Today’s story is the first in a quartet of elemental stories. In honor of the Joining of the Waters, this is a story of Yemaya, the Orisha of water. The Orisha are personifications of the forces of nature, aspects of the divine as they are understood in the faith of the Yoruba religion, as well as other faith traditions in the African diaspora.
This story was inspired by an article in Teen Vogue that was written in response to the oddly heated internet discourse surrounding the casting of a young Black woman to play Ariel in the recent live action adaptation of Disney’s The Little Mermaid. It argues that in the context of Yemaya, who is often depicted with a fish tail, a Black mermaid actually makes a great deal of sense!
Sound and Music Attributions
Easy Lemon (30 second) by Kevin MacLeod
Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/3695-easy-lemon-30-second-
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Winter Night by Frank Schröter
Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/6910-winter-night
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Cinematic Epic Emotional by Alex-Productions
Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/9193-cinematic-epic-emotional-
License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license
Mystical Universe by MusicLFiles
Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/7646-mystical-universe
License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license
“Thunder, Very Close, Rain, A,” InspectorJ
https://freesound.org/people/InspectorJ/sounds/360328/
