Thursday, May 3, 2018
THE GRANARY
The granary has been a very important structure in the Acholi tradition. A granary consists of a raised floor, a wall made of reeds and a thatched roof. Although a granary looks simple at first glance, some complicated skills are needed to make a strong one.
n most African societies, each family grows all the crops it needs for consumption and for sale. Each crop grown especially in the olden days had to be stored in a separate granary. A family's status was measured by the number of granaries it had. In a compound there would be granaries for : millet, sorghum, groundnuts, peas simsim and also cotton. These days rice is also stored in granaries.
The granary was given special respect. Stealing form another man's granary was a taboo and any person caught stealing from a granary or even just suspected of stealing from it was highly reprimanded and punished. Apart from paying back what he/she had stolen, the victim would have to appease the elders by offering a goat which these elders would kill and enjoy its meat.
The old-time Acholi respected women so much that a man was not to interfere or meddle in a woman's duties/ responsibilities.
For example, a man would not take any food items from his own granaries. He was also prohibited from mere opening of the granary. If a man behaved contrary, he would be treated the way a thief was treated. Although the man was responsible for the construction nd repair of his granaries, he had no authority over its content. This does not mean that a woman was free to squander the stored food in any unbecoming manner. She too would be reprimanded.
The granary was given special respect. Stealing form another man's granary was a taboo and any person caught stealing from a granary or even just suspected of stealing from it was highly reprimanded and punished. Apart from paying back what he/she had stolen, the victim would have to appease the elders by offering a goat which these elders would kill and enjoy its meat.
The old-time Acholi respected women so much that a man was not to interfere or meddle in a woman's duties/ responsibilities.
For example, a man would not take any food items from his own granaries. He was also prohibited from mere opening of the granary. If a man behaved contrary, he would be treated the way a thief was treated. Although the man was responsible for the construction nd repair of his granaries, he had no authority over its content. This does not mean that a woman was free to squander the stored food in any unbecoming manner. She too would be reprimanded.
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These storesw were so important that parents wouldn't\t allow their daughters to marry in a home where there were no granaries or where there was only one or two. Parents feared such a home. They knew their daughter would starve if she went there. Young men from such families would not walk with their heads up. Other youths would compose insulting songs for such lazy bones; and at the larakaraka love dance, they would have no easy time. They were considered degenerates, not suited for any man's daughter. They would get suitors from far away lands.
A GLIMPSE OF MY HOME
Most people in northern Uganda live in grassed thatched huts and I am no exception. The type of huts and the expertize in building each hut make the differences. The thatch shown below is the most difficult to make. If not disturbed by termites the roof can last from 15 to 20 years
Most people in northern Uganda live in grassed thatched huts and I am no exception. The type of huts and the expertize in building each hut make the differences. The thatch shown below is the most difficult to make. If not disturbed by termites the roof can last from 15 to 20 years
PEOPLE ON THE MOVE
This is Pagak as people most people have left it. Many of the hut have been knocked down because the owners have gone back home. Some huts that still stand have also been left. Water collection points are no lnger crowded as they used to be
Even the market has less people with fewer items to sell
It is unfortunate though that some old people (like tho one below) and disabled persons have been finding it difficult to return home. As the saying goes"With God nothing is impossible," humanitarian agencies like American Refugee Committee International, have facilitated these people in going home. Those still in the camp will one day also go.home.
It is unfortunate though that some old people (like tho one below) and disabled persons have been finding it difficult to return home. As the saying goes"With God nothing is impossible," humanitarian agencies like American Refugee Committee International, have facilitated these people in going home. Those still in the camp will one day also go.home.
AT HOME
As the camp is being left, villages are being re-built. Happy families are excited to begin living in their ancestral home after more than a decade in displacement. A look at the new homes makes one see the difference of life in the camp and that at home
Even the children are happy. They look more healthy than when they were in the camp
The Acholi people are primarily peasant farmers. Most of the activiteis is at subsistence level. A family grows a variety of crops and also keeps some animals. A man gets up early morning goes to his garden then comes back before midday to attend to his animals
Fruit trees are becoming popular in this part of Uganda
Arable land is so extensive that the Acholi are sometimes suspicious that other people would want to grab it. It so much valued because it is our only visible wealth. The picture below shows part of this land. It is about 120 kilometres from Pagak.As you can see, this land has not been unoccupied. It extends for more than 80km in length and breath. If we had the neccessary technology and adequate resources we would have no reason for living in poverty. This land could be used for growing all sorts of tropical crops and even for livestock rearing.
