The Bamia Scare

Continuing the story of the Young Iraqis of Derby

The group of 5 students would board the Bedford van every morning for the college and come back in the afternoon and would usually pass by Mrs. Mumford who would be humming tunes to herself while peeling the potatoes and the leaves of the cabbages   or skinning the carrots.

Good evening Mrs. Mumford the boys would say….

Good evening boys. I am preparing for you juicy lamb chops with mint sauce, new potatoes and cabbages she might say usually adding:  Lay your bags , change your clothes , have a little  wash and dinner will be ready .

After a couple of weeks between the college refectory and Mrs. Mumford the whole British food menu was exhausted and began to be repeated. Back in 1962 in Derby no Mediterranean or Mid-eastern restaurants were to be found and the boys soon began to long for Iraqi foods.   

One afternoon as the boys were passing through the kitchen,   Falah noticed Mrs. Mumford had assembled vegetables and meat and was going to make a beef stew. Falah stopped and said please Mrs. Mumford leave the vegetable aside, I will bring you something instead to cook with the meat. He rushes  up the stairs, opens his bag and brings down a handful of dried Bamia (okra) necklaces and asks Mrs. Mumford to cook it for dinner. This Veg. is finger shaped and before the time of refrigerators Iraqi housewives thread it like a necklace and hang it out to dry for the winter stew .This practice continued in the time of fridge usage  and most mothers have but a bag of the product in their son's suitcases on their way to London and other destinations  .

Mrs. Mumford holds one bamia necklace to the kitchen light… No my dear she says to Falah I haven’t seen these before, I cannot be responsible if anything happens to you .I must call Mr. Birch.

She opens the window and shouts to Mr. Birch, who was in the court yard preparing the Bedford van for next morning voyage.

Mr. Birch throws the cloth in his hand on the van   , opens the kitchen door and anxiously asks:  What… What happened   Mrs. Mumford?

Mrs. Mumford opened the bamia necklace between her two hands and raise in the face of Mr. Birch.

 Mr. Birch laughs and say:  Ah how nice, they gave you a jungle necklace?

  Mrs. Mumford was flabbergasted and retorted:  No, No you …. Then held her tongue, they want me to cook it for their dinner!

Amjad feeling a little bit offended by the mention of the Jungle by Mr. Birch shouts: Iraq no Jungle... No Africa.

Hassan steps in: Mr. Birch this is dried vegetable it will come back with cooking. Then to Mrs. Mumford:  Just please add to the meat with some tomatoes and onions.

Hama:  Make Stew… Stew.

Hameed: In Arabic bamia without Iraqi bread no good.

Hassan: It will be OK with the British loaf.

Mrs. Mumford: Please boys I am worried it could harm you. Just let me get on with my nourishing vegetable stew. This thing have been dried of all nourishment.

  Mr. Birch: OK...OK. Cook it for them Mrs. Mumford on my responsibility, their mothers cannot not be so nasty as to want to harm them I am sure.

The boys go to their rooms and back to the hall waiting for their dinner.

Mrs. Mumford gets on with the cooking , dishing out a bamia to look if it was done every few seconds  ,then finally shouts to the boys : Dinner is ready , Mum's  vegetable is  ready .