Dear Daughter BBC World Service

Joy Kendi doesn’t want her hair to define her – so she shaves her head.
Joy is an influencer in Kenya who’s known for her personal style – sometimes she has tight curls, sometimes long braids or a perfect afro.
But she wasn’t always so confident in her appearance. Growing up in the US, she wanted to look like the other girls around her, and didn’t know how to take care of her natural hair.
She joins Namulanta in the studio to talk about all things black hair – the salon experience, the surprising history of cornrows, and why showering with a bald head is the most liberating feeling on the planet.
Namulanta Kombo is creating a "handbook to life" for her daughter, with letters of advice and stories to help her navigate her life ahead. If you’ve got something you’d like to share with your daughter or daughters everywhere, please send Namulanta your letter: email us at deardaughter@bbc.co.uk, send us a Whatsapp on +44 800 030 4404, or go to www.bbcworldservice.com/deardaughter and click on “Send us your letters”.

Mary receives a menacing message and decides to leave her home.
Mary has lived in Florida ever since her university days. It’s where she fell in love, met her Taiwanese husband, and had two children. With hopes of her children growing up and going to college in Florida, Mary thinks she’ll live there for the rest of her life.
But that all changes when, at 40 years old, Mary receives a menacing message that makes her move her Asian-American family 2,000 miles across the country. Race, neighbours and starting a new life at 40 – what happens when you no longer feel welcome in your home town?
Letter writer: Mary
Namulanta Kombo is creating a "handbook to life" for her daughter with letters of advice and stories to help her navigate her life ahead. If you’ve got something you’d like to share with your daughter or daughters everywhere, please send Namulanta your letter: email us at deardaughter@bbc.co.uk, send us a Whatsapp on +44 800 030 4404, or go to www.bbcworldservice.com/deardaughter and click on “Send us your letters”

Wen is raised believing sex is taboo but knows she must change for her daughter’s sake.
Her grandmother was ashamed to talk about it. Her mum and dad had to visit the biology section of the library to find out how to do it. Wen wants to create a safe space at home to talk more openly with her daughter.
Letter writer: Wen
Namulanta Kombo is creating a "handbook to life" for her daughter with letters of advice and stories to help her navigate her life ahead. If you’ve got something you’d like to share with your daughter or daughters everywhere, please send Namulanta your letter: email us at deardaughter@bbc.co.uk, send us a Whatsapp on +44 800 030 4404, or go to www.bbcworldservice.com/deardaughter and click on “Send us your letters”
#DearDaughter

New mum Janine Harouni is anxious and lonely, so why do the other mums online look so happy?
She was performing stand-up comedy while 40 weeks pregnant, but now there's a whole other set of challenges. On social media, she sees pictures of pregnant models who don’t appear to gain weight. Nobody seems to talk about the gross parts or the difficult parts. She’s exhausted and full of worry. Then a surprise family DNA test changes her perspective on motherhood.
Letter writer: Janine Harouni
Namulanta Kombo is creating a "handbook to life" for her daughter with letters of advice and stories to help her navigate her life ahead. If you’ve got something you’d like to share with your daughter or daughters everywhere, please send Namulanta your letter: email us at deardaughter@bbc.co.uk, send us a Whatsapp on +44 800 030 4404, or go to www.bbcworldservice.com/deardaughter and click on “Send us your letters”. #DearDaughter
(Janine Harouni image credit: Matt Stronge)

Anna fights her eating disorder, knowing she needs to be healthy if she wants to be a mum.
She spent half her life dealing with the condition, until she was finally diagnosed and treated. Now she is working on getting better, trying to appreciate the joys in life again, and regain the spark she feels she lost. She writes a letter to her future daughter about how to avoid the “perfect trap” in which she found herself.
Letter writer: Anna
Namulanta Kombo is creating a "handbook to life" for her daughter with letters of advice and stories to help her navigate her life ahead. If you’ve got something you’d like to share with your daughter or daughters everywhere, please send Namulanta your letter: email us at deardaughter@bbc.co.uk, send us a Whatsapp on +44 800 030 4404, or go to www.bbcworldservice.com/deardaughter and click on “Send us your letters”. #DearDaughter

Musikari risks his life fighting corruption in Kenya, but at what cost to his family?
Namulanta’s father is a political, an anti-corruption campaigner and a successful businessman. He’s busy, so he’s not around much for his children. They miss him. They don’t understand.
Now, he comes into the studio to read Namulanta a letter about family values, the importance of friendship - and how he’s making up for lost time with his grandchildren.
Letter writer: Musikari Kombo
Namulanta Kombo is creating a "handbook to life" for her daughter, with letters of advice and stories to help her navigate her life ahead. If you’ve got something you’d like to share with your daughter or daughters everywhere, please send Namulanta your letter: email us at deardaughter@bbc.co.uk, send us a Whatsapp on +44 800 030 4404, or go to www.bbcworldservice.com/deardaughter and click on “Send us your letters”.
#DearDaughter