 good afternoon. Hi, everyone. Welcome. Good afternoon, everyone. How are you doing this rainy afternoon? We're so glad that you're here with us. My name is Christina and I'm the family engagement coordinator for San Francisco Public Library. We'd love to know where you're tuning in from, where you're staying cozy in the rain and joining us for a wonderful afternoon of storytelling. Let us know in the chat. We'd love to know. And we'll get started just in a minute at two o'clock. All right, everyone. Well, we're going to go ahead and get started. Once again, my name is Christina Mitra, and I'm the family engagement coordinator for San Francisco Public Library. And we are so glad that you're here with us. Today we are celebrating storytelling as part of the San Francisco Public Library's more than a month program series, where we celebrate black history, culture and heritage beginning with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s holiday, and then we go right into February. We call this celebration more than a month in an effort to emphasize that reflection, open dialogue and listening, interdisciplinary education and shared advocacy must take place in our communities, not just during Black History Month, but all year round. We hope that you'll join us for all the more than a month virtual programs that we have available for youth, families and adults. And to see our upcoming events, check out our book lists and our event page at sfpl.org. And our trustee friend in the chat will go ahead and make sure that you have that available. That website link. So I still want to welcome you all and I want to thank the friends of the San Francisco Public Library for their generous support of this program series. Check out friends sfpl.org for more information about how to support the library through the friends. And their support really makes sure that our youth and family programs come to life for you, even in the virtual world. So without further ado, I am really excited to introduce our performer today. This is Kirk Waller. Perhaps you're already familiar with his astounding storytelling skills, his ability to transform characters and bring stories to life with suspense, humor, empathy and compassion. You've seen him perhaps at one of our many locations over the years he is not only beloved by our young audiences, but by many of their parents and caregivers and people like me, our librarians as well. So with a lifelong love of story, literature and performing arts, Kirk Waller has been immersed in these art forms for over 20 years. He has won many awards for his work, including a parent's choice Foundation Gold Award for his CD, but why? Stories, music and songs. Kirk received his bachelor's degree in English and his master's in creative writing right here at San Francisco State University. So I would like you to welcome him with a huge virtual applause. And I welcome Kirk to join me here and take it away, Kirk. Thank you so much, Christina. Such a pleasure to be back in San Francisco virtually with you all. Thank you so much for tuning in. I'm really excited to be here. I love San Francisco and coming and being a part of this program, and so grateful they invited me, and even more grateful that you came to take some time. Isn't this a perfect day for storytelling? It's kind of cold and dreary outside, but warm and cozy inside. So I have a few stories that I hope not only entertain you, but I hope you learn something new. I hope they pique your interest. And speaking of piquing interest, at the end of the stories, at the end of the session, we're going to have a question and answer period. So if you find something interesting, you say, hmm, I'd like to know more about that. Keep that in mind. Write the question down. Because it's YouTube, you can actually type them in, but I want to wait till the end just so we see them. Without further ado, get ready for your first story. It's called a Cow Tail Switch. Give me a second. I got to go change. Be right back. Once, many years ago, in the village of Cundi, overlooking the Caballet River in Liberia, there was a small village, and in Cundi there was this great hunter. He went by the name of Ogallusa. Ogallusa was the greatest hunter there had ever been in the village of Cundi. See, often he would go away to hunt. And when he returned, sometimes many days later, he would often come back with the most exotic, large, fierce animals. The men would gather around and they would sing his praises and admire his work. And the children would sing songs of him and raise their hands and circle him and cheer Ogallusa. They would say the mighty hunter has returned. And Ogallusa, he would not rejoice in the praises of the men or the songs of the children. He would rejoice in his own children. You see, he had seven of them and they were all boys. Yeah, seven boys, if you can imagine, and his wife was pregnant with an eighth child. Now, it was spoken over those boys from the time that they were very little, little round heads, little boys running around the village. It was spoken over them by the village elders that one day all of these boys would have a gift, a purpose. And this gift, this purpose would bring