ORIGIN OF THE WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION
They needed a god of trade. From his throne on Olympus, Zeus surveyed his family. He did not have to ponder long. Hermes was the god for the job.
Zeus gave him sandals with little god wings and put him in charge of promoting the exchange of goods, the signing of treaties, and the safeguarding of free trade.
Hermes, who would become Mercury in Rome, was chosen because he was the best liar.
—from Eduardo Galeano‘s grand book of myths and parables, Mirrors: Stories of Almost Everyone.
I can’t resist. Here is another.
GRANDPARENTS
For many peoples of black Africa, ancestors are the spirits that live in the tree beside your house or in the cow grazing in the field. the great-grandfaterh of your great-great-granhdafther is now that stream snaking down the mountainside. Your ancestor could also be any spirit that decides to accompany you on your voyage through the world, even if he or she was never a relative or an acquaintance.
The family has no borders, explains Soboufo Somé of the Dagara people: “Our children have many mothers and many fathers. As many as they wish.”
And the ancestral spirits, the ones that help you make your way, are the many grandparents that each of you has. As many as you wish.
This comment has been removed by the author.