Today at church the speaker spoke of a trip she made to the Sinai peninsula last year. Their guide was a man called Howard. 'Oward (as he was known) is a Bedouin. Interesting.How many Bedouins are there ,out there , called Howard? He may have changed his name for their benefit though, for ease of pronunciation(or whatever). In fact quite a large number of Chinese people adopt English names on arrival in Britain, which at first I thought was weird...but thats a post for another day.
So 'Oward it was.
'Oward knew the desert not only like the back of his hand, but like a hungry mono in a kitchen after 3 months of playing beast of burden. (Mono=usually male, Kenyan, Form1 student)
He carried with him a kettle. Just a kettle, no prayer mat, no book of wise sayings, no insence , no trusty goat or stallion. As far as I know, the kettle is all that went with him as he led these people across the space.I could not help but draw on a little African romanticism as I thought of what life was like for 'Oward
...Bedouin, flowing robe, trudging in the distance, his gait strong and sure , the sands rise and fall, cover- uncover his being..here one minute gone the next ...
About a month ago I watched a program basically about a guy who was traveling within the middle east, mostly Israel, sampling their cuisine. He also got to do a little reporting: checked out the orthodox Jews , the eastern European influences, the metropolis of Tel Aviv and the urbane who felt zero for kosher lifestyles ,the Muslim quarter, up and down to hinterlands and remote areas, to rural kibbutz's ,to people suffering the Israeli occupation or the zeal of fundamentalists....and so on it went. At some point in their filming they end up at a Bedouin household.These Bedouins owned a Datsun.
'Oward used his kettle to make infusions of certain weeds he found along the way.
Bearded Bedouin with a kettle.
I'm going to try and make that into a slogan someday.
In other news, whats with being chunky in all the wrong places...hmph!
And in even more threateningly profound news,is the question of love: how to give it, how to receive it? Theres great joy in opening up our lives to others.I know this, I know this.Yet...I tend to have a few issues in this department. Issues that generally grate against my desire to love or be loved. I've got big lessons to learn...but I know where I want to end up:)
on a similar but different note:Im getting the love munchies again...I should probably stay away from Romcom's for a while.
19 comments:
You thought that Chinese all creating English names for themselves was weird too huh? They are all Michelle or John or Mary but look on the birth certificate and it's Fang, Ling, Dong....I think they have great names, why they want to adopt names outside of their own, sijui niseme.
I LOVE being chunky in places that make me uncomfortable. Really, that is the only I have ever needed to get my fat butt (literally not metaphorically) into the gym or into a healthier diet. Kwa hivyo take advantage of your chunkiness, it may just be your ticket to health, slimness and vitality.
Mapenzi, mapenzi, mapenzi. Can't we write a whole book (or even create a whole library - how cool would that be) all centred around love? Hope u find ur bliss.
My roomate i first year was a chinese girl called Michelle!It was interesting, but a lot of jungus seem kidogo baffled when i tell them my name too..maybe their wondering the same thing (Africans are meant to have exotic unpronouncable names;).Mwangi, you are an optimist;) I usually dont think about my chunky bits. But its getting warmer, and with that my winter coat will have to be wekwad kando.The problem is that european trousers just hardly ever fit well on my person.
Mapenzi mapenzi!a library of love. Sounds like something the greeks would have done.
When cupid strikes, just go with the flow, Something's gotta give. All the best.
'the love munchies?' Never come across that particular phraseology before. But I know exactly what you mean because, what do you know, I'm down the road from there too. Sounds yum yum.
Mwangi, that would be one long loooooooooong long book. And, would it have an ending? How could it possibly end?
@R: Me thinks the book would go on forever to reflect the timeless nature of love.
Then of course it would have to sub divided into books and eventually morph into a library.....
@mama shady: Let me tell you that embarrassment you will feel when ur chunky bits are all out in the open will be the only thing you will need when the gym or the exercise becomes too hard.
@bomseh:;)maybe ive made it sound like someone is actually knowcking at my door,that boat came and sadly went.I think im one of those slow people,I can fall for someone way after theyve stopped pursuing. Its very funny , in a sad kind of way
@r:i didn't know what else to call it. I think I just felt like I needed some love (groan). Whats that feeling called again, the one that gets you sighing inanely at murshy moments and makes you start wishing..on the other hand. You look like you have a good thing going, ama what does love munchies mean to you;)
@mwangi:yes how would it end?
@ mwangi:nutting!my chunky bits will not be out in the open;) Although,I do get what your saying. Gyms are very boring though.Im going to go hiking or dancing or something once exams are over. Much more exciting
mamashady, no, me's like you is at the moment: in a season of longing. But, I'm enjoy that too... makes me inclined to flirt, or accept flirtatious attention, and I do too little of that normally.
dear oh dear!! what do you mean wrong places, not from where i might have spotted your fine self. :o)
@r:ditto!;)
@31337:you flatter me;)
You'll be shocked; here, Chinese students are actually ENCOURAGED to take on new 'English' names. There are about 30 in my class and I can count on one hand the ones who use their birth names.
@Mo Ma: Why on Earth are they encouraged to do that?
Apparently, it's easier for the lecturer to remember 'Cassandra' rather than 'Lam Ling'.
Yeah, beats me too.
Sometimes I think we make it too easy for westerners...changing our names, accents, clothes(some of us)...ebu they start getting with the program;). Theres beauty in diversity, even when you cant pronounce the name right.
Plus a lot of Westerners LOVE the diversity. Like when we grow our hair wild and out aka Mau Mau hair, they always want to touch it. When we wear our African attire they always want to know where to buy it. They want to know how to get their hair braided like us.
So, I really don't see the reason to force ourself to conform to Western standards when so many Westerners are clearly searching for more diverse human expressions.
Tell "Lam Ling" to give us a tutorial on how to say her name.....we may falter the first few times but once it's in there, it's locked in for the next ten generations.
I'm in Malaysia where all things Western are considered superior and as something to aspire to.
Have you ever heard of the Asian obsession with eye creases? That just took me by surprise:
http://www.lacitybeat.com/cms/story/detail/?id=1618&IssueNum=87
http://asianeyes.wordpress.com/beauty/
I know a few people who's eye lids look suspect but you can never just come out and ask about it.
You could look at it as a variation of the African hair straightening that's done to 'make hair more manageable'. More drastic, aye, but the same thing.
Btw don't even get me started on that one.
How a woman with a hideous bird's nest on top of her head that's a result of burning your head with synthetic chemicals can hate on a chic who decides to rock short hair or so some dreads or whatever.....AND THINK SHE IS IN THE RIGHT.....that's one of the great mysteries and tragedies of 21st century Africa.
Post a Comment