a Kuba Bwoom mask from the Democratic Republic of Congo. I have many of these that aren’t as old as this one. It was collected in 1970 and was already old at that time. Here’s a bit of the story of this work of art:
“Kuba mythology revolves around three figures, each represented by a masquerade character: Woot, the creator and founder of the ruling dynasty; Woot’s spouse; and Bwoom. Bwoom’s specific identity varies according to different versions of the myth. He may represent the king’s younger brother, a person of Twa descent, or a commoner. Embodying a subversive force within the royal court, the Bwoom masquerade is often performed in conflict with the masked figure representing Woot.”
To see a lot more of my collection, visit “Dave Dahl Collection” on Facebook.
” It’s been a couple months since our last ChangeMakers and we are really excited to have this man on. He was a guest on a Tony Robbins business mastery and Anthony from #BeTheChange was inspired by his transformation, his story and after a bit of research his patriotism and passion for his country.
We are incredibly excited to have this man on as well as even chop it up about the current state of this country.
Dave was a four-time loser before I realized I was in the wrong game.” That was the first line of the autobiographical story that appeared on the back of every loaf of Dave’s Killer Bread from 2005 to 2014. “Four-time loser” refers to his four prison sentences for crimes ranging from burglary to armed robbery to drug dealing.
He once shared abandoned houses with cockroaches on the streets of Detroit in the dead of winter, and now he lives in a luxurious high-rise penthouse in downtown PDX. His story epitomizes transformation.
The story on the bread bag remained unchanged until 2014 after Dahl had a well-publicized mental breakdown. He had to accept that—at least for Dave Dahl—there’s no “happily ever after”. But he finds great satisfaction in “fighting the good fight”, one day at a time. He believes that forgiveness of self and others is essential to inner peace and personal growth. But it’s only one of many lessons he’s come away with through all of his struggles—and triumphs.
Dave’s Killer Bread, a family endeavor, was sold to Flowers Foods in 2015, leaving Dave with a void to fill. He spent the next 2-plus years building what is perhaps the largest collection of African tribal art in the world. During this time, he lived a semi-hermetic lifestyle.
Now, with a healed heart and mind, he steps back out on a mission to help inspire others to find their own brand of success.
Dave: “‘Good Seed’ is much more than a killer bread recipe. Having been a ‘bad seed’ and destroying everything in my path as a troubled young man, I finally found the path of acceptance, humility and teachability. It gives me the courage to fall down 7 times and get up 8″
I have two amazing daughters? How the hell did this happen?
(This is a still from a FaceTime conversation a couple of years ago. Davene lives in Sweden so I don’t get to see her and granddaughter Victoria nearly enough. But I am so proud of my girls.)
