It will not spoil him. It will feed his family. Or it might pay for another wife.
-Mahdi abu Jaib, asked how KhairAllah would react when paid his film earnings
That was thirty years ago. KhairAllah now was eight children, from how many wives I do not know. I do know his current wife, who showed me her mod cons when I visited the house last time. Electric refrigerator, electric hot plate, electric air conditioner. Only now Umdurman has so many power cuts they don’t run often. Goatskins and clay pots keep water cool by sweating and evaporating. Fire wood sellers go house to house. Every compound in Dar al-Salam has thatch roof verandas for outside sleeping and sitting. I asked a wealthy Sudanese if he thought KhairAllah would benefit from an electric generator. How will he pay for the petrol? he asked. No, he answered, It would ruin him.