Even where there are forests, the vegetation is not able to iterrupt farming.
WEEP NOT MOTHER Part Two
This poem is dedicated to all the people in Northern Uganda who have undergone a bitter civil strife.
--Jokondino Okema
WEEP NOT, MOTHER
(by Jokondino)
(Part One)
Don't cry mother please don't weep;
When the beasts storm your house.
Keep quiet and don't utter a word,
Like a sheep being led to the abattoir,
Don't say anything it's useless.
Keep your mouth shut oh dear,
When the villains accuse your man,
Of a crime he did:t commit,
And when they condemn him,
Keep quiet for it's useless.
Like Nero, the Roman emperor,
Or Goliath the fierce Philistine,
The monsters quench their thirst,
With nothing but human blood
Useless mother don't cry it's no use,
And as they chop him into pieces
With King Xerxes's sword oh mother,
Or crush his head with clubs my dear,
Or blow up his skull with a bullet mother,
Say nothing please for it's no use.
Sob not mother don't sob it's useless
As in a pool of the red fluid lies he
Struggling in vain for dear his life
Hoarsely grunting like a pig,Do not moan
For no one will help you;It is useless.
Like the crow that swoops at the chick,
And gets away with itwhile the hen wails
So do the bastards do to fellow humans
In their hands lies the power of life and death
Weep not mother it's useless very useless
Gone is he mother to the world underneath
Crossed the bridge has he,The great great bridge
Where he knows not sorrow nor painIn the abode of his fathers long gone is he;
Mother, war isn't a weeding, no ,it isn't.
Courage mama when your only treasure,
The fruit of your bosom, falls victim;
When the apple of your eye is picked.
And made a slave in his own land,
Courage mother for that is war.
Why cry mother when no one will listen?
Why keep sobbing now that he's taken?
Why all the wails that wear you down?
The grass suffers as the elephants fight;
Courage mother just courage.
Courage mother, courage please,
When with long ropes they tightly bind him,
His small head laden with goods
His young feet so bare from toe to heel;
Yet he must travel deep into the jungles.
Courage mother when with whips
They lash him right in your face
Because he can:t move;
Caring less for his age
Courage mother only courage.
Keep your mind off it mother,
As he goes on empty stomach,
Like Muslims during the Ramadan,
Or Jesus in the wilderness,
Endure it mother, a man must suffer
Even when by fierce thorns he is cut,
Or by the jungle nestles he is stung,
Courage mother, courage,
Though the bare ground be his bed
And his hands his blanket
Mind not about it mother, don't mind.
Even when like his father he's treated,
And unto dust he returns, calm down.
Jacob too stopped worrying over Joseph;
So did Job having lost all he had;
Calm down mother, calm down.
A toothless lion are you mother, dear
Widowed and mother not to a soul ,
Neither brother nor sister have you,
Crippled by your fast advancing age,
Nothing you can do, nothing completely.
No one will avenge your son's death
Or that of his father; forget it
Neither our courts nor that abroad,
In the Hague is powerful enough
To pay you for your great loss.
So calm down and stop crying mother;
Do not cry for what you can't change;
Wipe your tears and weep no more;
For thsee ills forgive and forget all;
True,this is the world in which we live.
--Jokondino Okema
WEEP NOT, MOTHER
(by Jokondino)
(Part One)
Don't cry mother please don't weep;
When the beasts storm your house.
Keep quiet and don't utter a word,
Like a sheep being led to the abattoir,
Don't say anything it's useless.
Keep your mouth shut oh dear,
When the villains accuse your man,
Of a crime he did:t commit,
And when they condemn him,
Keep quiet for it's useless.
Like Nero, the Roman emperor,
Or Goliath the fierce Philistine,
The monsters quench their thirst,
With nothing but human blood
Useless mother don't cry it's no use,
And as they chop him into pieces
With King Xerxes's sword oh mother,
Or crush his head with clubs my dear,
Or blow up his skull with a bullet mother,
Say nothing please for it's no use.
