[theme music playing] Hi, I’m Marley Dias. Welcome to
<i>Bookmarks: Celebrating Black Voices.</i> <i>Sulwe</i> is a fable about a young girl
who is unhappy with how she looks and how she learns
to appreciate her beauty. <i>Sulwe</i> is going to be
read to us by its author, Academy Award-winning actress,
producer, and writer, Lupita Nyong’o. with illustrations by Vashti Harrison. Hi, I’m Lupita Nyong’o. And I wrote a book called <i>Sulwe.</i> And I’m going to read it to you right now. “Sulwe was born the color of midnight. She looked nothing like her family. Not even a little, not even at all. Mama was the color of dawn, Baba the color of dusk, and Mich, her sister,
was the color of high noon. Hardly anyone at school
looked like Sulwe either. -[children laughing]
-People gave her sister, Mich, pet names like “Sunshine” and “Ray” and “Beauty.” People gave Sulwe names
like “Blackie”… and “Darky” and “Night.” Sulwe felt hurt every time. So she hid away
while her sister made lots of friends.
Sulwe dreamed of being
the same color as her sister. She wanted real friends too. So, she got
the biggest eraser she could find and tried to rub off
a layer or two of her darkness. [inhales sharply] That hurt. She crept into Mama’s room
and helped herself to her makeup. Oh, no!
She would hear about this from Mama.” She’s made a big mess. “Sulwe decided to work from the inside out and ate only the lightest,
brightest foods.
With a stomachache, she went to bed early
and turned to God for a miracle. ‘Dear Lord, why do I look like midnight,
when my mother looks like dawn? Please make me as fair
as the parents I’m from. I want to be beautiful, not just to pretend. I want to have daylight.
I want to have friends. If you hear me, my Lord,
and would like to comply, may I wake up as bright
as the sun in the sky. Amen.’ When Mama came in
to wake her for school the next morning, Sulwe rose to find… not a trace of daylight
in her midnight skin. Sulwe told Mama everything. Mama asked, ‘What is your name?’ ‘Sulwe,’ she muttered.
‘And what does it mean?’ ‘Star,’ Sulwe whispered. ‘Brightness is not in your skin, my love. Brightness is just who you are. As for beauty,’ Mama said, rubbing Sulwe’s stomach
the way she always did to comfort her, ‘You <i>are</i> beautiful.’ Sulwe sighed. ‘Well, you’re beautiful to <i>me.</i> But you can’t rely on what you look like
to make you feel beautiful, my sweet. Real beauty comes
from your mind and your heart. It begins with how you see <i>yourself,</i> not how <i>others</i> see you. Now, up you get and out you go.’ How could she, as dark as she was,
have brightness in her? How could she have beauty when
no one but her mother seemed to see it? How could she be a star? That night, a shooting star
appeared at Sulwe’s window.
‘The night sent me,’ the star said. ‘Come with me.’ Sulwe hopped onto the star,
and off they went. ‘Long ago, at the beginning of Time,’
said the star, ‘there was Night and Day,
and they were sisters.’ They loved each other very much. But people didn’t treat
the sisters the same. People gave Day pet names like “Lovely” and “Nice” and “Pretty.” People gave Night names like “Scary” and “Bad” and “Ugly.” She felt hurt every time. Well, Night got fed up
and walked right off the earth. Day stayed behind and enjoyed
making everybody happy in the sun. But then Day grew <i>too</i> long. Day began to really miss her sister. So did everybody else. There had to be a way to get her back. Day set off to find Night. And… she did! ‘I miss you,’ said Day. ‘I miss you, too,’ said Night. ‘But you don’t know what it’s like
to be treated badly for being dark.’ ‘You’re right, I don’t,’ Day replied. ‘But what I do know is that
we need you just the way you are. Come and see.’ Night returned and the people rejoiced.
‘We need the darkest night,
to get the deepest rest.’ We need you so that we can grow and dream
and keep our secrets to ourselves.’ The stars chimed in,
‘Brightness isn’t just for daylight. Light comes in all colors. And some light
can only be seen in the dark.’ While Day had a golden glow,
with Night everything had a silver sheen, elegant and fine.
Day told her sister, ‘When you are darkest
is when you are most beautiful. It’s when you are most you.’ Could it be, that Night
did not need to change, not even a little, not even at all? Now that Night and Day were back together, a little bit of Night returned to Day
in the form of shadows. And a little bit of Day returned to Night
in the form of moonlight. They were inseparable from that moment on, and promised to celebrate
the brightness in each other whether people choose to see it or not. ‘You see,’ the star explained, ‘We need them both,
on their sunniest day and their darkest night,
and every shade in between. Together they make the world we know
light and dark, strong and beautiful.’ The next morning, Sulwe rose, beaming. There would be no hiding anymore. She belonged out in the world. Dark and beautiful, bright and strong.
And if she ever needed
a reminder of her brightness, she could look up at the sky on the darkest night and see for herself. [page turning] Sulwe felt beautiful inside and out!” The end. “Sulwe” means “star” in my language, Luo. What does your name mean? I’ve really enjoyed spending time with you
and reading this book to you. I hope you enjoyed it. Bye-bye. [“Don’t Forget Who You Are”
by Common ft. PJ playing] <i>♪ You born wit’ it</i>
<i>Adorned wit’ it ♪</i> <i>♪ A gift to the world</i>
<i>Go’n give it ♪</i> <i>♪ Fearlessly made</i>
<i>No need to be afraid ♪</i> <i>♪ Angels, I’m with you</i>
<i>The path is laid ♪</i> <i>♪ Don’t forget who you are ♪</i> <i>♪ Do-do do-do da-di ♪</i> <i>♪ Don’t forget who you are ♪</i> <i>♪ Don’t forget who you are ♪</i> <i>♪ Don’t forget who you are ♪</i> <i>♪ Do-do do-do da-di ♪</i> <i>♪ Don’t forget who you are ♪</i> <i>♪ Don’t forget who you are ♪</i> <i>♪ Don’t forget who you are ♪</i> <i>♪ Do-do do-do da-di ♪</i> <i>♪ Don’t forget who you are ♪</i> <i>♪ Don’t forget who you are ♪</i>