Babaowo and Mamaoro got married 15 years ago. Everybody believed that it was a marriage made in heaven and sealed on the earth. Babaowo does everything to please his wife or so it appeared. They have 2 children and both are girls. Everything was fine until Babaowo suddenly died.

Few weeks after the death of Babaowo, his extended family showed up with a woman and a son. The woman was introduced to Mamaoro as the secret wife of her late husband and the son, 9 as his son. The resemblance was striking. Mamaoro broke down. She thought she was very close to her husband. She thought she knew everything about him. As she wept, the head of her late husband’s family lifted her up and consoled her. He said the husband took the action to look for a boy child, who will be his heir in good faith. He said the late husband did not want to rock the boat, hence he decided to be wise about the situation.

This story underscores a foolishness I have seen in our society among the high and the low. It is a general misconception that until a family has a boy child, they do not have children yet. Many have countless children they do not have any plan to take care of in the name of looking for a boy child. I do not understand why the sole reason of bringing a child to this world would be a search for a particular sex. The misconception about the girl child is huge. The incredible advancements that women have attained in our society appear not to instruct people with this backward belief.

Today, I challenge our society to take a look at this belief and be ready for a reorientation in the best interest of the girl child. A child, boy or girl is a priceless blessing from God. A child, boy or girl is like an arrow in the hands of his/her custodians. The arrow does not determine its sharpness, speed and direction. The one shooting arrow does. I think instead of focusing on the child and his/her sex as the determinant of her worth, we should focus on ourselves as custodians. Have an INSPIRED Day.