Monday, December 19, 2011

Folklore Poem: When dad was shaving me (Translated from dholuo)

When dad was shaving me,
I bowed my head down-down,
I saw something dangling,
Something like a cut worm,
It’s sweet at dawn when it grinds,
The thing plaits matuta,
The thing is red like ombulo’s seed.

Original version:
Kane baba liela,
Akulo wiya piny-piny,
Aneno gi maliero,
Machalo mana ofunyu,
Mit ko gwen ko rego
Gino suko matuta
Gino kwar ko ombulu

*matuta- cornrow hair style
Ombulu- a red hot African seed from wild legume  

© 2011 Manuel Odeny



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