The ethereal translucence of the carved blue chalcedony that Judi Powers used to make this scarab feels otherworldly in a way that is perfect for a creature that humans have regarded as sacred for thousands of years.
The scarab holds a rose cut diamond aloft like the sun - a fitting tribute to an insect the ancient Egyptians saw as the divine manifestation of the morning sun.
As a british person when i heard the whole thing about the trump administration blaming autism on tylenol i was like ughhh that’s so stupid idk exactly what tylenol is and I’ve never taken it but ik that’s it’s medicine in america and a pretty common one at that so it obviously isn’t gonna cause autism and then i found out tylenol is the american word for what the rest of the world calls paracetamol. Y'all cannot be fucking serious, paracetamol? The extremely common painkiller? That paracetamol? You’ve got to be fucking kidding me. One look at the NHS’s website can tell me that it’s completely safe during pregnancy. My relatives who live in extremely rural villages in pakistan where safe tap water doesn’t exist and the power goes out everyday have used paracetamol and know that it’s safe. And unlike them y'all have wifi and power available like basically 24/7. You can check any reliable medical website and find a fucking answer. Genuinely how the fuck is anyone on EARTH believing this shit???
For the love of god if your native language is different from the majority language of the country you’re living in don’t raise your baby speaking the local language. Either have each parent speak to them in a different language or only speak your native language at home. The kid will be okay. Get your native language in their head. You may think you’re helping them in the long term giving them the local language but no. When they’re an adult they’ll wonder why you never taught them your language. They can and will learn the local language in school. They’ll be okay. Produce more bilingual children. They are good for society.
And also, being bilingual helps with executive function. Not all kids have to reach the same language development at the same time as everyone else, it’s okay to have your kid speaking in more complex sentences a month or so later than the “normal” kids.
I’ve studied the science linguistically but I’d like to put that aside. PLEASE teach your kid the native language. It can go so much deeper than “wondering why”, it can create a schism-like pain when you know there’s a heritage you have but all access has been cut off. Yes, ALL. If you’re fortunate enough to visit the country of your native language but dont teach your kid, they will be miserable, quiet, and alone, and go through difficult phases of hating that heritage because the ladders were cut for them.
And in the United States, this starts young. I’ve seen teachers tell a Kazakhstani parent that she should tell her kid to speak English INSTEAD. The kid was 2 and a half. A friend’s five year old told him “Dad this is America we dont speak Chinese”. If you don’t teach your kid your native language this country will wrest all pride and heritage from them by force. An occasional visit or two to the home country will not stop the bleeding.
The pain of not speaking the language of my heritage is something I don’t wish on anyone. And that language is one of the most spoken in the world, imagine if your native language is rarer. What happens? What happens?
Three-knife hairpin 三刀簪 (one for the country, one for the family, and one for oneself) was a popular headpiece among women in the city of Fuzhou, Fujian province.
Also known as “Three Hairpins” it consists of three small swords worn like hairpins, mostly made out of silver or white copper, and engraved with patterns.
There are various theories about the origin of the Three-Knife hairpin. The most popular one claims that it evolved from small sharp weapons worn by women during the Ming Dynasty in order to defend themselves against Japanese pirates raiding China’s coastline, by killing their enemies, or even committing suicide.
In June 2024, the three knives were selected as an intangible cultural heritage of Fuzhou, and more people became aware of this traditional clothing culture.
