During my studies, I went to one of the local courts to attend a proceeding for the seizure of a widow’s property. Seated in one of the benches was a frail looking woman whom I could tell had been sobbing. When the court house was empty, as the matters for the day had been completed, I passed her on my way out; she did not even noticed my presence until I tapped her shoulder, then without lifting her bowed head she said, “I don’t have anywhere to go; they should have dug a grave for me also.” This woman had been disinherited when her husband died; that was the cultural practice, and it was this same culture could not allow her to go back to her parent’s home, the same culture that had no place for her in society. She had gone to court for help but it was too late; her relatives had taken advantage of her ignorance. That was the turning point of my life and I set to help women claim their rights through training. At the end of the training process, the woman leader gave me a beautifully beaded key holder with my name inscribed on it and she told me, “Put your keys here and whenever you open your door, always remember you have opened our eyes and changed our lives as Maasai women.” That was the beginning of the many doors that I was given the task of opening and it has led to the most rewarding experiences of my life. Some of the doors I have had to open leave a lasting impression of empowerment and sometimes, the doors have been a little rough and required more strength to open.
- Nelly Njoki (Imagining Ourselves: I.M.O.W)