healing, would bring blessing to all. Now, Ogallusa's wife did not know what this gift might be. But just the fact that it was spoken that their children, their precious sons would touch others with their lives. It warmed their heart and they kept those words close to them. But one day, Ogallusa left the village as he often did. He took a trail, though, that he had never taken before. And he left in a direction early, early before the sun rose and no one knew which way he had went or which hunting ground he had found or maybe discovered a new one. All they knew was Ogallusa had left. Well, that evening, when everyone came and sat down around the dinner table, there was one thing that was missing. Do you know what that one thing was that was missing around the table? But the food? A meal? Ah, yes. See, Ogallusa was missing. He had not yet returned from his hunting trip. And the people in the village began to wonder, where is Ogallusa? Where is the great hunter? He has not returned. We want to see what he has brought back this time. And his voice said, where is our father? Now, his wife was not too worried because she knew that often he would go away and he may stay a day or two and then return. But the day turned into two, turned into three and he'd still not returned. And people began to ask more and more, where is Ogallusa? Ogallusa and the boys were truly worried and even his wife in her heart, she wondered, where is Ogallusa? The days turned into weeks and people began to ask less and less about the great hunter. There came a time in the village of Kuni that no one mentioned the name of Ogallusa again. The time of the grieving, the time of the grieving had passed. And also enough time had passed for his wife to give birth to the eighth child. And it was, what do you think it was? Yes, another boy. It was another bouncing baby boy. And as children do, they have a way of bringing so much light and joy into a room and you forget about everything else. All the attention goes on the baby, everybody laughing and smiling and dreaming and hoping with that child. And so it was, they forgot even more about their loss and their grief and the pain of losing Ogallusa. And the baby began to grow and total and pull up and look around and be curious and wonder about his world, all about him. And he began to see other children and other fathers. They would put their children on their shoulders or he'd see them take them down to the river and teach them how to fish or teach them how to hunt. And he began to wonder. And when that little boy was old enough to speak his very first words, he said, where is my father? And it was at that moment that the other seven brothers knew that they must find out what happened to Ogallusa, good or bad. They must find out and bring peace to their family once and for all. But they had no idea where to turn, where to even start. Remember he left early in the morning before anyone else had risen. And one of the boys, one of the seven, he stood and he pointed with clarity. And he said, we must go that way. Well, the others kind of chided and laughed. Why must we go that way? And what will we find if we go that way? How do you know we will find our father? I do not know, maybe, maybe, maybe it is my, maybe it is my gift that was spoken of. But I do know in my heart that if we go that way, we will find our father. And with nowhere else to turn, they followed him into the bush. And if they turn to the left or right, he said, no, we must continue down this path. If we go this direction, we will find them. And they followed him to the path right out. And they went even deeper in the bush, but they kept going that direction. And soon one of the brothers pulled from underneath, hanging on a bush some cloth. It almost dissolved in their hands, but from the color and the cloth that was remaining, they knew that it belonged to Ogallusa, their father. A little bit farther down the path, someone else picked up the piece of a broken bone and it clearly had the markings of Ogallusa. And even further, just underneath some leaves, they found the old, dry bones of their father. Ogallusa, the hunter to some, but to them all that was left of the man they called father. And they fell to their knees and they cried. They wept deeply. Then one of the boys finally stood, wiping his eyes. He looked at his other brothers who were grieving and still on the ground. He said, I believe that I could put these bones together again. Why would you put the bones together? And what good will it do if you put the bones together? I do not know maybe that, maybe that's his mind gift, but I know, I know that I could put these bones together. And so, like putting together pieces of a puzzle, a boy put every single bone in its proper place. And then another brother, inspired by his older brothers, said, I believe it's my gift then to put flesh on these bones again. And like a spider weaving its web, flesh and muscle and sinew began to appear on the bones, bringing them together as they began to gather themselves. And still another brother stood up, inspired by the last, and said, I believe it is my gift to put blood back in that body again. And he reached out, and he grabbed