- Says choose wisely as marriage can make or mar you
Award-winning Nigerian author, Chimamanda Ngozie Adichie says young women must avoid toxic relationship, warning that it is quite risky marrying out of desperation or societal pressure.
According to her, marriage has the potential to either greatly improve a person’s life or to significantly damage it, so it important to choose wisely because any wrong choice may result in enduring regrets, emotional distress and trauma.
She said young women must prioritise wisdom over desperation when selecting life partners if they actually intend to have a fulfilled life and grow old gracefully with their partners.
Chimamanda, who spoke at a recent students’ event, stressed on the profound impact a marriage can have on an individual’s well-being, both positively and negatively.
Maintaining that settling for less out of societal pressure can be dangerous because of its life-long impact, the 47-year-old literary icon cautioned young women to avoid incompatible partners simply to meet societal expectations of marriage.
Hear her; “It’s really important who you choose. It’s really important. Young women, choose wisely. Sometimes as young women, you can tell that the person you’re with is not really a good person, but you’re desperate to get married.
“You’re desperate to have somebody who’s your partner. Don’t settle. Be very careful who you choose. The person you choose as your life partner will make a huge difference in your life.
“If you choose somebody who’s kind, supportive, it will make all the difference. So I can tell you that I chose well, there are some good men left.”
The advice is also coming at a time the author of ‘Half of a Yellow Sun’ and ‘Americanah’ went public with the fact that after feeling disconnected from her birth name, she had to consciously adopt the Igbo name “Chimamanda”.
The literary star has been married to Nigerian doctor, Ivara Esege since 2009 with the couple having three children, a daughter and twin boys.
