Eid al-Kebir with Rania's family
I was invited to my friend Rania's house for the feast of Eid al-Kabir, which I gladly accepted as part of my promise to myself to always jump at participating in any family functions.
During this feast that happens 70 days after Ramadan, Muslims remember the story of the willingness of the prophet Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac (Ishmael) to prove his obediance to God. As Abraham prepared to complete the sacrifice, God sent an angel to stop him and instead replace his son Isaac with a ram. It is for this reason that lamb is eaten for the feast of Eid. There is also a general sense of goodwill towards others as the meat is shared with the poor and those who have no families with whom to celebrate.
During the taxi ride to Rania's neighborhood, she chided to me that her younger sisters (13 and 19) were so excited to have a "real American" over at their house for Eid. They were amazed and delighted that I spoke French AND was learning Arabic. After meeting three sets of neighbors along the way who had heard about the "little American" coming to visit, I finally arrived at Rania's house and was warmly welcomed by the family. I brought gifts of Stash Tea (packaged in my very own Portland, OR) and a 60-piece puzzle of the United States for the family. Both were big hits. The girls presented me with lovely gifts of traditional Tunisian pottery, a beautiful scarf with traditional designs, and a wall hanging with a colorful hand-sewn floral pattern that the older sister had worked on all week. Each gift was individually wrapped in Micky Mouse wrapping paper. Nice touch. I truly felt like a special guest in their home from the moment I arrived.
When I entered the family's carport, I looked over to see a very shy ram tied to a post. Although I wanted to pet him I knew that his fate would be arriving soon, so it was probably best to not become attached. The daughters asked if I was going to watch their father slaughter the ram and I answered, "Of course! I want to be part of all the work today". Rainia told me that she was surprised because many Americans that she had met didn't even like the idea of seeing fish with their heads attached in a restaurant, so she assumed that I would not want to watch this particular part of the event. Well, I would like to think that I am eager and willing to experience new things every day, especially while here in Tunisa.
Before the father slaughtered the ram in the carport, he cleaned the blade and asked for God's blessing not only on the meal that was about to be prepared, but also that it may nourish all who take part in the preparing and consuming of the meat. Although it was a little difficult for me to watch, I was very impressed with the matter-of-fact attitude of the family that only comes from familiarity with the process of preparing and consuming meat. The mother explained to me that every part of the animal would be used in one form or another. All members of the family were present to help clean the animal, skin it, and begin preparing for the meal together, and I was happy to help out in any way possible. The mother was very happy to have an extra person around who wanted to learn everything about the process. I decided to help her with cleaning the organs, stomach, and small intestines of the ram since the girls expressed NO interest in this task. Hey, someone has got to do it, and I learned a lot of new vocabulary words in the process so I think everything worked out in the end.
After more than three hours of cleaning, grilling, and simmering we all sat down to the table in their small living room to share our first course together. There was so much work to be done during the day that we broke it up by smaller meals. The first was chunks of lamb that had been rubbed with rosemary and herbs from the family's garden, salata mishweeyah (a mix of pounded grilled peppers, onions, tomatoes, garlic, and olive oil) and h'rooz (a spicy red pepper paste mixed with olive oil). All of this topped with a great basket of french bread made for a fantastic meal. The sounds of hungry people eating food that is fresh and made with love is the best sound in the whole world.
After this first course, we cleaned up the car port, cleaned the kitchen, and sat down to watch some TV together. I do not have TV at my apartment in Tunis, so I have not seen the ads for the special tv programs that were made especially for Eid when families have time to spend together. We watched a Turkish sitcom that was dubbed in Arabic with French subtitles. Just another example that globalization is always at work, my friends. The daughters had so much fun asking me to repeat words in Arabic, especially the ones that were more difficult to pronounce. They would giggle and ask me, "muara-thahneeya, Addree-ane!" (Say it again, Adriane!)
As the night progressed, I began to think about heading home and wondered if there would be any taxis or buses available. When I finally asked, my host mom told me that there would not be many left, and offered to make up a bed for me so I could spend the night. I totally took the offer and stayed up late with Rania talking about traveling, languages, family, love, and dreams for the future. All in English and French. It was wonderful, and really showed me a new side of Tunisian society that I have not experienced until now. This was the "warmth" and "welcome" that the guidebooks and websites had been talking about for so long. This was what I have been missing as I walk through the crowded city streets and try to ignore the stares and unfriendly attitudes on the metro. I finally felt more comfortable with the idea that I actually live in Tunisia now. I live and work in Tunisia.
That night I dreamed in Arabic for the first time since I arrived here. Although I do not remember much about the dream as I write this entry, I do remember waking up in the morning and easily transitioning into Arabic from English. That was a really good feeling. My host mother made us a late breakfast and we lounged around the house for the morning, re-doing the United States puzzle a few times with more rounds of questions for me about the US. I was happy to talk about my country, and once again learned new vocabulary in the process.
That afternoon when I finally left my friend's house I felt more solid, as if I had established new roots in Tunisia. I was invited back for a weekend in December, and plan to make the most of my time with Rania and her family. As we walked to the main street together, I noticed that we were walking very close to each other and talking as if we were dear friends. It was very comfortable, and I consider myself quite lucky to have been given the opportunity to spend time with her family during this celebration. The gifts from the family and the containers of leftovers in the fridge are all reminders to me of their incredible generosity.
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