the cold ankles of Ogallusa. And as he held on to them, blood began to rush through the body. Heart was beating, blood was pulping. And another said, I believe it is my gift to put movement in his body. And as he touched his outstretched fingers, the hands began to move, the feet began to move, and this cold, still body stood for the first time. I believe it is my gift to put breath inside of him. And he reached out, and touched his chest. And rose, and fell, and rose, and fell. And Ogallusa was a breathing, living soul again. But as he stood there silently looking at his boys, the last one said, I believe it is my gift to put words in his mouth again. And he reached out, and he touched his face. And Ogallusa looked at his boys and said, it is time to go home. And the boys began to sing, and laugh, and cry, and dance all around Ogallusa. All the way home, it was like a procession. He led the parade of joy, of hope, of life. The people in the village saw them passing by in their mouths, hanging open. And eventually, they made it back to that little village. The wife embraced him, and the villagers gathered around, but Ogallusa went inside his home. It was his custom. It was the custom of the village that if anything like this were to happen, that someone were to die, and somehow come back to life, it was the custom to stay inside their home for seven days. It was also the custom to shave their head clean, a symbol to show that they had been to another world, and returned again to this one. And when they had returned, and the seven days were complete, a great feast. A great feast was ordered, and there was food, and music, and singing, and dancing. And the elder of that village brought out what they called a cow tail switch. There was a switch made from a cow's tail, and it was woven with cowry shells and beads, and it was beautiful, it was the symbol of honor, something like a scepter. And he presented that cow tail switch. Ogallusa. Ogallusa accepted it with pride. He held it close to his heart. But then he rose it up in the air, and he said, I will give this cow tail switch to the one of you who was most responsible for bringing me back to the land of the living, and others they began to immediately argue who it was that was the greatest, who it was that was most important, who it was that most significantly brought him back to life. Who do you think it was? The one who pointed the way? Yeah, if I hadn't pointed the way, we wouldn't have known where to found him. And the other said, but I put flesh into his body. And the other said, I put blood into all the boys and the villagers, and even the wife and everybody began to weigh in and argue on who it was that was most responsible for bringing him back to life. And finally Ogallusa raised the cow tail switch, and he silenced the crowd. I have made my decision. Everyone looked at him, mouths open, eyes wide. And he approached his sons as they all stood lined up, trembling with anticipation and hope. And he raised it up and he said, I will give this cow tail switch to my youngest son. For had he not said where is my father, I would still be lying cold in the land of the dead. And so this story, it accentuates a proverb that says a man or woman is never truly dead unless they are forgotten. Oh, that was a friendly, fun way to start. So thank you for letting me get ready, get back here to tell you the next story. So that one was called a cow tail switch. There's one quick question I can answer more at the end if we have time, but someone did ask what kind of instrument is that. And so it is called an Ngoni. An Ngoni. It's a West African instrument is the instrument of a griot 13th century. It is made out of goat skin strings, and this is a gourd. So that's just the short answer, like I said, we may be able to talk a little bit more afterwards. But I have another story I want to share with you this one is is not a new story is not as old as the cow tail switch. But it is still pretty old older than some of you older than some of your parents maybe older than your grandparents 1960 is when this takes place. And this is here in the United States of America. It's called the Greensboro for I got to go get on my shirt and tie so give me a second and they're going to come back with this story. Let us break bread together on our knee. Let us break bread together on our knee. As we walk hand in hand, as we pray to heal our land. Let us break bread together on our. Breaking bread together. Sitting and eating a meal has been around since we've been here since there's been food and since there's been people. So what's your favorite restaurant? What's your favorite food? Pizza hamburgers cake. So imagine this with me for a minute. You want to go to your favorite restaurant and eat your favorite food and sit with everyone else. But one thing. You're not welcome there. You and others that look like you. There's a sign on the wall that clearly says colors served. In fact, all you wanted to do is have a meal. We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal. Unless you were black in 1960 in America. Segregation was in restaurants and schools, drinking fountains, buses, just about everywhere, especially in the