Beneath the shade of an ancient baobab tree, an African village comes alive in vibrant hues. Elders, sit in intimate settings, weaving tales that transcend generations. The rhythmic cadence of their voices mingles with the warm breeze, carrying stories of ancestors and timeless wisdom to eager young minds. This is how we were – before . . . before we were taken! This art piece captures a timeless moment, where the oral tradition becomes a tapestry connecting past and future. It celebrates the sacred passing of knowledge, fostering a sense of unity in the glow of ancestral narratives.

From one generation to the next, gifted storytellers have shouldered the important role of griot, carrying stories steeped in lived experience and timeless insight to bequeath the next generation. As elders who hold the collective memory of a family, community, or culture, their voices whisper tales mined from lives past, truth culled from overcoming adversity, wisdom woven through time. A griot knows the awesome duty of unlocking captivating narratives that light the imagination and nourish the mind. Before the stories are taken by time’s unfeeling tide, griots recount them with passion and care. And eager young minds gather spellbound, inheriting tales that still yet live to teach life’s lessons to those still learning its complex rhythms. Thus the griot keeps the ancestral torch burning bright with words transformed and eyes newly opened before passing the stories once again into worthy hands.

Griot (pronounced gree-oh) - A member of a class of traveling poets, musicians, and storytellers who maintain a tradition of oral history in parts of West Africa. Griots act as historians, advising rulers and preserving tribal genealogies and events in oral form.