Words matter.
Choose them carefully today.
Don’t use words to hurt others,
however good it might feel to hurt them.
Use your words to empower others.
Use your words like building blocks.
Words are worthy and useful only when you use them
to build a better world.
When you are hurting inside,
especially when you are hurting really awful,
offer words that heal and nurture:
never give up on love
even when others exhibit hate
I woke up during the night and went to the bathroom.
There was no water to wash my hands.
No hot water. No cold water.
What was going on?
I went downstairs.
No running water.
The simplest thing, as ordinary as just inhaling and exhaling, is an amazing feat of enjoyment.
When you can inhale and exhale, just enjoy it because it’s priceless.
Àkòdì Òrìṣà artists painting the outside fence at Ile Ife, Nigeria.
Life, when lived properly, is like playing in this giant park called Earth.
Find the thing you love to play with, and turn it into your work.
Then you can start playing.
I play with words, to enjoy the miracle of sound.
I play with images, to savor the magnificence of sight.
Playing is the best way to give thanks to the Creator of this giant park, and to fully enjoy the fruits and drinks that the park abundantly supplies.
Another painting that I just extracted from my garage is this dark work.
There is an interesting story behind it.
In the year 2000 or 2001, the British Museum invited me to give a lecture as part of the ceremonies held in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, and also to mark the completion of the Great Court built as an extension of the main museum building. They wanted me to address the body as my topic.
“Ó dàbọ̀,” which is what stands for the idea of goodbye, actually is the very opposite of goodbye.Why? Because “Ó dàbọ̀” does not say that you are leaving.Rather, as you depart, you are speaking of “àbọ̀,” meaning, “the return.”As you depart, you begin to celebrate your return.