Old Stories, New Insights

My Story

I want to share with you a story I wrote about my niece. This is a true story, about her life.

She was my daughter Beth’s first cousin. Her name was Georgina. She was the only girl with 3 older boys. She went to school in her village – my village for a time – for 2 to 3 years. But she did not get much of an education. She was very shy and did not speak up for herself. She began trading early on, with her mother to teach her.

All her brothers left home, most in Lagos, then the capital city. By the time she was in her late teens, her mother and later her father died. Soon she moved to Lagos. She lived with her oldest brother. She began trading there also, although her “goods” were plantain and akara (fried dough). For her wares she built an open fire outside.

After a couple of years, she began to bleed, with the start of a tumor. But she had no one to tell about this. Her brother cared for her but didn’t have a clue about the bleeding. By the time she did go to the hospital, her tumor was already advanced. She died a year later.

 

So what is my story?

 

It is this: Education is critical! We must do all we can to help that village, my former home, and other places too, to have a good education system. This requires help from the government and help from foundations.

But it also requires us to advocate. From afar I can write to the foundations that can help in this effort. I can even remind them of this story!