I find women beautiful, perhaps the most beautiful creations God did bring into existence. As different as they are in looks, ambitions, and personalities,
OZOH Kayla.
most share the characteristic of making decisions not only based on facts and figures, but on empathy and emotional intelligence, a trait more attributed to females than to males. For some odd reason, it was only recently that I realized how difficult it is to be a woman, particularly a mother, in today’s world. I see icons like Michelle Obama and Sheryl Sandberg on social media platforms. I get caught up in the awards they receive, the impact they make, and the recognition they garner, forgetting that it’s been a struggle for them to get to the level they are in their fields while maintaining a solid balance between working and home-making. Indeed, the primary challenge of working-class mothers has evolved from just being viewed as capable as their male counterparts to being effective leaders at work and involved partners and mothers at home. That being said, I have found amazing super-women during my journey at Jesuit Memorial College (JMC), some of whom are mothers and some are not. These women have given me an idea of the kind of woman I would love to be in the future: a woman who is Christ-centered, dedicated to service, and willing to take on life’s challenges by the horns, always armed with grit and, of course, a smile.
As the Chief of Staff is to the president, so is Miss Baginwa OYENOR, our dedicated chaplaincy secretary and ever present to assist our Chaplain in carrying out his duties, to the JMC Chaplaincy. I had the pleasure of working with this amazing lady during my tenure as the Spiritual Life Prefect during the previous academic session, and she quickly became a second mother to me. Miss Ginwa, as she is fondly called, is not special because of how responsible she is. Her uniqueness stems from her God-centred service which is the foundation for all she does and believes in. Miss Ginwa firmly believes that the love of God, being the reason for serving others, will fill you with an unquenchable thirst to always strive for greater heights. It is why she speed walks from one liturgical group to another, despite the unrelenting early afternoon Port Harcourt heat, countlessly preaching the same ‘faith and devotion to service’ message to us students. It is why she always answers the questions of the horde of students that flock to her desk, asking questions that they’d know the answers to, had they been paying attention to announcements made in the dining hall. It is why she doesn’t hesitate to come to school on Sundays, spending evenings chasing students from their classrooms and the hallways to their respective religious groups. It’s why our failure to express our gratitude over all she does never deters her from loving and encouraging us like she would her children. Her love of God manifests through how she loves us all – despite our flaws and shortcomings. What the Chaplaincy would be without the effort Ms Ginwa constantly puts in, I truly do not know.
Has your first encounter with someone ever been of them praying for you? A bit of a random question, isn’t it? Allow me to backtrack. It was the 30th of June, 2024, the long-awaited graduation day for the Class of 2024. I was walking to the administrative block when I bumped into a member of the maintenance team I hadn’t met before, Miss Blessing FRIDAY. We engaged in a conversation that I remember had to do with my being next in line to receive my diploma the following graduation ceremony. Unexpectedly, our pleasant conversation soon became a prayer, in which she asked the Lord to guide my steps during my final year. To say that I was both surprised and touched, would be an understatement. Our friendship, a love story of its own, began then and has blossomed ever since.
My new-found friendship took my appreciation for the school’s maintenance team to an even higher level. Ms Blessing’s cheerful greetings and the friendly conversation that came with it became something I looked forward to enjoying whenever I ran into her in the compound. Her demeanour and the conversations I had with her never ceased to remind me that there is pride and dignity in an honest living, no matter how disregarded the profession is. Ms Blessing, and the all-female team of cleaners at JMC, serve the community selflessly – enduring the messiness of JMC students without so much as a “thank you” for all their efforts. I am constantly reminded by the way they carry themselves, that what makes all the difference isn’t the job you do, but rather how you do it. My heart goes out to all the cleaning and maintenance staff at JMC. Our school wouldn’t be what it is without you.
Finally, saving a woman with a larger-than-life personality for last, I write about our Child Protection Officer and a beloved English Language teacher to some, Mrs. Stella NWAGWU. Mrs. Nwagwu’s point-blank advice and her takes on the topics we discuss during the termly Girls’ Talk always seem to stick with me. She cracks jokes, filling the time with anecdotes from her secondary school days and experience as a teacher, while reminding us that we should never be distracted from our primary mission of attaining a quality education. As a mother of four children, she understands the struggles and worries of teenagehood, and listens to us without judgement as we narrate our tales. Thank you, Mrs. Nwagwu for never writing off the stress we face balancing the different phases of our lives and not trivializing our issues.
These three women represent only a fraction of the diversity, complexity and grace that women embody. I remain immensely grateful to have met them, and the other amazing women in the Jesuit Memorial College community who make womanhood seem like both a powerful tool and gift that it is.
Kayla Eziafakaku OZOH
Class of 2025