Deucalion
53311 Deucalion is a trans-Neptunian object from the classical Kuiper belt discovered on 18 April 1999. This minor planet was named from Greek mythology after Deucalion, son of Prometheus.
Over the past 18 months Swedish photographer Fredrik Lerneryd, who is based in Nairobi, has joined Waymaya and the girls for about two dozen of their Wednesday ballet lessons. Photograph by Fredrik Lerneryd
On Wednesday afternoons, after the final bell of the day, a cement-walled classroom in the impoverished Nairobi neighborhood of Kibera is transformed into a ballet studio. The room is cleared of its benches and desks. The dust and dirt on the floor is swept away. A group of about 20 girls wearing blue, pink and purple ballet clothes wait for Mike Wamaya, their instructor, to arrive with his boom box and good-natured personality. Then, with classical music in the air, the girls begin to dance.
Sun (male role models, creative energy) sextile Orius (accurate assessment on internal attributes and tuned into creativity (Lerneryd is drawn to the story because of the contrasts it presents. "First of all," he says, "ballet is viewed, at least for me, as an upper class kind of dance. I didn't expect to find it in a settlement like Kibera")). Venus (arts, femininity) trine Deucalion (seeing the talent in everyone, magical, resourceful ("through dance, Pamela has managed to dramatically change her life")).
At first the girls were shy, says 31-year-old Lerneryd, but, "eventually they got used to me hanging around and taking pictures."
Lerneryd is drawn to the story because of the contrasts it presents. "First of all," he says, "ballet is viewed, at least for me, as an upper class kind of dance. I didn't expect to find it in a settlement like Kibera." Visually, the leotards, tights, and tutus bring splashes of color into the dark classroom. And, Lerneryd emphasizes, "it's a story about the dream, the hope, of achieving something bigger than the ordinary life" they would have in Kibera.
The guitar school for street children in Afghanistan. BBC Kabul
As renditions of a hit song by British music group Coldplay go, you won't have heard anything like it. A group of tiny girls strum their acoustic guitars, belting out a self-made Persian translation of the hit Don't Panic in a flat in Kabul.
Sun (creative self-expression (set up by American guitarist Lanny Cordola)) conjunct Vulcanus (power, empower (music school for street children)) conjunct Varuna (mastery of tasks accepted (the guitar girls are preparing to take their music outside)) trine Huya (focused, dedicated). Moon (children, inspirational, sociable) trine Zeus (creative and procreative endeavors). Venus (social activities, musical) square Poseidon (intellectual or spiritual influences, inspiration) sextile Altjira (sense of appropriate position and need for involvement, proactive and energetic (I never ever thought of coming to Afghanistan, but two years ago I came here to meet the family of Parwana and Khorshid)). Mars (initiative, enterprise) opposite Sedna (responsible, far thinking (the plan is to make this an entity where they can travel the world)). Mercury (youthfulness, self-expression) sextile Asbolus (motivated to reach the top (turn it into an international, global phenomenon)) square Deucalion (magical (the "Miraculous Love Kids" project)).
Playing along is a man very much in the mould of the Western rock musician, complete with wrist bands and bandana. These are "The Miraculous Love Kids", a music school for street children set up by American guitarist Lanny Cordola.
Glassblowing keeps kids out of gangs. Matt Danzico
Tacoma is a gritty industrial port city and one notorious neighbourhood in particular has a long history of being blighted by poverty and violence. But things are changing in Hilltop, in part because of an unlikely project aimed at keeping at-risk children off the streets and away from drugs.
Sun (creative energy, creative self-expression, creative potential, creativity) conjunct Teharonhiawako (inspires innovative ideas), trine Poseidon (uplifting people/ideas, intellectual or spiritual influences, ideological or moral stances, inspiration, illumination). Mars (energetic, active, enterprise, initiative) sextile Altjira (visionary, proactive) square Thereus (object oriented). Mercury (expressive, self-expression of all kinds) square Deucalion (extremely imaginative and resourceful). Eros (the Will to Live (the "passion" for life)) square Hades (ancient technique, ancient arts),
BBC Pop Up's Matt Danzico reports on how the ancient art form of glassblowing is proving an attractive alternative to gangs.
Discovery
1999 HU11/53311 Deucalion is a trans-Neptunian object (TNO). It was discovered in 1999 by the Deep Ecliptic Survey (DES). It is a cubewano, and named after Deucalion, from Greek mythology.
This minor planet was named from Greek mythology after Deucalion, son of Prometheus. He and his wife Pyrrha were the only ones that survived the great deluge ("the flood of Deucalion") brought upon all humans by Zeus. The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 14 June 2003 (M.P.C. 49102).
