Sothiou

If you have seen me with a pencil-shaped twig sticking out the side of my mouth, please don't think it's a drug-filled blunt. Chew sticks have been a part of my culture for centuries now, and are commonplace in areas of West and Eastern Afrika and the southern U.S. . Chew sticks, or "sothiou", as they are called in the Wolof language, are natural toothbrushes made from licorice bushes or gum trees. The frayed end of a sothiou rid teeth of unwanted plaque and food and are beneficial to gums. Also, if you chew on sothiou, you find that teeth are whitened and breath is freshened. Though many studies have presented evidence that shows that chewing sothiou is just as beneficial as a daily teeth brushing experience, I still opt to brush twice (or thrice) daily in addition to chewing sothiou. I recently learned that some toothpaste companies are beginning to use the antiseptic juices of sothiou in mass-produced toothpastes. You can get flavored sticks, but I usually opt for the natural bittersweet sticks for my oral fixation. Happy times loved ones.

الزبن الجنوبي (southern claw)

gonna go somewhere

gonna go gonna go

and find my core

where i thrive and

am molten hot with

passion and life

me is existing without

any boundaries

sans frontiers

no mirrors in my way

to examine the me

cuz me is seen

me will be cultivated

among a field of other me's

who thrive

and are molten hot

with the passion inside the core

below the false mantles that

tell them no, too -

growing up tall and reaching past the

sun - all of us me's will grow

to us's apex

and then spread molten seeds that

fall and melt on a new patch

of cold earth, warming the new

cores and breaking past the

mantles

igniting a new and ready set of dried

passions that will do the same.

another reach of the DIASPORAAAAAA!!!!!!!!! (WE IN PERU)

i always get really excited when i come across a seemingly good documentation of a lesser-known reach of the Afrikan diaspora. I remember reading a long time ago that Afrikan blood ran through the veins of people living in far reaches of the of the globe not usually associated with the Maafa, and no matter how many times this is reiterated to me, I am continuously surprised at the discovery of Afrikan communities in "remote" lands. This song is a celebration of Afri-Peruvian culture that describes and seeks a unique proportionate territory between tradition and modernity in the marginalized community. It also has a good lil ring to it.

Enjur this jurnt beybehz!

sorry for being away

I kinda lowkey forgot about this blog. But no worries, I didn't forget about YOU, my loyal follower(s?). Life has been lived. How are you?????