switch it up

let's chat a bit about the infamous switch, shall we?

...hold on, now.  for those of you about to run out of the post screaming, we're not gettin' into grandma goin out to the backyard or any s&m type stuff.*

we're talking about movement.



how many of you grew up being admonished for switchin', sashayin', puttin' your hands on your imagination, et cetera?

for those who took that advice to heart, how many of you have experienced lower back, knee, or hip pain as adults?

what some of our mamas and grandmamas didn't know is that the muscles that rotate your hips also influence the alignment of the muscles in the rest of your leg. furthermore, tight hamstrings can pull on your pelvic muscles, causing lower back issues.  any good massage therapist knows that if a client comes in complaining about lower back issues, it's a good idea to check out their legs and hips first.

still wanna stop switchin'?

traditionally, african women have wide hips and large backsides.  when we walk, we sway.  our indigenous dances incorporate all kinds of hip, glute, and core muscle isolations.

put another way: we naturally shake our asses.





when we don't allow fluidity in our movement, we lock up our energy, we lock up our unique beauty, and we lock up our spirits. consider the persistence of cervical and breast cancers, heart disease, fibroids, and chronic pain in our communities, and what parts of the body these dis-eases are targeting.

so, as you consider your own healing journey, don't forget to put that wiggle back in your step. your knees, back, and spirit will thank you.**





*not that there's anything wrong with s&m.  we're kink-friendly.  but you'll have to work out the grandma issues on your own.  unfortunately, she and her strong whuppin hand are beyond the scope of this blog...

**and if your mama bought you a hula hoop instead of fussing, more power.

quickie!

uganda-based afri-pads is providing resuable, cotton menstrual products to give girls the opportunity to stay in school during their cycles!

Our objective is to produce and distribute low-cost, washable menstrual pads to schoolgirls in rural Uganda. By providing girls with an affordable sanitary product, we aim to empower girls with the confidence to stay in school school during their monthly period.

{thanks to quirky black girls, naija blog and timbuktu chronicles for the heads up!}

world aids day

today marks the 21st world aids day.  for more information, visit:

world aids day {UK}
UNAIDS
world aids campaign

stay safe, loves.

quickie!

not quite back in the swing, but had to share this with y'all: sensual marriage counseling for kenyan women...

an excellent and empowering way to help keep hubbies at home with their families.

Gbe rere ko ni olu-gbe-rere!

"Give me Good Things from the Great One who gives Good Things!"

enjoy this beautiful video of women celebrating the yoruba mother/ocean goddess, yemonja.

quickie!

democracy now! does a feature on women and war, focusing on the crisis in the congo.

to learn more, you can visit wikipedia for a recent timeline or see a ngo perspective here.

in memoriam

beloveds,

it has come to our attention that iya adunni (susan wenger) has passed on.

iya adunni came to nigeria from germany, became a priestess of osun, and is renowned for the artwork that led to osun's grove being designated as a unesco world heritage site in 2005, one of the few traditional african centers of spirituality to have that distinction.

from the nigerian guardian:

The late Wenger was born during the First World War in 1915 in the town of Graz, Austria.

She studied art in Graz and Vienna where she was part of the famous Vienna Art-Club. After the Second World War, she travelled to Italy and then spent some time in Switzerland where she had exhibitions together with the most famous artists at the time in the gallery Des Eaux Vives in Zurich. In 1949, Susanne went to Paris, where she met Ulli Beier, a German linguist who accepted a posting in West Africa.

They got married and in 1959 arrived in Nigeria. From Ibadan they moved to Ede where she "very quickly became part of their culture." This was where Susanne Wenger met Ajagemo, a powerful Obatala priest and her guru who initiated her to the traditional Yoruba religion - the world of the Orisha.

From a very early age, Susanne Wenger had been strongly attracted by nature and specifically by trees - in which she recognised "the images of sacredness".

And it is in the Sacred Groves of Osogbo where she had integrated her art into nature and where her art is now protecting nature.

iba ara t'orun, iya.
iba osun
iba orisa

may osogbo and the world always prosper and be protected by the love and power of our sweet mother, the source.

ase.