Remember how I said that we Dinka are storytellers? As Martha and I get our children ready for bed, I tell them many stories from Southern Sudan. I want them to understand their culture and the ancient roots of their family.
Sometimes I tell them of my father. When he was young, he became famous as a wrestler. People knew his name far and wide, and they respected his talent. He had a thick chest and powerful arms and legs, and he could throw any man to the ground. He went from village to village and defeated every local champion. The Dinka admired him as much as any American sports fans look up to an athlete who scores a touchdown or hits a home run.
But my father had another side, and not everyone knew about it. He liked to sing songs just for fun. He would make them up as he worked, and he sang them beautifully. Eventually he gave up wrestling and became a well-respected judge. But he never stopped singing.
When I introduced myself to people when I was young, I said I was the son of Deng Leek. They often gasped in surprise and delight and said, “You are the son of the man who was the great wrestler!” But my wrestling career was not meant to be. I grew up very, very skinny. I did not have the muscles of my father. Still, people thought I might grow strong someday. They hoped I might keep the family tradition alive.
I never did grow as powerful as my father. But like him, I became a very good singer. I made up lots of songs, and my singing made people happy. One day, my aunt made me an ornamental Sudanese bracelet of sinews and low cow hairs. Many Southern Sudanese men wear such bracelets to show they are stylish and manly. The tufts hang down, and when you dance with a girl you flick your arm and make the cow hairs move. We say it is like flashing your cow’s tail. My aunt thought it would look good if I flicked the bracelet while singing.
“Now that you know how to sing a song, will you not be a good wrestler like your father?” she asked me.
I said, “I will do both.”
And I have. I have not fought men like my father, and I have not become a professional singer. But I have fought many, many times to stay alive, and I have won that wrestling match every time. I am blessed. Today, living in America, I sing my new song of joy and hope.