_700.jpeg "Independence: What's It to You?")
A holiday means you can sleep in today. Or not.
Ear-shattering machine-gun-like percussion jerks you from slumber before the day breaks. Incessant whistle blows, and cheering over a megaphone follows. Torch-runners arrive in the village after running all night. The annual celebration of Guatemala’s independence from Spain is in full swing.
Across the Atlantic in West Africa, the national flag fl...
As we noted in our two previous posts, beads carry great significance in Ghanaian culture — marking key moments in your journey through life. What’s more, they can signify your status within society.
A priest, for instance, would wear beads made of organic materials like bone, cowrie shell, or elephant teeth. A queen mother would wear white beads, symbolizing purity, as well as silver and blue...
In our last post, we noted the significance that people in Ghana attribute to beads. As we saw, beads can celebrate and commemorate your birth. Here’s how they reflect the later stages of your journey through life:
Waist beads represent an intimate adornment once you reach adulthood. To quote our friends at SUN TRADE BEADS in Accra, “they should be worn discreetly and not be seen by just anyone...
In Ghana, beads are more than beautiful objects; they are symbols with specific meanings for each person. To quote our friends at Sun Trade Beads in Accra, they help “narrate your life from birth to death.” At the start of your journey, for instance, beads tell your story in the following ways:
One week after your birth, you’ll have a naming ceremony, and you’ll receive a small string of beads....
