Learning from a feminist’s 70 years on earth

A review of Catherine Kehinde George’s Reflections: A 70th birthday anniversary memoir by Adewale Oshodi.
CHIEF  Catherine Kehinder George, on June 14, 2018, joined the septuagenarian club, and in celebrating the occasion, she published an autobiography, Reflections: A 70th birthday anniversary memoir.

However, the book focuses more on her reflections as a town and regional planner, as well as her views on feminism, female empowerment, nurturing of children into adulthood, issues relating to the girl-child, among other views.

The book’s first chapter dwells on feminism, which the author agrees has been with man through the ages.

According to Chief George, the fact that a woman was taken from a man’s ribs makes her a derivative, and as such, she is a helper and supporter. However, she also needs to be consoled, supported, encouraged and respected.

While highlighting the positive sides of the womenfolk, the author says a woman’s ability to communicate a positive attitude helps to create self-confidence and optimism for a child.

In essence, the family is incomplete without a woman, who carries the pregnancies and nurses the babies close to themselves from birth.

Going by the qualities of the womenfolk, especially in managing the home front, the author believes this can be replicated at the local, state and federal levels if more women participate in politics. The author, therefore, calls on women to seek political offices as the country moves towards the 2019 general elections.

The author also disagrees with some aspects of the African culture which only permits that ‘a woman is to be seen, and not to be heard.’ She says this culture has given way to the modern way of life where women now hold their destinies in their hands.

Another area in which the author focuses on is the issue of mother-tongue. She says that language, being an important aspect of culture, should be passed from one generation to the other, and it is the responsibility of the woman to speak her language to her children.

The author laments the situation in which mother-tongues are being abandoned in favour of foreign languages, while admitting that feminism can address this anomaly to avoid loss of cultural norms.

Mentoring is another important aspect of feminism, where the mother and grandmother mentor the female child in the family on those things society expect from her.

The girl-child is mentored on being respectful, how to relate to elders, need to have empathy for those around her, among other virtues.

The activities of the Inner Wheel District 911, a non-governmental organisation which the author belongs to, in the area of empowering women is also highlighted in the first chapter.

This chapter also focuses on the experience of the author as a professional female town planner.

The second chapter of the book dwells on the author’s experience in nurturing children to adulthood. Here, the author believes parenting is a biological and god-given gift, as nobody went through any course on parenting in school.

She says: “We find ourselves becoming parents, and are delirious with joy for having brought forth ‘flesh’ born with spirit and soul from our Maker.

“Sometimes, we also become parents, not necessarily biologically, but as a favour from God, we find ourselves fostering and bringing up other people’s children as our own.”

The focus of this chapter, however, is on how to become responsible parents and make vital decisions that will positively affect the lives of the children. To achieve this, it requires commitment of time, spirituality, emotional, physical and financial resources.

Family values are basic to the stability of the family unit, and consequently, the nation, and as such, children need to imbibe these values for their own self-development process.

Part of the responsibilities of parents to their children includes giving them their all during their infant years. The authors remembers how she would iron her babies’ nappies in order to get them dry, especially during the rainy season when it is difficult to get sunlight to dry wet nappies.

Other responsibilities include teaching children their mother-tongues, traditional greetings and courtesies, respect, among others. Providing for the needs of the children is also important for parents.

In this era when there is high unemployment rate, the author highlights the importance of vocational skills to the development of the child.

She also suggests that as soon as a child is old enough to ask for pocket money, that child must be assigned tasks on the family business, as this would enable him/her to appreciate that money can only be made through hard work.

She further suggests that when children, like two-year-olds want to help with anything in the house, they should not be discouraged, as this will allow imbibe the culture of hard work right from their young age.

The third chapter, Sustaining Academic Excellence in Females, highlights the roles of parents, guardians and teachers in building the female-child academically.

The author believes when a female-child acquires qualitative education, then the sky is her beginning, and many will be liberated.

The fourth chapter takes a look at the phenomenal growth of Lagos, where the author worked professionally as a town planner, as a mega city.

This chapter discusses the different periods in the growth of the Lagos metropolis, while saying the Lagos, which is home to over 20 million people, has an annual growth rate of between three and five per cent.

The fifth chapter focuses on the challenges of aging, with the author giving her personal experience on the issue. She admits that aging is a process that catches up with every human, explaining the importance of routine medical care, exercise, diet and rest for aged people.

She also stresses the need for the aged to have support group, as this would brighten their spirits. She highlights her son’s African America in-laws, who meet annually for family reunions to enjoy, relax, share their joys and challenges. This, the author believes, will go a long way in helping the aged cope.

In chapter six, the author talks about true friendships. She believes everyone has that special person who is close to his/her heart. Such person can be a childhood friend, a member of the family, or any other person, and spending more time with such persons will make life lovely.

In the final chapter, the author remembers her parents, Pastor (Surveyor) Solomon Adebusola Sogunro-Pitan and Mrs Adeline Oladunni Sogunro-Pitan, who died in 1964 and 1994 respectively. She delves deeper into their lives, while stating how they brought them up in the way of the Lord.

The chapters in the book are lectures delivered by the author on building the family, as well as empowering the girl-child at different occasions in the course of mentoring the young one.

The book is a must-read as it opens the reader’s eyes to life issues through the experiences of a 70-year-old woman who has seen it all.

The author, born on June 14, 1948, attended Our Lady of Apostles Secondary School, Ijebu Ode between 1958 and 1963, and the Ijebu Ode Grammar School in 1964.

She obtained the Diploma in Town Planning in 1967 at The Technical College, now The Polytechnic, Ibadan. She had her postgraduate Diploma in Town and Regional Planning at The University of Melbourne in Australia in 1972, becoming the first female Nigerian professional town planner. She was inducted to the Nigerian Women Hall of Fame in Abuja in November 2007 as the first female African town planner.

She is also the first female Fellow of the Nigerian Institute of Town Planners (NITP) and the first female African Fellow of the Royal Town Planning Institute of Britain (RPPI).

Chief George is the first female chairman of Lagos Mainland Local Planning Authority (1998-1999). She was also a recipient of several honours and awards.