I'm going to be completely honest I've been working on this for ages, the problem is I'm working on it at night and my Mrs keeps on putting on Love Island, and though I try to focus, it's a proper distraction with some of their theatrics.
So let me get this rant out of the way, today I glimpsed at the TV and saw spaghetti that looked like yellow paper mache on a rainy day! :D Maybe I'm exaggerating but I was shocked! And I had to question has the quest to look attractive and Instagrammable led to a loss of even the most basic of things of being able to cook?
I don't know, but what this Love Island episode did do is make me draw for one of my favourite tunes as a youth in the same way a priest draws for holly water to splash on the face of the unholy. 😃
Let these words soothe you as they did me as a youth (insert prayer hands)
Gal Yuh better caan cook, tink yuh deya for yuh pretty looks
Yuh waan live ah restaurant and come dunn man bank book
Cook, eh!, recipe book
Gwaan inna di kitchen cause yuh hand dem nuh nook - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5Fkpm5wko4 (If you want to hear the song!)
Bantu Kongo traditions influential in the Haitian Revolution?
Anyhow let me get back on track! So recently I've been reading up on the traditions of the Bantu Kongo people my interest in the teachings of the Bantu Kongo people was sparked while studying the Haitian revolution and looking into Vodun. Vodun, often known as Voodoo, is a spiritual practice that originated in West Africa and was heavily practised during the Haitian revolution.
In studying the Haitian revolution, it's becoming clear to me that you can't fully tell its story without discussing the principles of Vodun. I believe the two are intertwined, much like how The Crusades are associated with Christianity...
Understanding of Language Leads to the Understanding of the Person
Dr Fu-Kiau author of the book on Bantu Kongo traditions uses both English words and their Congolese equivalent to explain concepts, in his own words he says;
'Learning is an accumulative process of coding and decoding cultures, therefore, it is necessary to study the language that expresses those cultures.'
These words definitely make me think, how much history has probably been warped due to not truly understanding the language of the culture. In my professional life, I have seen young people given a bad rap due to a misunderstanding of their language (slang) and I believe the same principle applies to the Haitian Revolution and the role Vodun played.
In my last email sent out, I said our exhibition would be called Red Light Busking Presents A Pleasure Garden of Freedom Fighters. But as the project evolves it's only right the title does too, so now it will simply be Red Light Busking presents Kanda...
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