My Camel Is My Life

My Camel Is My Life  

by Abdi-Noor Mohamed Monday, March 01, 2010 Imagine a group belonging to one tribe has made away with a small herd of camel from another tribe. What do you think would happen to the rustlers? Soon as their hideouts are identified they will be attacked to recover the camels. They will pay the price of their theft. But in the case of the pirates who are holding the British couple in Harardhere, the opposite is happening. We are only taking in the radios and TV´s, not actually acting with a spirit of somalinimo to free the hostages in the most realistic manner. I think that level of thinking is a stage we still have to mature into. If we had been able to coordinate and organize a collective action departing from a point of national unity we would have not lost our country to warlords, drug lords, and lords of tribal and religious extremism.    The problem is far deeper and much more complicated than we can figure out in terms of theoretical perspectives based on human rationality. Sometimes we die for things that are easy to get through peaceful means or through dialogue. Is camel raising has anything to do with this irrationality? Well, I have asked many fellow Somalis with diverse rural and urban backgrounds: What is the camel for you? Many Somalis especially those in the nomadic settlements said "it is my life without it I feel unsafe, unstable". The next question was why? But I did not put it to anybody. I instead directed it to myself. And to get an answer for that question i made a brief study on Maryooley and how they see the camel. The poem below is part of my findings.    Iit is my understanding that it is time we should not wait others to tell us who we are but to re-discover ourselves by inventing our past with a fresh and unbiased outlook to be able to function as a community within the internationa set up. The world knows systems and principles not clans and tribes lurking behind a shadow of deception with the aim of exterminating each other. For the time being let me start with the camel. Would like to cover agriculture and fishery as well but not without  your support and contribution. My camel is my life  In travel time  It is my transport  My desert boat it is My camel is my life  In hard times  It is my fallback  My coiffure it is My camel is my life  In war times It is my weapon  My spear it is My camel is my life  In Peace time  It is my Pride  My joy it is My camel is my life  In reciting poetry It is my inspiration  My muse it is My camel is my life  In  Days of Duco It is the dish I serve  My SOORYO it is My camel is my life In blood compensation It is the Diya I pay My insurance it is My camel is my life  In culture It is my identity My tradition it is   My camel is my life  In settling disputes  It is my score  A piece of my soul My camel is my life  In marriage  It is my dowry  My love it is My camel is my life  In social standing It is my badge My honor it is  My camel is my life It sets my boundaries Not geographic though Simply Climatic My camel is my life It is my compass It points the direction Wherever it ends up Is a land I claim to be my own Wiil Geel Jirroo Gaajadu kareyn Waa waxa dhulkeena u gaarka ahee La inagu gartaa.(Heesta Baxsan waa dhab) Suáashuse waxay tahay meeshi geel tagaba ma yeelan karnaa?  Abdi-Noor Mohamed Writer and Film maker Växjö University (Student) Peace and Development Studies Växjö nuuru2003@hotmail.com