Sob not mother don't sob it's useless
As in a pool of the red fluid lies he
Struggling in vain for dear his life
Hoarsely grunting like a pig,Do not moan
For no one will help you;It is useless.
Like the crow that swoops at the chick,
And gets away with itwhile the hen wails
So do the bastards do to fellow humans
In their hands lies the power of life and death
Weep not mother it's useless very useless
Gone is he mother to the world underneath
Crossed the bridge has he,The great great bridge
Where he knows not sorrow nor painIn the abode of his fathers long gone is he;
Mother, war isn't a weeding, no ,it isn't.
Courage mama when your only treasure,
The fruit of your bosom, falls victim;
When the apple of your eye is picked.
And made a slave in his own land,
Courage mother for that is war.
Why cry mother when no one will listen?
Why keep sobbing now that he's taken?
Why all the wails that wear you down?
The grass suffers as the elephants fight;
Courage mother just courage.
Courage mother, courage please,
When with long ropes they tightly bind him,
His small head laden with goods
His young feet so bare from toe to heel;
Yet he must travel deep into the jungles.
Courage mother when with whips
They lash him right in your face
Because he can:t move;
Caring less for his age
Courage mother only courage.
Keep your mind off it mother,
As he goes on empty stomach,
Like Muslims during the Ramadan,
Or Jesus in the wilderness,
Endure it mother, a man must suffer
Even when by fierce thorns he is cut,
Or by the jungle nestles he is stung,
Courage mother, courage,
Though the bare ground be his bed
And his hands his blanket
Mind not about it mother, don't mind.
Even when like his father he's treated,
And unto dust he returns, calm down.
Jacob too stopped worrying over Joseph;
So did Job having lost all he had;
Calm down mother, calm down.
A toothless lion are you mother, dear
Widowed and mother not to a soul ,
Neither brother nor sister have you,
Crippled by your fast advancing age,
Nothing you can do, nothing completely.
No one will avenge your son's death
Or that of his father; forget it
Neither our courts nor that abroad,
In the Hague is powerful enough
To pay you for your great loss.
So calm down and stop crying mother;
Do not cry for what you can't change;
Wipe your tears and weep no more;
For thsee ills forgive and forget all;
True,this is the world in which we live.
WEEP NOT MOTHER Part One
This poem is dedicated to all the people in Northern Uganda who have undergone a bitter civil strife.
--Jokondino Okema
WEEP NOT, MOTHER
(by Jokondino)
(Part One)
Don't cry mother please don't weep;
When the beasts storm your house.
Keep quiet and don't utter a word,
Like a sheep being led to the abattoir,
Don't say anything it's useless.
Keep your mouth shut oh dear,
When the villains accuse your man,
Of a crime he did:t commit,
And when they condemn him,
Keep quiet for it's useless.
Like Nero, the Roman emperor,
Or Goliath the fierce Philistine,
The monsters quench their thirst,
With nothing but human blood
Useless mother don't cry it's no use,
And as they chop him into pieces
With King Xerxes's sword oh mother,
Or crush his head with clubs my dear,
Or blow up his skull with a bullet mother,
Say nothing please for it's no use.
Sob not mother don't sob it's useless
As in a pool of the red fluid lies he
Struggling in vain for dear his life
Hoarsely grunting like a pig,Do not moan
For no one will help you;It is useless.
Like the crow that swoops at the chick,
And gets away with itwhile the hen wails
So do the bastards do to fellow humans
In their hands lies the power of life and death
Weep not mother it's useless very useless
Gone is he mother to the world underneath
Crossed the bridge has he,The great great bridge
Where he knows not sorrow nor painIn the abode of his fathers long gone is he;
Mother, war isn't a weeding, no ,it isn't.
Courage mama when your only treasure,
The fruit of your bosom, falls victim;
When the apple of your eye is picked.
And made a slave in his own land,
Courage mother for that is war.
Why cry mother when no one will listen?
Why keep sobbing now that he's taken?
Why all the wails that wear you down?
The grass suffers as the elephants fight;
Courage mother just courage.
Courage mother, courage please,
When with long ropes they tightly bind him,
His small head laden with goods
His young feet so bare from toe to heel;
Yet he must travel deep into the jungles.
