One thing and another has come up, so no trips to the Minneapolis Institute of Arts (MIA) from my East African
adult day care centers have taken place in the past few months. I
did invite a small group of Somali friends, including a nurse and her
three children, ages 7, 9, and 18, along with a restauranteur, to a book tour at MIA in August. The tour was based on the excellent book Outcasts United, by Warren St. John.
Coincidentally, the family had recently moved to Minneapolis from Atlanta, Georgia, close to where the story in the book takes place. Clarkston, 11 miles east of Atlanta, is a town of mostly refugees, resettled from over 50 countries, currently many from Liberia, Sudan, Burundi, Somalia, Kenya, Nigeria, and Ethiopia. My friends from Atlanta knew Clarkston well, as they used to drive there occasionally - 20 minutes by mini-van from their home in suburban Atlanta - to get good Somali food. Shortly after my friends arrived in Minneapolis, following their GPS from south Minneapolis to the West Bank and down Franklin Avenue, the youngest child, a son, made the observation that Minneapolis 'looked like a giant Clarkston'.
Anyway, they enjoyed the tour at MIA, and I'm sure the elders will also. I hope to start bringing groups again soon. It's always fun to see their reactions to the artwork, especially in the Islamic gallery where the response can be rather emotional.
Af-Soomaali vocabulary for our next field trip:
Salaamaha (greetings)
galab wanaagsan (good afternoon)
iska warran (how are you?)
tan waa Jane (this is Jane)
sidee tahay? (how are you?)
kale (come here)
habaryarro, eedo (auntie, 2 forms)
toos! (wake up!)
adaa mudan (you're welcome)
Coincidentally, the family had recently moved to Minneapolis from Atlanta, Georgia, close to where the story in the book takes place. Clarkston, 11 miles east of Atlanta, is a town of mostly refugees, resettled from over 50 countries, currently many from Liberia, Sudan, Burundi, Somalia, Kenya, Nigeria, and Ethiopia. My friends from Atlanta knew Clarkston well, as they used to drive there occasionally - 20 minutes by mini-van from their home in suburban Atlanta - to get good Somali food. Shortly after my friends arrived in Minneapolis, following their GPS from south Minneapolis to the West Bank and down Franklin Avenue, the youngest child, a son, made the observation that Minneapolis 'looked like a giant Clarkston'.
Anyway, they enjoyed the tour at MIA, and I'm sure the elders will also. I hope to start bringing groups again soon. It's always fun to see their reactions to the artwork, especially in the Islamic gallery where the response can be rather emotional.
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| Portrait of Justine with Fox |
Salaamaha (greetings)
galab wanaagsan (good afternoon)
iska warran (how are you?)
tan waa Jane (this is Jane)
sidee tahay? (how are you?)
kale (come here)
habaryarro, eedo (auntie, 2 forms)
toos! (wake up!)
adaa mudan (you're welcome)
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