A "hora" dance, Hadzawi-style

Back In Time

Suzi and Jon Colman

Special to the Jewish News

W bile on a safari in the east
African nation of Tanzania,
we went to a remote region
near Lake Eyasi where a nomadic tribe
called the Hadzawi manages to main-
tain their traditional lives as hunter-
gatherers.
We hired a guide named Hassan to
help us, and he took us on a long drive
that made the Yom Kippur fast feel like
a hiccup. Yes, it was that nauseating,
but it was worth it when we arrived
and were immediately welcomed by the
Hadzawi tribe. Fortunately, Hassan was
one of the few outsiders to understand
the Hadzawi language. After a short
greeting, they invited us on a hunt.
We were given bows and arrows
and five minutes to target practice.
By then we were regular Robin Hoods
and off we ran to hunt. Despite the
obvious difference in running styles,

we felt like we were truly part of the
group. We tried to keep up with them
and help spot their game, but in the
end we were helpless. By ourselves, we
would probably have lasted mere days
before making an untimely return to
the wrong end of the circle of life.
Suddenly, we spotted baboons and
ran to corner one of our primate cous-
ins. This was one smart baboon, and he
showed us why he was the most prized
kill of the Hadzawi. After being shot
with an arrow, he would pull it out and
run with it because he knew the arrow
could be reused to shoot him.
Despite his attempt to escape into
a palm tree, an arrow finally put him
down for the count. It had taken four
hard-fought hours to kill the baboon.
The chief threw it over his back, and
off we marched to start a fire. Without
matches, lighter fluid or even birch
bark, the skills we learned at Jewish
summer camp were of no use. Instead,
the Hadzawi rubbed two pieces of

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wood together, and within a minute
they had a fire.
They tossed the baboon on the fire
and used Hassan's knife to cut it up
in a not-so-kosher way. There was
no seasoning, no preparing and no
utensils. They each got an equal piece,
except the chief, who got the delicious
head. They offered us some, but not
wanting to take the food from their
mouths, we declined.
After, we went to a neighboring
village to get the Hadzawi men some
metal arrows for hunting as a gift.
They danced their version of the "hora"
to thank us. We looked around for a
klezmer band and chairs, but when we
couldn't find any we simply joined in
for the dance. In a land so far away and
with a people so different from our
own, we still felt a touch of home as we
danced their hora with them.

Suzi and Jon Colman live in Commerce

Township.

theJEWISHNEWS

Sept. 15-21, 2011 I 16-22 Elul 5771 I Vol. CXL, No. 6

Moshe Serour's father opened a
Papa Romano's franchise to establish
a family business and as a way to be
with people every day. Unfortunately,
when Roger Serour did not survive a
heart attack, his two sons were left
with the business that only Moshe
wanted to keep.
"I bought out my brother's share,
but it was difficult," Moshe said. "My
wife and I put in 80 hours a week to
meet our expenses, with 'tie left over."
The Serours were a business
success, but only on paper. "We had
a great balance sheet, but rent on
that space was twice as high as the
going rate around us, and the land-
lord refused to work with us," Moshe
said. "No bank would touch us, either
to move or to make improvements.
The rent affected our cash flow."
Just when the Serours were ready
to call it quits, they connected with
Hebrew Free Loan and Main Street
Bank, an hfl.bis partner. Armed with
new business financing and a
gleaming new space at Maple and
Cranbrook roads, the Serours left
their old storefront and began again.
"HFL believed in us. We're doing
so well now, and we wouldn't be
here without that support."

The Power of Recycling

Rosh Hashanah, First Night:
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Hebrew Free Loan gives interest-
free loans to members of our
community for a variety of
personal and small business
needs. HFL loans are funded
entirely through community
donations which continually
recycle to others, generating
many times the original value
to help maintain the lives of
local Jews.

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September 15 • 2011

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