Mind of Malaka | Page 4 of 115 | Motherhood. Marriage. Madness

Black Masquerade: When Feigning Joy Is A Defense Mechanism

Posted on May 10, 2018
by Malaka
with 3 Comments

When I pressed play on Donald Glover’s ‘This Is America’, I was completely unprepared for what was to transpire within the first 45 seconds of the visual masterpiece. There was Glover, shirtless, hair grown longer than usual, clad in nothing more than a pair of…

Musings

The Consistence of Casual White Violence

Posted on April 19, 2018
by Malaka
with 0 Comments

When I tell you this story, you’re going to swear I’m lying. But I ain’t lying. This really happened. An acquaintance of mine has been having financial difficulty ever since her freelance contract came to an end last year. As a fellow freelancer, my…

Musings

Moesha Boduong Isn’t A Disgrace. She Represents An Uncomfortable Reality

Posted on April 12, 2018
by Malaka
with 2 Comments

Last year, CNN’s Christiane Amanpour began production of her series Sex and Love Around the World, where she traverses the globe in order to investigate ‘unconventional’ expressions of intimacy and the unspoken rules that govern unorthodox relationships in different societies. I had the opportunity to…

Musings

The Dynamism Of Black American Naming

Posted on March 29, 2018
by Malaka
with 2 Comments

What’s in a name? Naming in African communities is an act steeped in tradition and, some say, one that comes with spiritual consequences for the bearer. Children are named to honor an ancestor, to reflect a significant event in a space in time, even to…

Motherhood

The Mercy of Teachers Who Embrace Failure

Posted on March 28, 2018
by Malaka
with 3 Comments

I often talk about the teachers who shaped both the writer and woman I am today. Not infrequently, I mention one teacher’s name with more regularity than any other. (Go to Door Number 5 to receive your prize if you smiled wryly and said, “Mr.…

Motherhood

Why Are Some Women Choosing Childbirth Over Marriage?

Posted on March 22, 2018
by Malaka
with 6 Comments

“There is no man more single than a married man in Joburg.” Joy FM host Naa Ashorkor Mensa-Doku wanted to know why modern women are choosing to have children outside of the confines of traditional marriage and there was no shortage of men waiting…

GH2013

It Will Probably Take A Zombie Apocalypse To Make Ghana Clean Again

Posted on March 20, 2018
by Malaka
with 0 Comments

This morning, I woke up in a panic. My heart was racing so furiously I thought it would tear through my rib cage and bounce its way out of my bedroom window. I had just dreamt of Ghana, and I was terrified by the vision…

Motherhood

I Like to Imagine My Children’s Faces When They Discover All Their Teeth

Posted on March 14, 2018
by Malaka
with 0 Comments

My two oldest children are 13 and 11 years old, which means that they are just about done losing teeth. This is a good thing, because there are few things creepier than tiptoeing into a pre-teens room in the dead of night, swathed only in…

Motherhood

The Key To Great Parenting Is Simple. Have Some Sympathy.

Posted on March 8, 2018
by Malaka
with 3 Comments

Sympathy noun Understanding between people; common feeling It doesn’t matter if your child is a few days old or well into their fifties; a parent is most likely to assess an unfamiliar scenario with one uppermost question: “Am I responding to this situation the right…

Musings

Where Do The Poor Fit In the ‘Africa Rising’ Narrative?

Posted on March 3, 2018
by Malaka
with 0 Comments

Over the past two decades or more, the portrayal of Africa as a continent scabbed over by war, famine, hopelessness and ignorance has given way to depictions of a continent brimming with new and untapped promise. The ‘Africa Rising’ anecdote is now as ubiquitous as…

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