There are many variations to a story and today I’m going to share with you why Oshun wears yellow.
Just as some women are known for wearing flowers in her hair Oshun was known for dazzling white dresses. The sparkled and shimmered in the sunlight and beautifully contrasted against her dark chocolate skin.
And what she was known for – even more than her dresses (which glowed like the sun mixed into the moon and you could see them a mile away) – she was known for her spirit, how pure it was. Her laughter, her joy and no one brought Oshun more laughter, more love, or more joy than her kids.
Oshun was rare, she was one of the few unmarried women in the village and she lived in happiness with herself and her kids.
Many men wanted to marry or at least “bed” Oshun and she turned each one down – she didn’t want a man she was happy as she was with her quaint life that she had etched out for herself and her kids. Women were often jealous of her, she was always full of joy, she didn’t seem to have a care in the world and while they were stressed she glowed and so one day they decided to do something that they knew would take away her glow. They stole her kids.
Oshun was told that she had 5 days to come up with $500,000 – one for each kid or her children would be sold into slavery. Oshun was in shock.
The men (who also had been in it as well) saw that they finally had an opportunity to take advantage of the situation and “bed” Oshun.
If you sleep with us, and let us see what is under the dress we’ll help you get your kids. They promised. Many, many men had been wanting to know the secret to what was underneath Oshun’s white dresses.
And so, remorsefully Oshun agreed and she was passed around the town. And when they were done all of her dazzling white dresses were yellow because of how many times her dresses was taken off her body and fell onto the dust on the floor.
Oshun held onto her dignity. Oshun was thankful – not to the men but to her body for making it possible for her to get her children back. And get her children back she did!
“Mama! Mama!” Her children ran up to her and hugged her yellow skirt and Oshun protectively picked up her kids and carried them home.
Oshun had made not only enough money to get her kids back but also to move and Oshun moved far away to a much better town. She washed all the dirt out of her dresses and even bought new ones. But now, alone with the dress she also placed a flower – often a yellow one, and sometimes a pink one too, in her hair as a thank you to her body for getting her kids back to her.
