I am learning just because you have something to say doesn't mean you should talk all the time. The wise griot also knows when to shut up. The story of "The Talking Skull" is one I have told to many children including my own. Enjoy!
A Tale from West Africa
A hunter came upon a huge tree with a whitened skull at its base. The skull spoke and said, "Beyond a certain hill is a field of calabashes. Take them to your hungry village, but do not tell anyone how you obtained them." "How did you come to be here?" asked the hunter. "My mouth killed me--talking brought me here," said the skull. The hunter returned to the village with the calabashes and immediately told everyone, "A talking skull showed me a field of food!" The hunter started singing: “I have met a talking skull, a skull talk to me, go and tell The Chief this is something he must see.” The Chief called him a liar. "Then come with me! I'll prove what I say is true. When they arrived at the tree, the hunter spoke to the skull but it remained silent. “How did you get here?” he asked. “How did you get here?!” he shouted. The skull said nothing. The hunter was put to death on the spot for lying. The Chief demanded his head. In time, two whitened skulls sat beneath the tree. The first turned to the second and said, "See, in death we meet again, my kin. It's true a mouth can do you in!" The first skull asked: “How did you get here?” The second skull replied: “Talking brought me here.” This is Tuesday talk.
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