Oct.
25, 2005
O,
death, may your name perish!
Though
we are all bound
Deathward
Godward
Homeward
Death
Our
inevitable host
Noseless
one
Death
Is
Yum Yum really no more with us
In
the light of the living
Is
Yum Yum
The
genius that wore the mantle
That
covers the shame of us naked Somalis
Really
laid low down
In
the grave
I
weep for Yum Yum—he is dead!
O,
weep for Yum Yum!
though our tears
Thaw
not the frost that binds so dear a head!
11
Dear
dusty grave
Ages
ago, The Sayyid
And
now
This
morning
Dumb
with grief
Gone
gaga with grief
Am
I giving sorrow sword words
Over
the grave
Where
my friend, Yum Yum lies
I
weep for Yum Yum—he is dead!
O,
weep for Yum Yum!
though our tears
Thaw
not the frost that binds so dear a head!
111
O,
history!
How
you hijack whore and hajji and hakim
How
you never grow up
How
you never come of age
How
you never age
How
you never act your age
How
you always rage
How
you always hog the stage
Did
you finally overthrow
Your
Yum Yum who girded up his loin cloth
To
trace your blood soaked Somali steps
How
did our Galol tree
Yum
Yum
Deserve
to disappear without a trace
I
weep for Yum Yum—he is dead!
O,
weep for Yum Yum!
though our tears
Thaw
not the frost that binds so dear a head!
IV
O,
Gob tree!
People
pick up your scattered berries
But
pray tell me
How
does one get over
How
does one sleep
How
does one pick the brain of Yum Yum
When
death has bashed in
The
teeming brain of Yum Yum
Who
had yet to glean so much more
From
our Somali years of yore
From
our Somali years of lore
I
weep for Yum Yum—he is dead!
O,
weep for Yum Yum!
though our tears
Thaw
not the frost that binds so dear a head!
V
O,
thankless Muses!
Where
is Yum Yum
The
wit that loved you so
Your
right hand man
Your
factotum
Your
gofer
Your
must-go-to man
Whom
Death has just removed to the hereafter
In
your daze
In
your amaze
Dress
anyhow
Wear
your epaulets of aghast grief
Sing
your despair & dejection
In
mighty ululating long lofty lines of alliteration
Standing
hair on end everywhere
Amidst
goose pimples
And
to this death-tolling knell of mine
Beat
your drums
At
every town square
At
every sheltering tree
For
Yum Yum is no more
And
shall never return
I
weep for Yum Yum—he is dead!
O,
weep for Yum Yum!
though our tears
Thaw
not the frost that binds so dear a head!
VI
O,
pen!
Seize
up
Freeze
Thaw
no more
Flow
no more
Scour
Scratch
Range
over the alphabet
Enter
into your annals' archives
Lamenting
lays
Acquainting
Muslims & Monkey infidels
With
your tears
For
Yum Yum is no more
And
shall never return
I
weep for Yum Yum—he is dead!
O,
weep for Yum Yum!
though our tears
Thaw
not the frost that binds so dear a head!
VII
O,
wisdom weep!
Wise
up
Rise
up
Bite
your nether lip
Wake
up the Muses with your wailing
Lament
O,
you literate ones
Who
labor in ordered orchard words
O,
you purveyors of our Somali folk culture
To
alien tongues
Let
the word go forth
Let
the world know of our severed orphaned Somali tongue
Let
the world wear sackcloth & ashes
For
Yum Yum is no more
And
shall never return
I
weep for Yum Yum—he is dead!
O,
weep for Yum Yum!
though our tears
Thaw
not the frost that binds so dear a head!
VIII
O,
Gob tree!
People
pick up your scattered berries
But
pray tell me
How
does one get over
How
does one sleep
How
does one pick the brain of Yum Yum
When
death has bashed in
The
teeming brain of Yum Yum
Who
had yet to glean so much more
From
our Somali years of yore
From
our Somali years of lore
I
weep for Yum Yum—he is dead!
O,
weep for Yum Yum!
though our tears
Thaw
not the frost that binds so dear a head!
IX
O,
Yum Yum!
Master
of Urania!
The
ewe constellation lost luster and drooped
The
moon sloped and sank
Into
the swallowing sea
Into
the valley of the shadow of death
When
death has halted to hijack you to the hereafter
I
weep for Yum Yum—he is dead!
O,
weep for Yum Yum!
though our tears
Thaw
not the frost that binds so dear a head!
X
O,
you sounding sighing sea!
Suspire
for Yum Yum's soothing songs
O,
you crawling clamor-fingered breakers
Break
Rage
& roil
Rock
& roll on
Deep
dark black teal blue ocean
Upon
your shingled shores
For
your Sheikh Yum Yum has just quit your shores for sure
Convulse
& swing you mighty swells
O,
you teeter-tottering towering torrents
O,
you seesawing waves
Hop
on your wild white horses
Let
loose your rock-splitting surf
Split
spit splutter
Splash
your spume & spoondrift
Way
out of your confines
For
Yum Yum is no more
And
shall never return
I
weep for Yum Yum—he is dead!
O,
weep for Yum Yum!
though our tears
Thaw
not the frost that binds so dear a head!
XII
O,
grave!
O,
you worms of the grave!
O,
you termites of the grave!
If
you dare boast a conscience
Or
a hero amongst you
Grant
Yum Yum
This
Somali bard
This
Somali pard
Peace
From
your roaring razor wrath
From
your licking chops
From
your grinding grinders
For
you have been feasting
For
hundreds of soggy seasons
On
corpses
And
can't be hungry now
For
this honored guest of yours
For
this Yum Yum
For
this peerless immortal Somali swain of the Muses
Whose
brain teemed
With
ancient Somali lore
With
the wisdom of Punt's yore
O,
grave!
I
commend to you now
His
shrouded body
That
lies now
In
an untimely sleep
In
your dread death abode
In
your death bed
O,
you worms of the grave!
O,
you termites of the grave!
Grant
him peace
For
Yum Yum’s last burning gasp
His
last rasping breath
His
last death rattle
prostrated him
And
needs now
Neither
your gnawing
Nor
your nudging nuzzle
I
weep for Yum Yum—he is dead!
O,
weep for Yum Yum!
though our tears
Thaw
not the frost that binds so dear a head!
XIII
As
for me & my house
We
will sing abroad
In
a rue of runes
Our
grievous loss & lamentation
To
all those who girded up
To
defy Death & Degradation
To
defeat Despair & Darkness
To
denounce Disgrace & Dishonesty
In
this Somali slaughter house
In
this sad Somalia
In
this mad Somalia
In
this suicidal Somalia.
In
this Kipling’s Somalia
Of
the “lesser breeds without the law
Half
devil
Half
child”
I
weep for Yum Yum—he is dead!
O,
weep for Yum Yum!
though our tears
Thaw
not the frost that binds so dear a head!
XIII
O
Allah!
Now
Upon
Yum Yum’s soul
Mercy
we all beseech
Upon
Yum Yum’s spirit
Peace
we all pray
Amen!
Amiin!
Reader!
Now
you say
The
last amen
The
last amiin.
—Mahamud Siad Togane
Nota
Bene
The
above elegy is Yum Yum’s own Baroor
Diiq,
Yum Yum's own elegiac gift upon the death of Hajji Musa
Galaal, Englished by Togane who feels now that the best
way to mourn the untimely death of Yum Yum is to reprise
his own Baroor
Diiq in
this here English rendition.
I
weep for Adonais—he is dead!
