Translating Nouzha Fassi Fihri's La Baroudeuse: A Case Study in ...

mules loaded with produce were turned away. Donkeys trotted back home with
their loads of vegetables and fruits, roughly handled by their masters who hated to
see several weeks of hard work go to waste. Trucks that had been denied passage
were parked on the roadside while the drivers waited in hopes that they would
eventually be given permission to deliver their goods.
But the French decided otherwise. They wanted to "starve their insolence
to make them show some respect."
Would the ancient city die of starvation? Would the city of legendary
hospitality be refused the bread crust that could save it? Would her death thus be
without glory, like that of an abandoned beggar?
God forbid! The French had not taken into account the precautionary Fassi
spirit. The people of Fez had the habit of filling their attics with all kinds of
staples to be prepared for the unexpected. There were jars full to the brim with
olive oil and salted butter, and baskets full of wheat and oats. Lentils, broad
beans, chickpeas, almonds, raisins and dates were piled up to the eye's delight.
Every wealthy Fassi had stored enough salt, sugar, tea and honey to last a year. A
calf or two had been slaughtered in mid-October to prepare for the hardships of
winter, and large stoneware vats were filled with the preserved meat swimming in
a grainy sauce. Onion and garlic decorated kitchens, hanging from the rafters in
fragrant bunches. Charcoal and wood filled sheds.
What more did they need to stand up to the aggressors and survive with
dignity? Water? Fez had many, gushing sweet water springs in the most
unexpected places. The rich shared with the poor and showed a generosity
unusual in times of peace.
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