The traditional songs we sing, listen
and dance to
Fairy tales, stories, ghost tales and personal
histories
Riddles, proverbs, figures of speech, jokes and special
ways of speaking
Our childhood games and rhymes
The way we celebrate life
– from birthing our babies to honoring our dead
The entire range of our personal and collective
beliefs
– religious, medical, magical, and social
Our handed-down recipes and everyday
mealtime traditions
The way we decorate our world
- from patchwork patterns on our quilts to plastic flamingoes
in our yards, to tattoos on our bodies
The crafts we create by hand
– crocheted afghans, wooden spoons, cane bottoms
on chairs
Patterns and traditions of work
– from factory to office cubicle
The many creative ways we express ourselves as
members of our family, our community, our geographical region,
our ethnic group, our religious congregation, or our occupational
group
Folklife is part of everyone's life. It
is as constant as a ballad, as changeable as fashion trends.
It is as intimate as a lullaby, and as public as a parade.
In the end ... we are all folk.