Courage mother when with whips
They lash him right in your face
Because he can:t move;
Caring less for his age
Courage mother only courage.
Keep your mind off it mother,
As he goes on empty stomach,
Like Muslims during the Ramadan,
Or Jesus in the wilderness,
Endure it mother, a man must suffer
Even when by fierce thorns he is cut,
Or by the jungle nestles he is stung,
Courage mother, courage,
Though the bare ground be his bed
And his hands his blanket
Mind not about it mother, don't mind.
Even when like his father he's treated,
And unto dust he returns, calm down.
Jacob too stopped worrying over Joseph;
So did Job having lost all he had;
Calm down mother, calm down.
A toothless lion are you mother, dear
Widowed and mother not to a soul ,
Neither brother nor sister have you,
Crippled by your fast advancing age,
Nothing you can do, nothing completely.
No one will avenge your son's death
Or that of his father; forget it
Neither our courts nor that abroad,
In the Hague is powerful enough
To pay you for your great loss.
So calm down and stop crying mother;
Do not cry for what you can't change;
Wipe your tears and weep no more;
For thsee ills forgive and forget all;
True,this is the world in which we live.
--Jokondino Okema
WEEP NOT, MOTHER
(by Jokondino)
(Part One)
Don't cry mother please don't weep;
When the beasts storm your house.
Keep quiet and don't utter a word,
Like a sheep being led to the abattoir,
Don't say anything it's useless.
Keep your mouth shut oh dear,
When the villains accuse your man,
Of a crime he did:t commit,
And when they condemn him,
Keep quiet for it's useless.
Like Nero, the Roman emperor,
Or Goliath the fierce Philistine,
The monsters quench their thirst,
With nothing but human blood
Useless mother don't cry it's no use,
And as they chop him into pieces
With King Xerxes's sword oh mother,
Or crush his head with clubs my dear,
Or blow up his skull with a bullet mother,
Say nothing please for it's no use.
Sob not mother don't sob it's useless
As in a pool of the red fluid lies he
Struggling in vain for dear his life
Hoarsely grunting like a pig,Do not moan
For no one will help you;It is useless.
Like the crow that swoops at the chick,
And gets away with itwhile the hen wails
So do the bastards do to fellow humans
In their hands lies the power of life and death
Weep not mother it's useless very useless
Gone is he mother to the world underneath
Crossed the bridge has he,The great great bridge
Where he knows not sorrow nor painIn the abode of his fathers long gone is he;
Mother, war isn't a weeding, no ,it isn't.
Courage mama when your only treasure,
The fruit of your bosom, falls victim;
When the apple of your eye is picked.
And made a slave in his own land,
Courage mother for that is war.
Why cry mother when no one will listen?
Why keep sobbing now that he's taken?
Why all the wails that wear you down?
The grass suffers as the elephants fight;
Courage mother just courage.
Courage mother, courage please,
When with long ropes they tightly bind him,
His small head laden with goods
His young feet so bare from toe to heel;
Yet he must travel deep into the jungles.
Courage mother when with whips
They lash him right in your face
Because he can:t move;
Caring less for his age
Courage mother only courage.
Keep your mind off it mother,
As he goes on empty stomach,
Like Muslims during the Ramadan,
Or Jesus in the wilderness,
Endure it mother, a man must suffer
Even when by fierce thorns he is cut,
Or by the jungle nestles he is stung,
Courage mother, courage,
Though the bare ground be his bed
And his hands his blanket
Mind not about it mother, don't mind.
Even when like his father he's treated,
And unto dust he returns, calm down.
Jacob too stopped worrying over Joseph;
So did Job having lost all he had;
Calm down mother, calm down.
A toothless lion are you mother, dear
Widowed and mother not to a soul ,
Neither brother nor sister have you,
Crippled by your fast advancing age,
Nothing you can do, nothing completely.
No one will avenge your son's death
Or that of his father; forget it
Neither our courts nor that abroad,
In the Hague is powerful enough
To pay you for your great loss.
So calm down and stop crying mother;
Do not cry for what you can't change;
Wipe your tears and weep no more;
For thsee ills forgive and forget all;
True,this is the world in which we live.
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The women too bring unto the Lord their offerings.
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