Handcarved Rastafarian Head
A few decades ago on the lovely Caribbean island of Jamaica two young men walking down the street were greeted by 'an old dude with all these nifty carved wooden heads'. I was told that he freely offered to curse them if they didn't purchase one - which is why this Rastafarian currently lives with my family.
I have to admit it, this is definitely the most interesting and intriguing wedding gift any bride could ever receive - especially from the man she dated prior to meeting her husband.
Was it supposed to be an old Jamaican curse passed to me by my ex-boyfriend? Well, if you call a marriage that's lasted more than a couple of decades and will probably last many more a curse, then yep, that 'old Jamaican curse' seems to be working pretty well and it probably didn't achieve the desired result from the giver.
Should the two young men have kept the Rastafarian? Well, if you consider that one of them wound up in jail for a loooong time (he apparently brought back more than the carving, if ya know what I mean) and the other one, bless his heart, is no longer with the living. Then yep, maybe they should have kept the carving.
For years my kids referred to the Rastafarian as "PoPo GiGou" - they, and all their little friends, firmly believed that if they rubbed his head, clapped their hands while turning around three times and then yelled "PoPo GiGou!!!" as loudly as possible that they would have a good day and have good luck. As long as they didn't do it while I was asleep all was well. The kids managed to get through high school without someone getting pregnant, hooked on drugs or thrown in jail; and both are now self-sufficient adults with good jobs and beginning families of their own. Maybe there is something to ol' "PoPo GiGou" - maybe not. Maybe it's just hard work, loving your family and allowing them their little idiosyncrasies from time to time that makes all the difference.
So, if there really is anything to "PoPo GiGou" bringing good luck then perhaps it's time to do the right thing and share that good luck with others. Even if you're not superstitious or don't believe in charms this nice old Rastafarian could still bring a nice, warm, fuzzy feeling to your heart by living with your other wooden carvings. Even old Rastafarians have been known to be lonely - "PoPo GiGou" might just be happy to have some fine carvings around to keep company with!
The hard facts about "PoPo GiGou"
- "PoPo GiGou" is the name my kids gave him because they thought he was 'a cool dude in a loose mood' - we really don't know what he's called.
- "PoPo" is about 12.75" high, 3.5" wide and 7.25" from front to back and weighs somewhere in the neighborhood of 1.5-2.5 pounds. Measurements are approximate!!!
- "PoPo is handcarved and stained/painted - came from Jamaica in 1984. You could count the tree rings on the bottom (you can see them) and figure out how long the tree lived before it was transformed if you really want to. I never really felt the inclination to do so.
- He could be older than that, all I know is he immigrated in a suit case to the States in 1984 and has lived here since. He does not possess a green card, passport or temporary visa - he's just a nice, friendly Rastafarian that gives no trouble to anyone. Well, maybe a little trouble when you dust him with the wrong material as his dread locks will grab lint and give you the devil when you attempt to remove the lint. He does clean up well.
- Speaking of cleaning up well, he does have the occasional small spot where travel has affected him - it may have occurred while he was still in Jamaica or it could have happened during his travels here. He's not perfect, but who really is?
- Any claims as to his providing 'luck' are simply supposition - I'm not promising anyone that he will provide any luck at all. As a matter of fact, I'm not promising anything at all about him other than the fact that he's wood, hand carved and he was brought to me from the island of Jamaica more than twenty years ago.
You have to admit, he really is a cool dude in a loose mood, especially with that pipe hanging out of his mouth...
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