Fellah is the Ottoman term for ploughman, tiller or pheasant. A tenant or smallholder who worked the land tirelessly to provide and survive. Knowing they would never own land or attain a better lifestyle.
This term came to me when I saw it graffitied on a wall in an industrial area. An area where men, big trucks, concrete and mountains of stacked containers dominated. An area where toil continued 24/7.
The term fellah resonated with me over time. It came to represent the grind of my own existence. Sweating away the years in a demanding industry. 60 hour weeks through every kind of shift. Working with my hands, on my feet meeting clear deadlines day after day. Securing elementary products and transforming them into products that sold. Providing well for my family over the many decades of my career.
Unlike a true fellah I worked indoors and my aspiration’s eventually came to fruition. But my weeks of hard work and stress did seem like ploughing a field. Each financial year was like the cycle of the land. Having the burden of operating my own business was similar to how a fellah coped with the weather that the season dealt out. Managing my staff was like tending to the faithful beast that pulled my plough.
I did sweat like a fellah, my clothes did get grimy like a fellah, my body ached like a fellah, my time out in the field was too many hours away from my children, my sleep was one of exhaustion.
Thus my domain is http://www.fellah.me
Man Called Fellah 