Today
March 8, 2014 is International Women’s Day. It’s officially the global
day that celebrates the economic, political and social achievements of
women past, present and future. Today I join billions of people around
the world to commemorate this very special day with the theme:
“Inspiring Change.”
As a young girl growing up, I was blissfully unaware of the limits
society and culture placed on women. I grew up in a home where I could
do anything I liked; in the sense that there was seldom anytime I was
told “You can’t do that because you’re a girl.” For instance I had
friends who could eat only ‘chicken wing and not thigh’ because they
were girls; their brothers always got the prime cuts. That never ever
happened in our house. There was an equal distribution of household
chores – washing plates, fetching water, sweeping, etc, between my
brother and I – there was no ‘girl’ or ‘boy’ chore – all na work!
I frequently did things that were not
considered ‘normal’ for girls. I climbed trees, hated the tedious boring
activity of playing with dolls or ‘making tea’, I had more fun trailing
my older brother around (when he allowed me); ‘rolling tire’ (never
quite got the hang of this) and playing ‘police & thief’. It did not
feel strange to me that I felt more comfortable wearing my infamous
Bruce Lee canvas and shorts rather than wearing those annoying, scratchy
Cinderella-type dresses – oh! how I hated those things!
Expectedly, I gave my poor mother
countless hours of grief by losing earrings, hair ribbons, necklaces,
etc – all in the bid to make me look and behave more girly. But
thankfully, my parents understood my need for individuality and
encouraged it. My father especially, would buy me and my brother tonnes
of books to read, would take both of us to the club to watch him play
squash and would allow us watch him service his car every Saturday
morning – there was nothing too messy, complex or technical to share
with me. My parents encouraged my curiosity and desire to question
things (not overly sha; my mum being a Yoruba woman and all), but I
definitely did not have those boundaries of, “she doesn’t need to do
this or that because she is a girl.” I never had those limitations
growing up; I was always recognized as a legitimate individual – not an
extension or an appendage of someone else.
I suspect that my childhood has shaped
by unwavering and confident sense of self; and of course the desire to
question things has increased exponentially with age. I question most
things; not because I’m a rabble-rouser; but because I know from
experience that true knowledge and understanding only come from asking
questions. One must learn the wisdom of asking the right questions;
because clarity often follows that. More than anything, I believe that
women especially should develop the art of questioning things: again not
in belligerence or haughtiness, but simply to expand the capacity for
reasoning and knowledge. After all, Warri people often say: “Person wey
dey ask question, no fit miss road.”
For those who ascribe tags like
‘Feminist’ ‘Activist’ and the likes to women who dare to question the
status quo; remember that the flower which blooms in adversity is the
fairest one of them all. And for those who are content not to ask
questions, maybe that’s okay too – for there must be those who balance
out the ones who challenge the existing state of things.
I look around me, and I’m reminded by
the lives of women like Oprah Winfrey, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Hillary
Clinton, Obiageli Ezekwesili, Toni Morrison, Benazir Bhutto, Arianna
Huffington and countless others that my life, especially as a woman,
must mean something. It must be guided by purpose, vision and an innate
desire to add value, and if I stir things up a little by doing that,
then so be it. In another Waffi parlance: “This life, na only one o!” so
by all means, it must count for something.
Happy Women’s Day everyone. May we keep inspiring ourselves… and others to change.
Photo Credit: africanbusinessreview.co.za
_____________________________________________________________
Onomarie Francesca Uriri is a graduate of English Literature from the University of Lagos; a marketing communications executive by day and a writer for the rest of the time in between. She believes in the power of words, the efficacy of prayer and the goodness of people.She has varied interests in writing, reading, travelling, meeting people and experiencing different cultures.
_____________________________________________________________
Onomarie Francesca Uriri is a graduate of English Literature from the University of Lagos; a marketing communications executive by day and a writer for the rest of the time in between. She believes in the power of words, the efficacy of prayer and the goodness of people.She has varied interests in writing, reading, travelling, meeting people and experiencing different cultures.
Comments