Starting this blog was a typical Cushitic experience-what do you need it for? (Memories) So why don’t you write a journal instead? (Umm, you read my one and only journal and told EVERYONE about its contents which was a tad embarrassing and traumatised me from ever getting another!) Why do you have to say that you’re a Cushite? (Because I’m very proud to be one, speaking of, why don’t we talk about this enough?) It’s your turn to go to the kitchen, mummy and aboba are calling, xyz also needs to be done and you’re busy thinking about blogs? (Yes, I can serve them and still write a blog post…ahem, a few eternities later…) Well, I guess you can do your thing if you want to BUT if you hit it big we definitely have a stake. (rolls eyes, it’s not that kind of a blog)
So what about the Anyway Girl? An ode to my grandmother, for whom I’m named. She would only speak our mother tongue to me and I’d be in Pluto every 3rd sentence. I would still get the jist of our conversations, but my grandmother was a perfectionist and would correct every 2nd sentence. What was I to do but valiantly pick up savage corrections from an ongoing conversation with a brave “Anyway”. Alas, the special status bestowed on me, being the only grandchild bearing her name, was replaced with an extraordinary one – “the anyway girl.” From then on, I was only referred to directly or indirectly, in my presence or absence, for as long as my grandmother was around or involved in conversation about me as “the anyway girl.” Honestly, I deserved the name. The fact that I got away with anywaying my very traditional grandmother, who only sought to improve me, with no consequence whatsoever, is astounding. That was grandma. Spoke not a word of English but quickly latched on to my English response to beat me at my own game. Every singular phone call and visit since then cemented my identity, with relish, as the anyway girl. I have come leaps & bounds and can carry on a fluent conversation with the best of them now. And sadly, while she isn’t here to see this and remind everyone else of how far I’ve come – I am honoured to carry on her legacy, with pleasure, the anyway girl.
You will have to forgive me for the abrupt but periodic photos of endless large bodies of water in this blog. I can’t help myself. They take me to a place subsumed with solitude and reflection, resplendent with a stunning beauty only nature satisfies, you know like that of the longest river in Kenya, the Tana, whose waters feed into another beauty, the Indian Ocean. Or as I like to call it all, meditation central.
Courtesy: fatheroflions.org (George Adamson, 2016)
And what have Cushitic girls got to do with it? So Cushite, from the root Kush, does not refer to any drug nor is it a misspelling of the son of Ham. The Kush empire is actually an amazing ancient kingdom that arose on the conflux of the Blue Nile, White Nile and River Atbara and which spread to encompass the territories of the modern day states of Sudan and Egypt. It was founded by King Kashta, also known as the Kushite (from whom we got our name) and in its heyday ruled over the Nile Valley; oversaw the construction of the pyramids (yup!); standardized iron trading with the Greeks vide the Red Sea; and, introduced a meroitic script whose accompanying language has not been entirely deciphered by historians to date (now why am I not surprised?).
Courtesy: blackhistorymonth.org.uk, 2016
Ultimately, rebellion within the empire weakened it and made it easy pickings for its rivals to conquer which led to its dissolution by the turn of the seventh century AD. (Sigh, and with it, the evaporation of any remote claims to royalty.)
So this blog is not about geography or history (fascinating subjects nonetheless), or if it is, it’s only in the context of where I come from, where I’d love to go to (Bora Bora for anyone who cares) and where I’d love to live (beside an endless large body of water of course!), but it’s also about how my culture, an integral part of my life, influences how I live and my view of this world. A reminder that no matter how extremely Cushitic I think my life is, there is someone else, for sure, with a more extreme version of my story, which is always a relief! I have met no ordinary Cushitic girls. I say this sincerely. Some have entertained me, others have frustrated me and the rest left me clutching my imaginary pearls in shock. All have undoubtedly been memorable. But it’s not just about Cushitic culture, this is also about my faith, Islam, another constant in my life. And my skin colour thatIonlydiscoveredwhenIwentabroad, Ahem. And my love of cats. Yes, really.
So by now you must be confused on what exactly this is about. Welcome to my ship, a hodgepodge of messy, unstable, Cushite and all the ways I try to keep us afloat. An inquiry into this imperfect but unique reality synonymous with a modern day Cushitic daughter of the historic Kush empire. Ahem. So ladies and ladies, Ahoy! Join us aboard!
