Nimerejea Kutoka Kanisani

Nimetoka kanisani kusali, na ninaona ni sawa tu kuandika habari hiyo hapa katika blogu yangu. Hii si mara ya kwanza kwangu kuandika habari ya namna hiyo.

Kwanza napenda kuwajulisha ndugu, marafiki na wote wanaofuatilia habari zangu, kwamba afya yangu imeendelea kuwa bora. Zaidi ya huu mkongojo ninaotembea nao, uonekanao pichani, hakuna dalili ya tatizo. Naendesha gari mwenyewe, hata umbali mrefu. Natembea na mkongojo kwa kuwa daktari anataka nitembee nao. Nina kila sababu ya kumshukuru Mungu.

Kama ilivyo kawaida, katika ibada ya misa ya leo tumewaombea watu wote. Tumewakumbuka waumini wenzetu wanaosali makanisani, misikitini, na katika nyumba za ibada za dini zingine, tukiombea amani ulimwenguni. Wa-Katoliki hatujiombei wenyewe tu, bali wanadamu wote.

Kila Jumapili, tangu Baba Mtakatifu wa sasa, Papa Francis II, alipotoa waraka wake wa kichungaji, Laudato Si, tumekuwa tukisali sala yake ya kuiombea dunia:

A prayer for our earth

All-powerful God, you are present in the whole universe
and in the smallest of your creatures.
You embrace with your tenderness all that exists.
Pour out upon us the power of your love,
that we may protect life and beauty.
Fill us with peace, that we may live
as brothers and sisters, harming no one.
O God of the poor,
help us to rescue the abandoned and forgotten of this earth,
so precious in your eyes.
Bring healing to our lives,
that we may protect the world and not prey on it,
that we may sow beauty, not pollution and destruction.
Touch the hearts
of those who look only for gain
at the expense of the poor and the earth.
Teach us to discover the worth of each thing,
to be filled with awe and contemplation,
to recognize that we are profoundly united
with every creature
as we journey towards your infinite light.
We thank you for being with us each day.
Encourage us, we pray, in our struggle
for justice, love and peace.

Leo Papa Francis yuko upande huu wa dunia, ziarani Cuba, akiwa njiani kuja Marekani na kuhutubia bunge la Marekani na pia Umoja wa Mataifa. Kuna msisimko mioyoni mwa watu, wanapongojea kusikia mawaidha ya kiongozi huyu aliyejipambanua kwa kutetea wanyonge na uangalifu wa dunia hii ambayo ni msingi wa maisha yetu na ya viumbe vyote.

Filamu ya "Papa's Shadow:" Fursa ya Kuitangaza Tanzania

Nina furaha kuandika kuhusu filamu ambayo imeandaliwa iitwayo "Papa's Shadow," inayomhusu mwandishi maarufu Ernest Hemingway. Katika filamu hiyo, ninaonekana nikiongea na Mzee Patrick Hemingway, ambaye ni mtoto pekee wa Ernest Hemingway aliye hai. Ana umri wa miaka 87. Tunaongelea maisha, safari, maandishi na fikra za Hemingway, hasa kuhusu Afrika.

Sehemu nyingi hapa duniani ambako Hemingway alipita au kuishi na akaandika habari zake, zimejipatia umaarufu. na zinafaidika hasa katika utalii. Mifano ni Cuba na mji wa Pamplona nchini Hispania. Watu wa Tanzania na Afrika Mashariki kwa ujumla tuna bahati hiyo, kwani Hemingway alikuja na kuishi kwetu mara mbili, mwaka 1933-34 na 1953-54, akaandika vitabu, hadithi, insha na barua kuhusu aliyoyaona.

Filamu ya "Papa's Shadow" ilitokana na kozi niliyofundisha Tanzania mwezi Januari mwaka 2013 juu ya Hemingway. Kozi ile ilimhamasisha Jimmy Gildea, mmoja wa wanafunzi wangu, kutengeneza filamu hiyo. Alianzisha kampuni, Ramble Pictures, akaanza kutegeneza hiyo filamu ya kuelimisha. Anaendelea kutengeneza filamu zingine zenye kuelimisha.

"Papa's Shadow" inaitangaza Tanzania kwa namna ya pekee. Kuna kampeni ya kuchangisha fedha za kumalizia malipo ya usajili na taratibu zingine kabla ya filamu kuonyeshwa na kusambazwa. Naleta hapa ujumbe ambao umeandikwa na binti yangu Zawadi, mmoja wa watu wanaojitolea katika Ramble Pictures, unaoelezea kampeni hiyo.

Nitapenda ujumbe huu uwafikie wa-Tanzania popote duniani, hasa wanadiaspora, ofisi za ubalozi, Wizara ya Maliasili na Utalii, Wizara ya Mambo ya Nje na Ushirikiano wa Kimataifa, na wadau wengine wote. Nilitumia miaka kadhaa kusoma maandishi ya Hemingway na kuandaa kozi ambayo ni chimbuko la filamu hii. Ninapangia kuendelea kufundisha kozi hiyo. Nawe m-Tanzania mwenzangu una fursa ya kutoa mchango wako. Tushirikiane. Tutafanikiwa. Sisi tuliokuwepo wakati Tanganyika ilipopata Uhuru tunakumbuka kauli mbiu ya Mwalimu Nyerere ya kuhimiza maendeleo ya Taifa jipya: "It can be done; play your part."

