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Somali refugee Abdi Said, 11, narrates his mother's story of war, marriage, and escape.
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Fleeing Somalia because of war, Nimo Saeed came to Maine with her three young children. She did not speak a word of English. Nimo is now learning how to read. Her eldest son, Abdi, who is eleven years old, helps narrate her story.
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Piece Description
Fleeing Somalia because of war, Nimo Saeed came to Maine with her three young children. She did not speak a word of English. Nimo is now learning how to read. Her eldest son, Abdi, who is eleven years old, helps narrate her story.
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Dheera Sujan
Posted on January 11, 2005 at 02:27 AM | Permalink
Review of For My Children, For Myself
Most of the pieces I’ve heard that were made by the Salt Institute are terrific.
And this one is no exception. Abbedi is an articulate well spoken young man whose big heart shines through even in this short piece. His mother, like so many women from troubled countries, is strong for her children but still has a very human laugh, an engaging and gentle manner.
The Salt Institute is very good at sketching detailed portraits in their short interviews. And it seems to me their strongest point is bringing out the extraordinary characters of ordinary people.
The only criticism I have here is audio quality. The interviews sound like they’ve been done at different times with different recorders. This means that clips have different background hisses that become even more highlighted when short clips are intercut with each other. There are a couple of edits that are audible and volume levels are not always too steady.
But this is a lovely portrait of two people who are literally in the process of pulling themselves up by their bootstraps, and it makes you stop just for a moment and realize how much we in the western world take for granted – life without war, having easy access to education, being literate and employable.