south. There were these four young black men. College students. I want to call their names. Ezell Blair Jr. David Richmond Franklin McCain Joseph McNeil. These four young men, the youngest was 19. So they were students. And they had talked every day about the things going on in the world and society and race relations and equality. And they wondered why things were the way they were. And more to the point. How they could make a change. How they could somehow make a difference. And something had happened that previous Christmas, so December of 1959, that changed everything that pushed them into action. One of the young men, Joseph McNeil, he had went on a bus trip and went out of town. And when he came back at the bus station, he was tired. He was hungry and he wanted something to eat. So he went up to the window and he said, I'll take a cup of coffee and a boy, you know we don't serve your kind here. You want to be served, you go in the back to the colored window. Now go on. And he could feel rage rising. He could feel his heart beating in his throat. Heat rising in his face. He was humiliated. And he went and he told his other three friends about this. And it was at that time that they decided something had to be done and not just talked about. Franklin McCain was kind of like the leader of the four, the natural leader. And so he challenged them right there in that dorm room, right there. He said, are you willing to do something about it? Are you ready to take a stand with me? And he challenged them one by one if they were going to do something or just talk about it. So they came up with a plan. So in Greensboro, North Carolina, there was a Woolworths. Now Woolworths is what you call a five and dime. Everything in the store, you could get for either a nickel or a dime. Now that's some good shopping. Now it was kind of like our dollar store today, but a lot better. A lot more quality in the items and a lot more variety to choose from. And so they decided that they will go into the store and they would purchase things. Just to show that they were honest, good paying customers. And then they would sit down at the lunch counter and order something to eat and demand to be served. They were committed to this plan and they were committed to nonviolence. The day was February 1st, 1960. The four of them met in front of the local library and they were dressed in their best. They made sure they had their shirts, their ties, their overcoats and their hats. And they met there in front of the library and they bowed their head together and they prayed. Our Father, who art in heaven, how would be thy name? Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. They also prayed for protection. They also prayed for change. When they were finished praying in silence, they walked to the local wars. And according to their plan, when they got inside, they bought just regular items, comb, toothbrush, toothpaste. They paid for it and they made sure that they kept their receipt. And then they went and sat down at the lunch counter. Each of them took a stool. The waitress, a white woman, came up to them, what are you boys doing here? We want to be served. You know I can't do that. We don't serve you here. Well, why not? We pay for our items. We're paying customers and he showed her the receipt. We don't serve color to you. It's just a custom and you know that now you better leave and don't come back. But they didn't leave. They wanted to be served. So they took a deep breath and they sat in silence. Frustrated the waitress went and got a black worker. Her name was Geneva Tisdale. She thought maybe she could talk some sense into the boys. What are you all doing here? You know you ain't supposed to be here. You got to leave now and don't come back. It's people like you that make our race look bad. She didn't know that was people like them that was trying to make things better for everyone. And they still didn't move. So they went and got the manager. The manager came and tried to make him leave. Tried to talk him into leave. They didn't leave. So he felt he had no other option but to call the police. So the police came and they with a look of intimidation just kind of hit his billy club in his hand as he paced the floor back and forth in back of the seats. And the boys they braced themselves. Not knowing what was going to happen was he going to beat them or hit them or haul them off to jail. But they just sat there. And the police really didn't know what to do because they really hadn't broken any laws and they were sitting there peacefully. He had never faced anything like this before. So eventually people started coming on lookers curious seeing what was going on and the world started filling up. The only other thing that happened that first day was at the end of the counter. There's this old white woman. She had been staring at the floor the whole time just staring at him and she got up and she start striding over towards him slowly. And they didn't know if she was going to spit on them or curse at them or what she was going to do but they braced themselves for an attack. She came up to him and she put her hand on one of the shoulders of one of the boys. She said you