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Farshaxanka Soomaaliyeed - Back home in Somalia, nomadic women traditionally created weavings for several life-sustaining purposes - i.e. to cover the aqal Soomaali (nomadic home), to sleep on, to pray on. Additionally, they wove vessels to carry milk (caano) and water in, to hold fermented meats; and twined their own ropes to fasten things together.

Many older east African women are weaving today in our community, an age-old craft passed down from their grandmothers. Using no looms or tools other than their own hands and feet, sometimes teeth, the works are twined and hand-woven, and completely hand-stitched and hand-made.

The memory of home in the weave of the kebed (flat weaving) evoked an emotional response from an elder gentleman I met who said, "I was born under one of these", as he held up a colorful kebed. Please come to this event to learn more from the elders about their weaving tradition, and also to learn about a culture which is both far away and right next-door.