Princess awoke first. It took her a minute to get her bearings in the unfamiliar realities,
occurring around her. She saw her brother and quickly looking around the little cottage, she shook
her brother.
“Wake up, where is daddy? Did you see him leave?”
Her brother quickly sat up, wiping his eyes. Glancing around with no idea of what to do, his brother
replied.
“We had better search for him.”
Princess started to bolt through the door. She looked out, saw her daddy coming from a
distance.
Princess replied, “Daddy, where have you been?”
“I was just returning from the village meeting where the king had summoned us to discuss
the matter of Female genital mutilation in Ikenga village. We cannot leave tradition to focus on
these white people believe which didn’t help our forefathers!
“Nobody dares Ikenga village and go free!
Daddy, how long will this continue?” Princess mumbled sadly.
The daddy disregarding Princess’s remark, continued.
“We have a reason for our culture. Our daughters are better off with it! Do they think we are
fools?”
“Do you not know why we do this”
Princess answered, “Yes I know”!
Then her father said, “It is not enough to be beautiful, there are sacrifices to be paid to
preserve our culture. A day will come when I won’t be here. Until then, you must be able
to stand up to life.
Princess knew it is the beginning of the new dawn and she said
“But daddy, our lives are endangered by this act, because our voices are not loud. Is true we are
created female and weak but we are made tough to produce life. If we decide to destroy the destiny
of our daughters through this unhealthy cultural practice, how would we be proud of whom we
are? At the end, posterity will remember those who asked questions and are brave enough to stop
this evil narrative and I will stand up to say no and I will need your voice to amplified mine and
together it shall be said that our family became the hero that laid down their lives for the light of
Ikenga village to shine bright”. With these words, Princess father broke down in tears and said to
her, “I will fight with my last blood to amplify your tender voice to stop this cultural practice in
our land and Ikenga shall smile again