In Reply to: Re: Ivan takes me back to 1972 posted by OT2 on September 16, 2004 at 15:34:29:
Yemayah is the Yoruba name of the ocean goddess who rules the southern Atlantic--the source of these massive storm cells. I invoked her name to honor the culture that gives rise to her. The Yoruba have been dealing with that ocean much longer than any people of my lineage.
Were you around for the lengthy discussion on whether the mind creates God or God creates the mind?
I respect the fact that there are many different constructions of reality, and sometimes I acknowledge the emotional & intellectual power of alternate social realities.
I belong to a women's community chorus and performed an African-Carib song with the line "Yemayah se su" two years ago. We sing world music. Our artistic mission is to expose our audiences to a broad range of music about women's lives. We performed the Yemayah song as a traditional call-and-response with a toupe of African djembe drummers. Unlike western choral groups that stand perfectly still when they sing, we moved about the stage with long flowing scarves to simulate ocean waves. We also danced like African-Carib women dance when they sing together.
In the collective performance, we recreated a gentle, peaceful, calm sea. However, one of our djembe players was actually Yoruba, and she performed a solo version that captured the fury of a tropical storm.
You could say I'm ecumenical.