. But to have the world speak for itself. That’s why my blog is very scattered with photos that don’t really follow the timeline of my life. There are photos from 5 years ago, when I first began to gravitate towards photography, that I still have not shared but hopefully will one day. I just wanted to portray my travels in a way that was very third person. As a visitor observing a life that will continue with or without me. Undisturbed by my presence in that moment.

It’s strange. In a lot of ways my photography stands apart from my reality. These photos are more so an observation of the reality of others that I’ve been blessed to be around at particular moment in my life. I enjoy mixing and matching photos from different cultures and places, because I’d much rather blend humanity together than differentiate between us. I enjoy jumping back five years to share a photograph because it reminds me that life has pushed forward since that time. I’d much rather invoke an emotion from the viewer of the photo than classify and organize the photos to the viewer. What I take out of a photo I post is probably much different than what some of you might feel upon seeing it. I think that’s a powerful testament into how vast and beautiful this world is. But more importantly, this world is mysterious. And the more I have been blessed to see of it, the more curious I am to see what it has to teach me.

A lot of times I feel so humbled looking back at my photos. They remain timeless even though I’ve changed so much since taking them. My photography is a reminder to me of how in the macro scheme of things, life is constant, despite how turbulent my personal existence is to me.

So to conclude this ramble, I hope you all have felt something from the photos I’ve posted whether on here or Instagram and I thank you for your intrigue and kind messages. Salam.

Til next time.

Tue, 21 May 2013 11:10:00 -0700

Til next time.

early to sleep and early to rise.

Tue, 21 May 2013 11:07:00 -0700

early to sleep and early to rise.

like father, like son.

Mon, 20 May 2013 12:43:00 -0700

like father, like son.

Machinedrum - DDD (Azealia Bank’s 1991 Instrumental) love...

Mon, 20 May 2013 12:37:00 -0700

Machinedrum - DDD (Azealia Bank’s 1991 Instrumental)

love this beat.

Miguel - How Many Drinks?

Sat, 18 May 2013 17:47:00 -0700

Miguel - How Many Drinks?

Kanye West “New Slaves”

Sat, 18 May 2013 11:35:04 -0700

Kanye West “New Slaves”