Majdal Yaba - مجدل يابا (الصادق): Days of harvest in Majdal Yaba

The lands stretching north from Majdal Yaba up to Kufr Qasem and west up to Auja River are owned by people from Majdal Yaba, Dair Ballout & Kafr Ed Diek.

These lands were very rich, fertile, and were been cultivated by the Majdal Yaba people. Crops include wheat, corn and barley.

Water was abundant in these lands; it؟s enough to dig a shallow well to have sweet water that continues to yield water for ages.

Most of these lands used to have water springs, My grandmother Azizeh El Ejleh named Al Qazahiya as having a spring that originates there and terminates in the Ras El-Ain river.

People of Majdal Yaba were going every morning to these lands to cultivate them, water them, and to remove the harmful grass from around the crops. Most likely using the trails seen at the maps located at the pictures section, second page in this site. Some will go walking, others riding a horse, and few have bicycles.

Every land would have a guardhouse. The guard works during the day in the land, and sleeps there to protect the land from human and animal intruders.

During the harvest days, people of Majdal Yaba will join hands. Some will mow the crops, others will transport them to clean locations, a third group will do the separation of the grains from the hay. From morning till evening, the people of Majdal Yaba would work hard while chanting to do the most before the sunset.

Men and women of Majdal Yaba were good chanters. They had invented a chant for every occasion. During harvest, they would chant morning till evening, women would chant and men would repeat while make dance-like movements in rhythm with their hands movements throwing the hay up and down.

My grandfather Matar Al Sala' used to bring his horse and install the caret on. He transport the crops from fields to location were crops could be processed, dried, stored, or sold.

Please try to write down some of your family memories, don't under estimate any detail. It is very simple, all you need is to print out the map, bring it in fornt of your relative, and start asking about it. They will start yeilding stories for you. Have a voice recorder ready. Write the memories here, or send them to me [email protected]