know what I am so proud of you boys and what you are doing. I only wish it had been done years ago. And so you could say that first day was a success. The second day the Greensboro 4 became the Greensboro 6 as two more friends came with them. By the end of that day it was 16 people sitting at the lunch counters. And word began to spread and on lookers and police and people from the local news began to come. And so day 2 turned into day 3 and by the end of day 3 hundreds of on lookers, supporters, black and white were filling up that Woolworths. Day 4 took a turn. A gang of local white men to counteract these peaceful protestors. They went early, early, early before the protestors got there and they occupied the seats. So they couldn't sit in the stools. But it really didn't work. The four still came and they stood behind them and they asked to be served. The other on lookers and supporters came and they filled up the Woolworths. The young men, the white men, they did not take kindly to that. So they began threatening them and cursing at them pouring hot, scolding coffee over them. Let's cigarette butts, stuffing them in their pockets. And so they still did not budge. They did not leave. And they demanded to be served. On February 6th, a bomb threat was called in and everybody was cleared up. It turned out to be a false alarm, but it really got everybody's attention. So they backed off the protest. It was a two week cooling off period. And the Greensboro Four and their supporters, they talked to the management at Woolworths and they talked back to them. But nothing was really resolved. So after two weeks, the protest resumed. And people began to come in from all over the place, not only support that particular protest, but other lunch counters. Protestants began to show up. By day eight of the protest, there were eight cities, 54 Woolworths that had protest there. Now all of them were not peaceful. Some violence did break out in some. It wasn't by the protestors, but by those that didn't want integration, that didn't want the protestors there. They would pull them from their seats, they beat them, they kicked them, they sick dogs on them. And then the police would come and arrest the protestors for disorderly conduct. But eventually, after all the protest, after all the loss of income, after all the bad publicity, Woolworths decided that they would desegregate all of the lunch counters. All across the country. Now, a lot of historians believe that it was this moment. The Greensboro Four and the protest that sparked a civil rights movement. It also sparked the development of the SNCC. That's the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. Now that was the organization that organized the Freedom Rides. That was the organization that helped organize the march on Washington, where Martin Luther King Jr. gave his famous I Have a Dream speech. That was the organization that teamed with the NAACP, the National Association of the Advancement of Colored People, and then helped push the legislation and get the Civil Rights Act of 1964 passed. Who would have thought that just wanting a meal, sitting down and eating with everyone else would have led to so much sweeping change. Let us break bread together on our knees. Let us break bread together on our knees. As we walk hand in hand, as we pray to heal our land. Let us break bread together on our knees. Thank you so much for listening to that very, very important story. You know, there's so much work we still have to do as a people, as a society, but there's some change that has been made. And that was just one example of how one change led to others, led to others, and led to many others. The Greensboro Four, if you want to learn more about them, please ask me. Definitely look it up yourselves. So much more to that story, but I wanted to give you a little snippet into some things that happened. One last story for you. This is what I think you're really going to enjoy. It's one of my favorite stories because it's a lot of fun. If you like laughing, you'll like this story. If you ever had an itch somewhere where you couldn't reach and it was really hard to get, then you'll understand this story. Please enjoy Scratch That Itch. Okay, I got one last story for you. Now, this one's a little short, but it's really fun. This goes in the line of those long, traditional, old, old, black African American folk tales called Brer Rabbit Tales. Now, if you know anything about Brer Rabbit, you know he was always tricking somebody. Brer Wolf, Brer Bear, Brer Fox. And it was Brer Wolf who had finally got tired of Brer Rabbit. And he had made up in his mind. He said, I'm going to get that rabbit if it's the last thing I do. And so he had made up in his mind. And the very next morning, he saw Brer Rabbit and took off running after him. Brer Rabbit ran and ran and ran as fast as he could. And finally gave that wolf the slip. And he came to this opening, this big old clearing. And in his clearing, Brer Rabbit saw Brer Elephant. Now, Brer Elephant was rubbing his backside up against a tree trunk like this. He was like... And Brer Rabbit was like, huh? And then he took some branches with this big old trunk and he threw