Rising above Cultural naming
Meet the Young Woman in Nigeria using art to tell stories. She says, If the men are doing it, why not me? My grand mother named me "Chijioke", an African Igbo name that means " God holds talent or gifts" As I grew up, I become more aware that mostly the male children bore that name, I was so shy about it that I preferred to be called "Goodness", my English name. Looking back now, Grandma was right to name me "Chijioke", she saw something in me, it was talent, and now more than ever I believe in the power of African naming. At the age of 5, I was writing stories and poems, I drew and composed songs from imagination. Often, I was tearing papers from my exercise books, that I folded to create mini books with beautifully illustrated stories. My classmates purchased them, their support encouraged me to chase my dreams. What does being a woman mean to you? Womanhood means a lot to me, most times, people are going to tell you th at wom