My name is Minenhle; I am 16 years old and a female Bantu.

My job in my society

involves agriculture. A typical day for me starts when the sun rises, where I head to the farm to

work on the millet, sorghum and rice crops, (Ancient Civilizations in Africa, 3500 B.C.-500

B.C"). My best friend works with the herds of cattle and sheep. We arent the richest in the

village but we do our best to help society as a whole and our jobs are very important to us. While

we work to ensure our people have food, the other villagers are free to work on their crafts and

better their trades.

In the village, authority is held by the elders. The Bantu people hold traditional rules and

values. Selfishness is of upmost disrespect to our people and will be grounds for punishment.

Many of our people have special trades like weaving, carpentry and pottery making; but these

trades are kept as family secrets. Women do most of the work around here, which is why my

sisters and I work on the farm. The men are left in charge of making the important decisions for

our people.

When I am done working on the farm I usually head home to work on my sculptures.

With all of my practice, Ive really been getting good at carving into wood and ivory. I like to

make art that symbolizes my spiritual and religious beliefs. Although I love my artwork, my

favorite part of the day is when we all get together to play music. Music is such a huge part of

my everyday life. Everyone that attends these events ends up participating by playing the drums,

clapping or dancing.

At the end of the day I say a prayer to my ancestors and give thanks for all that I have. At

night, after the sun sets, I sleep on my cow hide and rest so I can be ready for another day of

work tomorrow.
 Work Cited

"Ancient Civilizations in Africa, 3500 B.C.-500 B.C." DISCovering World History.

Detroit : Gale, 2003. Student Resources in Context. Web. 2 July 2016.