Tribute to My Mother

By Wendso Jacqueline Ouedraogo

I did not write this book to condemn anyone. Far from it.

I have written it so that our younger generations will forsake mediocrity and debauchery and live a productive life.

I have written it so that every man will have the wisdom to love his wife and children.

I have written it so that every woman in this country will fight to live decently and not expect everything from her husband.

About the title: The state of Burkina Faso demonstrated its recognition of Blanche with a medal in 2009. In my turn, I wrote this novel to also show our gratitude to her, hence the title. My gratification for you, Mother.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Page Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Nov 20, 2020
• ISBN: 9781643348056

Book preview

Chapter 1

Starting School

Blanche is the thirty-third child of a family of fifty-four. Her father, the late Noraogo Ilboudo, a.k.a. Naaba Googho of Saponé, the traditional chief of his village from 1896 to 1962, had eighteen wives, among whom was Gomkoudgou, Blanche’s mother.

Back then, not everyone was given a chance to be enrolled in the white man’s school. But because he was the chief of canton/district and administrator of Upper Volta at that time, her father had all his children enrolled in school. Thus, Blanche had the privilege of starting at the Catholic Primary School of Saponé in 1961. It was a small school providing instruction for all the children under the age of fifteen. This school produced all these eminent sons and daughters of Saponé, among whom were the late Arsène Ilboudo (a journalist for the national television), Adidas Rouamba, André Eugène Ilboudo, Professor Kouliga Nikiéma, etc. Blanche obtained her elementary school certificate in 1968. Her teacher was Mr. Barthelemy Tapsoba, who was at the same time the principal of the school.

After obtaining her certificate in 1969, she sat the competitive examinations for sixth grade at the École Ménagère Lavigerie (Home Economics School), which later became the Centre de Formation Féminine et Artisanale de Goughin" (Goughin’s Women and Handicraft Training Center). The entrance exams were held at the Center B of the school of Paspanga.

Like all the other candidates, Blanche entered the room petrified with fear. At the end of the essay, the candidates would discuss the test and how they addressed the topics, but Blanche was only worrying about the ten kilometers she had to walk back to reach her older brother Paul’s house in Kiedpaolgo. She was staying at his house so she could attend school. However, walking ten kilometers was not a problem because she had gotten her very first shoes when she was going to secondary school. Her other brother Kayouré had willingly bought the shoes for her to go to École Lavigerie. This gesture seems insignificant, but at the time, you could count on the fingers of one hand those who wore shoes to school.

Blanche started learning the language of Shakespeare in addition to French, the official language. That did not last long because she was immediately allowed to sit the competitive examinations for the recruitment of midwives. But she still remembers these two sentences from this second language: What is your name? My name is I TB.

In January 1973, the district commander of Saponé launched the contest for the recruitment of two midwives. This time, the exam was held on the school grounds of Center A of the Saponé’s school. They announced the results of the contest in March 1973. Blanche was very surprised and moved to hear her name read on the national radio as one of the successful candidates. Next, she did her internship in her prospective midwife’s job at the Saponé Medical Center. It lasted only six months.

Since Saponé’s Circle had launched the contest, Blanche assumed her functions in Saponé on January 1, 1974, and began to work as a midwife in the health district. She was a native of the village, and everything went well for her. Her only problem was to balance kinship and professionalism.

While working there, Blanche met a certain Charly, who had come from Kayao to assist a patient at the Saponé’s clinic. They quickly got married on April 30, 1977, at the central city call of Ouagadougou. Sibri, one of Blanche’s brothers, gave them a plot of land not far from the CMA (medical center) of Saponé. They built a house and settled there. Blanche served in Saponé until August 1981. They assigned her to Komsilga, another department in the province of Bazèga. From then on, it was an uphill battle for her.

Chapter 2

Komsilga: the Second Position (1981–1984)

Blanche arrived in the rural commune of Komsilga on August 12, 1981. The villagers were very happy to get a midwife for the new maternity ward, which was built for them. She had good relationships with them. A villager gave Blanche a plot of land to cultivate. She sowed peanuts the first year and every year thereafter. Some of the villagers who had quickly become accustomed to Blanche would often go and chat with her at the house.

During her tenure at Saponé, Blanche had two daughters from her union with Charly. She named the first one Wend-Konté Patricia and the second Wend-la Fan Edith. Later, while working in Komsilga, Blanche had a third daughter, whom she named Wendso Jacqueline. Another girl!

Thus, I came into the world. I remember going back to this village once for an outing with my high school Bible