Rainy Season Stories Part 4: Planting

Planting

More on planting. My second “hands-on lesson” was in planting peanuts. Again, Alima and I went out to the peanut field, just the two of us. This time we tied pieces of cloth around our waists and put the peanuts in the cloth. Peanut planting is great because the nuts are the seeds, so you get to snack as you work! Planting peanuts is similar to planting millet and beans: shoes off, whack the dirt with a club, drop in one peanut, cover the peanut with dirt, stomp on it, move forward a few inches, repeat. A lot.

We actually did a good amount of work in the field that day. We planted for awhile, took a break, and then Djeneba and a few other women came out with the toh for lunch and to help us plant some more after lunch. Back while it was still just Alima and me, she started singing a song I’d heard her sing before while counting the number of bracelets I wear. I asked her to teach it me, so while we went up and down the rows she taught me the words. It’s a counting song much like Amεriki counting songs: it starts with the number one, a few rhyming lines, then moves on to the number 2, etc. I didn’t understand most of the words, but I was able to pick up on the whole song, and with a little practice I had it memorized and we sang together while planting. The lyrics for number 5 were tricky and I had to practice them more than the rest – it was something about the dugutigi (village chief). For some reason, everytime I sang this line Alima would gasp and tease me, “The dugutigi is going to hit you!” Of course I had no idea what she was talking about so I just teased her back by singing it louder and more often. We continued working and planted a whole field before heading home for the day.

Back at home, I went over to my jatigi’s (host family) house to chat for awhile. Alima came over after awhile and told me to share my new song with the family. I did, but when I got to that line about number 5, my host dad started cracking up! I didn’t understand. Alima said again that the dugutigi was going to hit me, and my dad joined in with the joke. Whatever was so funny was made even funnier by the obvious fact that I had no idea what it meant. A bit later my neighbor, the head women’s doctor, came over as well, and of course I was instructed to sing for her. She also started laughing, and eventually she and my host dad were both practically doubled over in tears, they were laughing so hard! I gave up on trying to understand and let them have their fun, but I did refuse to go over to the dugutigi’s house to sing for him! (Although Alima promised me he couldn’t possibly hit me, as his leg had been bothering him and he was using a crutch to walk, and therefore would not be able to catch me).

Later in my house I decided to see if I could find out what the lyrics meant. Chrissy didn’t know when I texted her, but I dug out my old-fashioned print Bambara-English lexicon and looked up anything that might be close to what I’d learned by ear. As I’d heard it, the lyrics were Durru, dugutigi bele kili ba. After some search, I discovered in my lexicon the word kilibara: testicles. And bele is a form of saying “big.” Which means I’d been going around singing about the dugutigi’s big balls. Crap.

Since no one would tell me what the lyrics meant, I decided not to let on that I knew now. Instead, everytime anyone brings it up, I shake my finger at them and say “Amiɲε! N ma famu, n’ga n b’a don k’o amiɲε!” “Bad! I don’t know what it means, but I know it’s bad!” They just crack up and tell me again to sing it. And that the dugutigi is going to hit me.

A few days after I learned the song, I was at the CSCOM (health center) when the head doctor sent his kids to the fields surrounding the CSCOM to plant peanuts. Since I had new skills, I decided to join in. These fields parallel the main road between the two villages, so a lot of people pass by them as they go back and forth. Which means a lot of people saw me planting peanuts. I must’ve really made their day! People would stop walking, talking, and biking to stand in the road and watch me plant. “Michelli! I be se ka dannike?!” “Wow, Michelle, you can plant?!?” (Remember, we state the obvious here). I should really have my own TV show in Mali…apparently I’m entertaining enough!

Anyway, the women’s doctor came out to watch – and started telling everyone about my new song. And of course they all wanted to hear! What could I do? Well, no way did I sing for them! Instead I told everyone she was lying and that I had no idea what she was talking about – which made them laugh all the harder. There’s just no winning!

They still bring it up. Alima and I walk through village and she’ll start to sing the song, and when we get to number five, I change the lyrics to mean, “Alima is BAD!” Then she starts giggling and tells me to sing the real lyrics. When I refuse, she sings it herself, very quietly, and then I yell really loudly, “What? What did you say? I can’t hear you! What did you say about the dugutigi?” and she breaks into giggles and runs away.