Obedience to Family

Counselling in Africa is in many ways unique. Here is an example. A young woman -- a wife and mother -- came to see me for counselling. Her husband had been unfaithful to her, and a conflict had escalated until his lover turning up at the front door and belittled her. With that, she had left home with the children, and moved into a flat. She could afford it, and now she was at peace. But at this point, it turned into a more African problem. Her family -- who believed she was telling the truth -- ordered her to return to her husband. She dutifully obeyed. She had to obey, in her culture. OBSERVATION: The counselling was therefore about how to cope.