A picture showing the akodi orisa artists crossing a bridge

When nobody supports you

ByMoyo Okediji

When nobody supports you,

when everybody says no to you,

when people turn down your requests,

and you cannot get any grant

when they band together to oppose you,

and say your ideas are not practical

and they frown when they see you:

don’t despair;

these are signs that you are moving in the right direction;

keep placing one foot ahead of the other

continue to push ahead

PARABLE OF IJAPA and CHILD

PARABLE OF IJAPA and CHILD

ByMoyo Okediji

PARABLE OF IJAPA and CHILD

There is an old Yoruba proverb that says “The child insisting that his mother must not sleep will also not get any sleep.” (Ọmọ tó ní ìyá òun ò ní í sùn kò ní fojú ba oorun).

Women who nurse babies know the challenge of getting enough sleep while a baby is still unable to understand the difference between night and day. The baby keeps waking up to feed, cry, poo and pee.

The mother must attend to all the needs of the baby during the night. Typically, for the mother, therefore, it is a long, wearying night.

The poor mother gets up in the morning having caught almost no sleep, exhausted and drained physically and emotionally.

Yet she must face another day of sleeplessness and ceaseless labor until the baby grows up.

Now think of the story of Ijapa.

a picture showing moyo okediji sitting in front front of his artwork with a laptop in front of him.

PARABLE OF THE BOASTFUL BIRD

ByMoyo Okediji

PARABLE OF THE BOASTFUL BIRD One upon a time, a colorful bird known as Orofo was sad because she did not have even a single child. All the other birds, including Ega, Alapandede, and Eyele had lots of children. Orofo was worried.Sometimes she would lay many eggs, and none of them would hatch. At other times, as she pushed the eggs out of her womb, they would fall from her nest and break.