In Time, Out of Place by You Jin

Author:You Jin
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9789814615051
Publisher: Epigram Books
Published: 2016-09-18T16:00:00+00:00

Africa

A Happy Meeting over a Pot of Tea

A True Berber, or Money-Back Guarantee

IT WAS ON a long-distance bus in Morocco that I met Hassan. Risheng and I were making our way south from the big northern city of Fes to Tinghir. We could not get seats together, so we sat separately on our journey.

I made use of the time before the bus moved to write some postcards quickly to my friends back home. Suddenly, a shadow fell across the postcard I was writing. I looked up to see a dark face. It was not old, but the broad forehead was strangely covered with numerous untidy wrinkles. The hair was short, untameable curls sticking out here and there. The moustache had not been well-trimmed, and it drooped playfully into the mouth. At that moment, the face and the two round eyes set in it crinkled into a smile.

Pointing at my postcard, Hassan asked in fluent English, “Are you drawing pictures or writing?”

When I looked at the uneven words sprawled drunkenly across the page, I could not help but laugh. I boasted shamelessly, “It’s Chinese. It’s got the beauty of pictures. Each word is a solid painting.”

His eyes lit up and he said, “It’s pretty! Very pretty. Our Berber language is not so delicate.”

“Oh?” I sat up and looked at him in surprise. I asked, “Are you really Berber?”

He laughed boldly and generously, revealing sparkling white teeth. “Yes, I am a genuine Berber, or I guarantee you’ll get your money back.”

The Berber people are indigenous Africans. At present, there are about ten million Berbers scattered across Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Libya, Turkey and the surrounding region.

A great number of these numerous indigenous people are illiterate manual labourers. The men are either farmers or shepherds. The women engage in domestic industries like making pottery or weaving.

Morocco was the original home of the Berber people. In the eighth century, after the Arabs arrived, Moroccan society changed dramatically. Islam spread rapidly, and became Morocco’s national religion. A new economic and social order was gradually established.

As to the proportion of Berbers to Arabs, there has never been any official announcement, so opinion varies widely. Some say it is a sixty-forty split, whilst others estimate closer to seventy-thirty. The most pertinent opinion is half-half.

When we talked about the many Berber people who struggled with poverty and yet are happy with their lot, Hassan heaved a sigh and said, “The biggest problem with Berbers is that they don’t give enough attention to education. The older generation is illiterate. The next generation, and even the one after that is still illiterate.” Saying this, he took something from his pocket and waved it in front of me. “Look, what is this?”

It was a copper antelope horn, very sharp and shiny.

“This is a symbol of the Berber spirit, representing the pursuit of freedom and the protection of nature. Most Berbers are not ambitious, not thinking of progress, but just content with having enough to fill their stomachs. Honestly, the impact education can have on improving the quality of life is so crucial.

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