Life Stories by Kamal Mouzzawak
Note from Farid Zadi. Kamal and I have been discussing doing something food related on a Pan-Arab level, encompassing all the countries of the Arab speaking world. The project is from the ground up for farmers and producers and providing space for them to sell. It will be promoted locally and internationally through multiple media (print, web, TV) outlets in Arabic, French and English. Sponsorship and support will come from various sources. There are also research and education opportunities. I will provide more details as ready.
If you know of a farmer or producer in the Maghreb or Mashriq please let me know.
Life stories by Kamal Mouzzawak
How to find few moments to write these lines, and forget for a while about killing, air strikes and massacres ...
This is not about not about death, destruction and war ... that are happening night and day since nearly 3 weeks, but about families, children and individual trying to live and go on.
This is about small farmers and producers, from all over Lebanon, who gathered and formed Souk el Tayeb, Lebanon’s first farmers’ market, more than 2 years ago, beyond their religious, regional, political or confessional believes. They all had a dream, a vision and a reality of respecting, loving and producing the best of their land.
“Souk el tayeb” is the “market of “good”; in Arabic “tayeb” means good tasting, good as a person, and most important good as alive, still living. An attribute difficult to keep and maintain these days.
Today, Souk el tayeb family is scattered and wounded.
Ali Fahs is stuck with his family in Jebcheit, a village near Nabatyieh, completely cut from the rest of the world and in a constant threat.
Nelly and Mona ran away from Majdel Zoun on the first day of war. Their village is on the border and was one of the first to be hit. Their lands, crops, harvest and life work are still there ... and we heard few days ago that the entire village was completely destroyed.
Nelly and Mona’s project is one of the dearest to my heart. They were trying to transform the whole village, known for its fertile land, in an organic village. And working on rediscovering and perpetuating old crops and recipes, like “kechek el fouqara” or “jebnet el burghol”, a vegan cheese made by a fermentation of burghol (cracked wheat) and water only. Two days before the war started, on the 10th of July, it was selected as a Slow Food presidium.
“Earth & co” is the name of their project ... like real partners of earth and land. And now they are paying with their life for earth and land.
Gilbert Aoun Still in Jezzine, another village of south Lebanon cut from the rest of the country. He is in charge of B. baladi, a project supporting land mine victims ... those of the last war- or wars, and helping them raise chicken for free range eggs, and bees for honey. Gilbert, some of the producers, chicken and bees are still in Jezzine. Others went away leaving all behind them.
Campania is a project by world vision, supporting more than 200 farmers working in organic agriculture. Most of them were in the fertile lands of South Lebanon. Like all others, some came to Beirut, away from the attacks, and many of them are still in their lands. We know that some are safe, others wounded ... and no news of many.
Hoda el Zein, a 65 year old lady, used to come from her small village to Souk el Tayeb every Saturday, and sell what she can pick from her garden or the near by forest. She called me on the first day of war to know I am safe and tell me she came to Beirut. And the list goes on.
And others, who can still get together, and decided to react by life, and work, so gather again at Souk el tayeb, in a safe mountainous region.
After 2 weeks of air raids, attacks, massacres, cut telephones, electricity and fuel shortage ... some of us decided to act for life, and do Souk el Tayeb again.
It was obviously impossible to do in Beirut, where it used to be. So we thought of Faqra, a safe mountainous area, where many wealthy Beirutis found refuge ... and still have some “buying power”.
First it was a bit of a craze to do a farmers market again. Then thinking of each one of the farmers, the peak season of vegetables and fruits that would be lost if not picked, and the need to gain every penny in such moments, I felt myself responsible to act and do our market again.
So finally last Friday was the big day and we decided to do the market in the afternoon, from 3 to 7 pm.
But preparations were hard: get in touch with the farmers who can still come, in spite of some cut telephone lines; prepare proper space and structures for the market ... and find a truck to move all needed structures, tents and tables, as trucks don’t dare anymore to move on roads, as they are all considered as carrying arms, and hit by air raids.
Friday was a long day. But a happy one - happy to meet again: each time one arrived, we all kissed and hugged and were glad to meet alive.
Youmna and Tony came with the best vegetables of the season
Maissoun and Walid came from kfarqatra, a remote village in the Chouf Mountains – they came without their two boys, who usually accompany them to the market. They thought it was safer this way!
Walid came with baskets of delicious fresh baked bread. Maurice just picked the season honeycombs, and was busy extracting honey Fadi lost a lot of this year’s harvest, but joined with his valley’s goods. Nada was not in the Bekaa, but in Beirut, and joined with what she had of mouneh.
... And finally About Braham came from Rachaya, after a 5 hours drive, for what should have taken not more than an hour and a half - but cut or unsafe roads and destroyed bridges; make the trip much longer and harder.
For a few hours it was life and smile again ... like if nothing happened. But by the end of the day, it was back to reality again, planning which road was the safest to take, and if everyone goes back home or better drives next morning.
A simple action as proof of life, a reaction to war, destruction and death.
Act by life to erase death. Learn a lesson from every experience ... for a better step every time. But come to think of it, who is right, who is wrong? No one knows ... like in every war and every conflict, each part thinks he is right and justifies every action (even massacres of children and mothers), and consider “the other” wrong. And vice versa. But who is paying of his life, health and wealth? This we all know. And who is trying to go on, living and working, this is unfortunately so little. The “crazy” experience of the “mountain Souk el Tayeb” is not unique; war relief is not only for “sensational” disasters, but also of small actions, reactions, like “masrah al madina” –the “city theater” who initiated theater workshops for refugee kids creating activity and fun for them.
We promised ourselves to go on with what we did, and repeat out “mountain Souk” every Friday, and meet for life and peace. Hoping that we will still have some safe roads to get there, enough fuel, products of our garden ... and life to do it all.
When I think of all we did together, I smile again ... when I think of the laughter of kids every Saturday, in the kids’ corner in Souk el Tayeb, or the curiosity of students at “Souk @ school” (school educational program), or the care each of the consumers, co-producers as says Carlo Petrini, coming every week to ask of each producer ... and now still calling (when possible) and asking about each one of them ...
When I think of the 3 regional markets we had to begin as of August.
When I think of “Dekenet Souk el Tayeb” our first shop for all the producers, in the old souk of the biblical Byblos. When I think of “Souk el Daiia’”, the younger brother of Souk el Tayeb in Lattaquieh, Syria...
I smile again and I think that a lot has been done, and if the end comes I'll go with no regret. And if I am to stay, there is a lot more to do ... in peace.
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