=====================================================

Hello!

My name is Zawadi Mbele, and I am contacting you today to let you know about an amazing project. Ramble Pictures, a Minneapolis-based, independent film company, recently launched a 30-day "Kickstarter" campaign in order to raise funds for the distribution of our completed documentary, Papa's Shadow.

Papa's Shadow is a personal film about Ernest Hemingway in East Africa. It explores his hunting expeditions and holds key dialogues on subjects such as race, language, and the cultures that distinguish us as citizens of the world. Featuring exclusive testimony by Ernest's only living son, Patrick Hemingway, as well as Tanzanian author and Hemingway scholar, Dr. Joseph Mbele, this documentary explores the integral role of two safaris in their shaping of an author and demise of a legend. 

Over the past four years, hard work and creative energy has been poured into making this feature-length documentary. The film has already been completed, however, we cannot show or distribute the film until we finish paying for copyright licensing. Again, please visit our Kickstarter webpage to learn more about how you can play an important role in bringing this documentary to distribution. Also, with Kickstarter, we are offering exclusive rewards with every donation, such as the new Hemingway Library Edition of "Greens Hills of Africa," signed by Patrick Hemingway. 

If there is someone else from your organization you would recommend contacting, we would be grateful to have our information passed along. If you can, please take the time to explore our webpage and let me know if you have any questions at all. You can email me directly or email Elizabeth Turner at elizabeth@ramblepictures.com.

Thank you for your time, and we look forward to hearing back from you!

Sincerely,

Zawadi Mbele

email: zawadi.mbele@gmail.com

Kitabu Kumhusu Hemingway

Leo nilipita tena katika duka la vitabu la Half Price Books la mjini Apple Valley. Kama kawaida, kutokana na ushabiki wangu wa maandishi ya Ernest Hemingway, nilianza kwa kwenda moja kwa moja kwenye sehemu vinapouzwa vitabu vyake: vile alivyoandika yeye mwenyewe au vilivyoandikwa juu yake.

Hadi sasa nina vitabu vingi vya Hemingway, lakini kila ninapoona kitabu kipya, au ambacho sina, napenda niwe nacho. Leo nimevikuta vitabu kadhaa vya aina hiyo, ila nilivutiwa zaidi ni Hemingway in Cuba, kilichoandikwa na Norberto Fuentes.

Sikuwa nimekiona kitabu hiki kabla. Nilikiangalia, nikaona kina utangulizi ulioandikwa na Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Hapo niliishiwa nguvu, kwani Marquez ni mmoja wa waandishi maarufu kabisa duniani.

Mawazo mengine yakafurika akilini mwangu. Ninajua kuwa Marquez ni rafiki mkubwa wa Fidel Castro, Castro ambaye watu wa kizazi changu tumemwenzi tangu tulipopata Uhuru. Najua pia kuwa Castro ni mshabiki wa maandishi ya Marquez. Cha zaidi ni kuwa najua kuwa Hemingway katika uhai wake alifahamiana na Castro, na pia kuwa Castro amekuwa shabiki wa Hemingway tangu miaka ile.

Pamoja na yote hayo, katika kusoma utangulizi wa Marquez, nimevutiwa kwa namna ya pekee na maelezo yake kuwa Hemingway ni mwandishi ambaye Castro anamsoma kuliko mwandishi mwingine yeyote. Hata anapozunguka nchini kwenye safari rasmi, Castro anakuwa na maandishi ya Hemingway. Marquez anatueleza kuwa Castro anaweza kuelezea maandishi ya Hemingway na kujibu masuali kwa uhodari wa kiwango cha juu.

Mimi kama shabiki mkubwa wa Hemingway najiandaa kukisoma kitabu hiki. Nimekipitia juu juu, nikaona kina mengi mapya kwangu, ingawa kilichapishwa mwaka 1984. Nina vitabu vingine vinavyoelezea maisha ya Hemingway Cuba, lakini hiki cha Fuentes kinazama zaidi katika maelezo yake.

Kwa wale ambao hawajui, Hemingway, ambaye ni m-Marekani aliyezaliwa mwaka 1899 karibu na Chicago, aliishi Cuba miaka 22. Hata alivyosafiri kuja Afrika Mashariki, mwaka 1933 na mwaka 1953, alitokea Cuba, na baada ya safari zake alirejea Cuba. Kuna vitu kadhaa alivyovipata Kenya na Tanganyika, kama vile vichwa vya wanyama aliowawinda, mikuki, na kinyago cha ki-Makonde. Vyote viko katika nyumba yake ya Finca Vigia, ambayo iko nje ya mji wa Havana, ambayo serikali ya Cuba inaihifadhi kwa heshima kubwa na vitu vyote vya Hemingway vilivyokuwamo humo, ingawa yeye alishaondoka na kurejea Marekani, ambako alijiua kwa bunduki mwaka 1961.

Cuba inamwenzi Hemingway kwa namna ambayo ingepaswa sisi wa-Tanzania tuwe tunawaenzi waandishi wetu kama vile Mgeni bin Faqihi wa Bagamoyo, aliyetunga Utendi wa Rasi l'Ghuli, au Shaaban Robert.