them up in the air. He let them land on his back like... And Brer Rabbit was like, what? And then finally, Brer Rabbit, he couldn't stand it. He said, uh, good morning, Brer Elephant. Elephant said, it's morning, but was good about it. I got this itch that I just can't scratch. He said, uh-oh, oh no, scratch that itch or I'm gonna blow. Like that. And Brer Rabbit said, I'll help you, Brer Elephant. I'll scratch your back. Oh, oh, you'd be such a good friend. So Brer Elephant picked up Brer Rabbit, put him on his back, and Brer Rabbit was just about to scratch his back. He said, but wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. Brer Elephant, when I'm scratching your back, I need you to say, oh no, Brer Rabbit, you're killing me. You want me to say, oh no, Brer Rabbit, you're killing me. Yeah, yeah, yeah. All right. So Brer Rabbit, he went to scratching his back. Oh, he was scratching it good and chomping up and down and even biting his thick elephant skin. And Brer Elephant was loving, he said, he said, uh-oh, oh yeah, a little to the left, right there. And Brer Rabbit said, no, no, no, no, no, no. Remember, you're supposed to say, oh no, Brer Rabbit, you're killing me. Oh yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah. Oh no, Brer Rabbit, you're killing me. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. And right at that moment, the wolf, he had caught his scent and he finally caught up with Brer Rabbit. And he said, oh, I'm gonna get you now, Brer Rabbit. And when Brer Rabbit saw that wolf, he really started pouring it on. He saw like, like scratching elephant's back real big like that and like jumping up and down. And Brer Elephant, oh, he was loving it, but he remembered it. And he said, oh no, Brer Rabbit, you're killing me. And Brer Rabbit said, yeah, Brer Elephant. And when I get done with you, I'm gonna get that wolf. He been chasing me all morning long and I'm tired of it. And Brer Wolf, when he heard that, he tucked his tail between his legs, turned himself around and he got himself out of there. And that was the day that Brer Elephant made a new friend with Rabbit and Brer Rabbit finally got away from Brer Wolf. Thank you. All right, way to end a nice cool evening with a nice warm story. You know, thank you all for coming. If you have enjoyed the story, please look them up. You know, all those stories you could find, at least some version or so in your local library, online, Greensboro for Caltails Switch and his last one about Brer Rabbit. Christina is gonna come back. Oh, hey Christina. Hey Kirk. And if there's any questions that people have, we're gonna start out with those. And if not, we're gonna say goodbye, but I think we have a few of them. Absolutely. Well, first, I just want to personally thank you so much for bringing your gift of story with us. I loved all of those stories. I know that we've been seeing a lot of love in the chat. People have been sending us hearts and just hands of gratitude for what you brought with us today on this beautiful, rainy, cozy afternoon. So I just want to thank you Kirk and thank you on behalf of our audience for sure. Thank you. Thanks for sharing that because I'm not seeing the YouTube link. I might go back and look at it later. So thanks for sharing that Christina. Glad people are enjoying the stories. Absolutely. And I love how the library made a cameo in the Greensboro for story, actually, in terms of them gathering in front of the public library. I thought that that was really great. So there's a lot of appreciation for that story in particular, I think, in these times. So yeah, I just want to remind folks, please go ahead. If you have a question, just put it in the chat. We have some that will share right now just from the beginning. But if you have questions, this is a great time. Oh, let's see. Here we have just one that just came through. This is from Lawrence. And this is not a question but a comment that that Lawrence was five years old in 1961 Greensboro for happened. So, Wow. Yeah. So he remembers it first hand sounds like. Sounds like that too. And then someone else says thank you we're really enjoying this program. And Renee star also says thank you Mr Waller and SFPL. So a lot of people sharing a lot of gratitude. Well, I'll go ahead and ask you a question. I just would love to know, you know, where did you learn your stories and where did you really develop this love of storytelling. That's a good question. I've been asked the first one I don't think I've been asked the second one before so so that's the kind of how I started in storytelling. Just I think over the year well literally I literally started I used to work with children like in an after school program kind of summer program and you know how you read books to them all the time and if any you parents know and children know that they like to hear the same stories like over and over again. And then one time I was reading the story for the 11th 1000 time that I'm like, you know what, I know this story so I just kind of put the book aside, and I just like from memory just told him the story it was like, something like like a light went off at that moment because it was kind of like, I could see