An Ode: The Economic Activist

I am not your wife, your girlfriend nor your mistress

And neither do I aspire to be any of the three;

Therefore, when I am in the boardroom with you

Do not seek validation for your manhood mimicked in false assertions

Do not expect me to stroke your ego in an effort to promote your counterfeit self

Only envisage a woman who is here to fulfill her God-given purpose

I am not your wife, your girlfriend nor your mistress

And neither do I yearn to replace any of the three;

Thus, when I contribute my knowledge

Do not treat me like an imposter, to minimize and patronize

Do not regard me as the an enemy of the state, to destroy and to conquer

Only look at an ethical woman who values self-respect

I am not your wife, your girlfriend nor your mistress

And neither do I bring judgment to any of these roles

Hence, do not confine me to those compartments you have created in your male consciousness

But, be open-minded;

Be like the learning-organization you purport to espouse

Only live to serve; not to be served

I am Daughter, a Sister and a Mother-to-be

I am protected, cherished, and fearfully respected

I am not minimized so that the opposite sex is elevated

My voice is not ignored so that the male voices are the only monotonous sound in the room

I serve, I nurture, I love

My persistence is to engender an economic freedom that my gender is yet to fully actualize

Copyright @ February 18, 2013.  BlogSpot by Tambu Ndoro, Strategy & Innovation Specialist at UN Commission Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and Hanga Consulting (PVT) Ltd, ©2011.  www.hangaconsulting.com.  Tambu is also a member of Research and Development Committee of SME Association of Zimbabwe ©2011