okay.
Yeah yeah.
Yes how we're gonna go through first and I'm gonna ask you for your basic
information so you can just say your name and spell it your your date of
birth, we'll talk about that like you know how they gave you a birthday
and if you picked your own birthday, your village you are from there.
We're gonna go through your village life, tell me about what you remember
your favorite memories. Um and then we're gonna talk about war coming and
then the refugee camp what you you know go into the refugee camp in life
there and then coming to the United States and in the very end I'm gonna
ask you just to say some words about how you want to be remembered or what
you want people or maybe a message you have for people and then if you
want to say something in your native tongue, everybody ends up with the
native time.
So yeah. Mhm. When you're ready
and this is this is camera is meant to shoot movies so it only does it
take and then it kind of shuts down and then we start up again and then
keep going so we take a little break so okay and we also have to clap.
Okay
thank you so much for coming dang. And um as I mentioned this is the oral
history project, it's to save your your history forever and ever. As long
as the issue is there people can go and see what you went through and what
happened for you to come here. So I want you to start off with just give
us your name. I just my name's thing. Mhm. Oh but okay and if you can tell
me your date of birth when you were born. 11. Okay and I know that all
lost boys are given january 1st. Yes everybody but do you remember roughly
when you were born, Was it during the rainy season or what do you remember
about did your mom tell you when you the month you were born or do you
know actually I know because I my mom Redaying alive my dad is still alive
and I went back in 2011 so they tell me exactly every day I was born. So I
was born May 1970
3 73. Okay okay that's great. Can you tell me what village you were born
in uh town? Okay and then I know that there's many different tribes in
South Sudan. Can you tell me what tribe you come from? And then with clan
? Oh yeah I was coming from dinner twice so um think about twice to be
different over there. So I was a tweet. Yes. Uh huh. Oh decline I come
from all is when you're school when? Okay that's that's small. Okay. Okay
thank you. So now we're going to go into a bit about your your childhood
and your village life if you can tell me about growing up in your village.
What was it like? How did you spend your days and any special memory you
have. So tell me about your village. Oh yeah exactly. That time I was
really young. I just remembering just come a little bit. So all this time
I was gotten so like maybe we play around cow and good and go to see them
maybe highlights and beat them. So and did you go to cattle camp camp? So
that's the way life we go through with. The last time we left the time I
was elected I was four years, four years old to go to Sylvia. Uh You don't
remember? I can't remember all this stuff. Well that's yeah life over that.
But do you remember the cattle and uh and I think my brother and all my
relatives around that. Uh How many brothers and sisters do you have?
Actually? I have like none of them. So but they're not
for
you. Okay. Are you the only one who comes who lives in America? Yes. Okay.
So when you were very very young, do you do you remember stories about
how war came to your village or have you been told what happened about
when war came to your village? Yeah. Actually at this time the war broken
on is um like tower. So that this was a nice time at this time. So
something happens. So this they say oh yeah just be hearing all they have
a gun around. Stop help that my uncle disrupt me. They run to me. Yeah.
Yeah and then where did you go? Do you remember? So we went to a little
bit camp. You have someone camp he was people maybe people gathering over
there so and after that the people can together and as you know other
train to another like this. Okay so after that you just kept walking, kept
going Until you came to a refugee camp. Yeah we shared we was 9:19
87. That's time we work and work and work and work. We go to the camp now
the way it is the world you want people leaders keep it over there because
they need us over there. So that's the way we go we see working many. He
just went into the line then. Yeah I see a lot of people a train
flying and I see a lot of fans so they crocodile river. Uh So yeah for
that we go to that scale the super camp So we can't use that one. Yeah so
okay so after that we go there we get hunger no over there. So Also maybe
we get all the one
it's like one being We do buy like three. So you give them just going a
little bit and stuff and eat up tomorrow we get to school through just one
being one of the four people who just want category piece. So we need
people like did your aunt and uncle help you along the way
they died? They died. What happened to this? So real was
so they get sick enough that's all. How old were you at that time? I was
abuse 77 years. So still very young. Yeah. And then so then you were there
in P. M. And then your aunt and uncle died and then you stayed with my
uncle. My uncle sent over there is a big big guy and they helped me about
too. So that's uh that's one of those boys from us but they didn't come
here because they didn't call. Okay there was robert e skin kenya. So the
same number there right now. He's still there back there back in South
Sudan. Okay to backtrack a little bit you were mentioning that you saw
friends eaten by lions and crocodiles. Could you hear that at nighttime?
Could you hear the lions coming in? Yeah the night time they were getting
a lot of noise. We work because we're walking the line. You know sometimes
they take someone and you would walk at night time. Okay. Um and so but
your aunt and uncle protected you. But then when you go to the camp then
they passed away. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. And then how did you, who took care of
you then? Did you take care of yourself? Oh yeah because we have two other
because in the last boy remember that the last boy we came in together and
join together because we have some people wanted to ask. So they take care
of everybody around. Uh huh. So then I war breaks out in Ethiopia. Right?
Yeah. With the World Cup in 1991
and then remove back in Sudan we come across the river. Do you?
So after that we have a lot of people million people. That's a lot of were
you one of the first people to cross? So it was before the everyone in the
panic. And yes. So when you were in the camp, did you start going to
school there? How was that? Tell me about the camp in school. Yes.
Very nice. But this all relax for understanding english. Right. So we go
there. Yes, we don't have the papers and stuff. So we go down
to remember? And that's why I went through high school over there. How
could you get out for what? Come on. Okay. And then uh oh in Ethiopia you
were you were there until high school? No, no. No. Uh So in Ethiopia you
went to school until grade school? Uh
To two. Great. Okay. Like 1st and 2nd grade there. So when war broke out,
you were one of the first to cross um was it called when you were crossing
or was it was it the drowning or was it?
So they don't have exactly what we are. So you saw that. Okay. How did you
get across the river? Did you swim? Did you get in the boat? Yeah, that's
I was swimming by swimming myself. Okay. Because that was, you know, and
you know, we go up there the river and swim a little bit. So you knew how
to swear. Others didn't uh some people some people they do. Some people,
some people don't know the dream swim. So the did that's why the people
remaining one. All right now. I know it's terrible. So then after that,
what happened? You you went uh part of Ethiopia back to South Sudan, back
in South Sudan. And we was uh so wecan