Another observation from your favorite mid-Western African country...
From: Elizabeth To: Andrew Re: Beauty and the Talibe
Bonjour! Lu bees? (What's new?) Not a lot new for me. I am settling down into my routines a bit. Today I start my Gender and Development class. It was delayed because my professor is pregnant. She hasn't had the baby yet, but wants to start teaching. A couple of things about Senegalese culture that I wanted to share. First, the standard of beauty is different here. Women are much admired if they have jaay fundaai. The phrase means "sell fundaai", a dessert made of millet and cream. There is a saying here that you can't lose when you sell fundaai, because you get rich or you get a figure (from eating your product yourself). Particularly admired is weight around a woman's backside. Recently, my host father compared me (unfavourably) to his ten-year-old daughter. He said to me at dinner, "Eat! Eat! You should look like her! And she is only 10 years old!" I glanced at the girl, afraid she would be mortified by the reference to her weight. She was the epitome of "pleasantly plump." I was relieved to see that she looked shy but pleased. The second thing I want to mention are the talibe. If the world looks familiar to you, yes, it has the same root as taliban. It means "disciple" in Arabic. In Senegal the talibe are young boys attending Koranic schools, run by marabouts, who are crosses between the Islamic Imams and the traditional animist medicine men. The make charms, predict the future, provide council, and teach the talibe. The talibe must beg to provide for themselves and their marabout. The streets of Dakar are full of the talibe and their tin cans, as well as other beggars, often with people disabilities. Giving alms to the beggars is one of the five pillars of Islam. When people have nothing to give the beggars, or don't want to give to them, they say ba beneen, which means "next time." It seems to be the general way of dealing with the beggars...the country has structural adjustment imposed by the World Bank and IMF, not social programs. I occasionally give money to disabled beggars, or food to the talibe. I don't like to give money because I know most of it will be taken by marabouts, few of whom care properly for their talibe. (The talibe are supposed to collect a certain amount of money for their marabout each day.) I feel that the talibe are a bit disappointed with a banana or piece of watermelon though, because toubabs (white people) are expected to have money. On a lighter note, I am going to an artisans' community this weekend with my program. I am going to take a batik class. Also, my bathroom buddy spoke to me. At least I think he did. I was doing my laundry in the bathroom and he came in, not knowing I was there. He started muttering in Wolof, possibly to me. He might also have been praying to Allah to remove the toubab woman from the bathroom. Either way he got want he wanted, as I gathered my sopping underwear and exited with all possible speed. (The rest of my clothes are washed with the family laundry, but in Senegal everyone washes his or her own undergarments. I think it is a good system.) After 30 minutes I was able to re-enter and wring out my laundry. Well, lunchtime for me! Always appreciate news from home. Yendoo ak jamm (pass the day in peace) Elizabeth
Websites (my contribution)
- Red Cross- Donate to the Red Cross to help victims of Hurricane Katrina
- Bethel Seventh-Day Adventist Church in Pomona, CA- I went to this church as part of my American Religious History class. Great experience.
- I love Frontline. I think I've said this a couple of times already. Here's their piece on Who Was Shakespeare?