Hello Friends!
I can hardly believe a month has gone by already since the inaugural newsletter but here we are on Issue No. 2! Thank you for being here with me.
The past month was busy in the best possible way! There were threads for the daily themed posts (check out the thread of threads here), some truly wonderful Twitter Spaces discussions where we talked about Ifa spirituality of the Yoruba (Nigeria), the Akwasi Gadawu shrine of the Gonja (Ghana) and Warrior Women from Africa, Asia and Europe. I also updated the African Art thread and added a short story to the collection on the Mythological Africans blog.
This coming month has a lot going on too!
Keep an eye out for the upcoming YouTube video exploring Sun and Moon Symbolism of African peoples. Also, on Tuesday July 6th, I will be presenting a paper about riddles in African oral literature at a meeting hosted by Radical Anthropology Group. There will, of course, be the daily themed threads, more Twitter Spaces meet ups and general fun on the timeline. I am looking forward to it all!
This past month, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about what it means to do work I actually enjoy, even though I am still building the skills and knowledge to do it effectively. This really came up as I prepared the paper about riddles. On the one hand, I struggled with feelings of inadequacy, worrying if I am really qualified to be doing this work and how my efforts will be received. On the other hand, there were times when I was so excited about something I found out, it was all I could do to stop myself from running to Twitter to talk about it. As I sat with these conflicting emotions, I came to the realization that regardless of how I feel, I want Mythological Africans to be a fun and inclusive space which nurtures mine and other people’s curiosity and willingness to share their own explorations of myth and folklore from the continent and elsewhere. I want nothing more than to make this happen with you, friends, so once again thank you for joining the adventure!
Helen