them instead of like, you know, looking at the book and the pages, and they could see me and her laughing and talking and kind of creating this magic and bringing up things and adding things to the story what went along and that was kind of like how it was born to me for me, you know, of course, storytelling has been going on forever but for me. That was my big discovery so I started from that point, just really developing my own particular style. I had already kind of done some movement and some mind in my life so I kind of incorporated that. Over time I started adding like a little singing here and there and and music as you saw with the angoni and a few other instruments that I bring into it. That's kind of how it kind of nurtured itself over time and now I can't. I can't live without our store our lives are stories and I just see them everywhere. And so it's so much a part of my, my emotional DNA that I can't get away from it. I love that we are continuing to get so much love from people watching someone did ask again and maybe they didn't they missed at the beginning. Can you share again about the instrument that you share during the first story. I did just kind of rush past it goes in between stories, but this instrument really pretty it's called an in Goni it was handmade for me by someone who creates in Goni and it's from a family of instruments string instruments from Africa West Africa, and this particular instrument, the in Goni is an instrument of agree oh and if you're not familiar with that term agree oh is a French word, but it was those those historians those storytellers. They were like ambassadors to the king, and they would know the history and the lessons and the religion and the culture and the music of that particular group, and they would know it all by memory they knew the birthdays and people passed away they knew everything, and they would sing they would recite they would do it in poetry form and they would pass those on from generation to generation, and this is one such instrument that they would use in their craft and I should say use as a past tense, there's actually still grills. Today, if you look, look up grills in West Africa that still hold that office and still do that and storytellers are a form, you know much different form a form of grill because we're passing on that culture from generation to generation. So it's made out of goat skin. A gore and the string. And of course you know you can see that the wood and it's tuned. This one is a very simple one is just a six string in Goni. There's eight there's 10, and then there's a very involved Cora, which people may know it's many many strings in the same same shape, but it's more like an African harp. And so yeah that's kind of like the little expanded answer of what an in Goni is. Thank you for that. It really adds such a wonderful layer to your storytelling to hear the live music. Someone is just sharing that you're a great historian and kids from the precede after school program have enjoyed these stories today so we've got lots of different viewers from around really just thanking you for your gift. I guess my last just closing question to be like what do you want our audiences here to leave with. I think so much one of your sub themes is like you know more than a month that black history is more than one same thing with any culture you know sometimes I think it's great that we take time to celebrate, you know, different holidays and different months and one you know women's month and different cultures, but it's really important to that we they're not just marginalized into just, you know, okay so we did that you know we celebrate black history now let's you know. But that this is who we are as a society we all have different things to contribute, and that black history is only a part of that, but black history is American history. You can't really separate it, this is the time that we've chose to emphasize it I think that's what I want to take away that our lives our culture, who we are is a part of us, and the part of the greater society. Always remember that share that and never be ashamed to pass that on. Thank you Kirk, and I know that our audiences are really appreciating that answer thank you so much for being with us today. Thank you everyone who watched us and who will watch us will have this up for the next 24 hours. And then we will actually bring it down but you can catch it again starting our March 1 after black history month so we hope that you will make sure that continue to share these stories continue to share your own stories and develop your own craft. Maybe in the same way that Mr Waller did here today so I hope that you continue to connect with us at SFPL in the virtual world. We will continue to be bringing many different events for you, including next Thursday we will have Puna Solomon who has been studying this classical steel pan, the steel pen instrument since age five her dad is actually the inventor of the modern steel pan and she will give a live performance for us so but once again thank you so much Kirk and everyone here. Take good care be safe and we look forward to seeing you either in person on screen soon. Bye everyone.