If only we learn to appreciate things the way they are, we can have the best of what we want to achieve. We do not have to accept everything that is forced upon us. I belong to a people who suffered and experienced cultural oppression. They call us Congolese and it seemed we did not have the right to be called people. As a people, we have grown in size and spirit but our soul as a country and our values and beliefs were destroyed in a long history of foreign domination.
The imperialists invented and devised myths to be written in our history, putting our race as inferior and a burden to the white race. They told us that the name Congolese was derived from the word monkey. We were under foreign domination for hundreds of years. Military conquerors enforced upon our ancestor’s laws which were so cruel. We were not supposed to be free because we did not have the will and the power to be free. (Nzongola-Ntalaja, 2002, p. 38)
Through our experience, we can be better people and teachers to the young. Like the story “Roots”, Africans were brought to the New World as slaves but now they dominate every aspect of life in America and Europe. The former slaves are now professionals and leaders in many disciplines, in science and religion, and in other branches of learning.
Our values are influenced by the imperialists of the past. Sometimes, I really feel that I should not talk with people of different color, although the institution I am in encourages me and my fellow Africans that we are now living in a world dominated by people with the capacity to have superior knowledge – and I, we, the Congolese, can attain superior knowledge if we want to. Education is superior knowledge and this can bring us to the level of the “conquerors”, the people who oppressed us for centuries.
But even then, those who want to forever oppress us would like to prohibit us from having an education. Education is an inalienable right of all humans. I believe we have every right to have an education that can provide us the good life we deserve. I believe too, that those who deprive us of our right should educate themselves more. I am expressing my feeling because my people are still being discriminated upon even up to today.
Some members of my family started to feel the gains of education. I told them we are the same as other people; we are equal as Belgians and the Whites. Some relatives and other people in our village have worsened negative feelings; their inferiority complex gets worse at times. They do not want to get out of our village, their enclave, so to speak. I tried to convince them that the more they isolate themselves the more they feel inferior. I cannot blame them. I feel what they feel even if I did not physically experience the years of oppression.
I do not know whether my religion has helped me to be a better person although it is because of this religion that I feel the presence of God. Many of my relatives have embraced Christianity and somehow it has helped them find meaning in life. Belief in God helps us accept our state in life which can lead to healing. But something must first be corrected before the Congolese can fully accept Christianity. Whites believed they were responsible for the Christianization of the Congolese who are of “an inferior race” (Nzongola-Ntalaja, 2002, p. 38).
My values are the values of my people. We become submissive sometimes, but we are patient and we persevere unto the last drop of our sweat. We are an agricultural people. We value land and toil hard to have a fruitful harvest. Health is a gift from God but, as a fruitful harvest, you have to continuously work for it. My concept of good health is of course influenced by my cultural background but I sense that this was also the result of my people’s value for good health.
Personally, I am an impatient individual although I have learned to control it. Although my cultural background was influenced by years of cultural oppression, I know I have acquired the characteristics of a Congolese child, having the traits of an African soul. I sense I am rebellious at times but the patient spirit in me always prevails.
When I was a child, I used to play with the kids in the woods, one group acted as ‘oppressor’ while another acted as rebels. Our village chief would teach children how to dance. Dance is a part of the Congo way of life, used in times of peace and in times of war. Dance is an original African culture, a form of prayer and a part of every performance (Lindsay, 2003, p. 140). We believe that life is also a performance.
Having experienced the pains which are now ingrained in my psyche and having felt healing through constant prayer and meditation, I believe I can help as a health counselor. Psychological health, a primary goal of health counseling, involves what is inside us, our emotions particularly. If we are able to accept our present state of health, we are healed emotionally. We have to come to terms with the physical and emotional aspects. We have to accept and know how to deal with our sickness. Education plays a key role as we manage and adjust to our health problem. (Blonna, Loschiavo, & Watter, 2011, p. 3)
What is problematic in my character is my being rebellious at times. I remember the time when I used to argue with my parents about the course that I wanted to take.
It was not an easy job, convincing my old folks who are so traditional and old-fashioned that I wanted to rebel and get out of the household and be my own. Our disagreement could have made me a real rebel because I said I did not want to study anymore. My character can have a negative effect on my future job, which I would like to deal with even during this initial stage of my career. As I have said, I have grown physically and emotionally. We have patched up our disagreement, and that is the good part of it.
My cultural background may also have a negative effect on my job as a counselor but it does not mean that it will affect success. For every job, there are challenges along the way. The first thing is to get myself focused on one problem and one particular client at a time. I already experienced healing myself and therefore I have a positive factor in this process. Having so many challenges in life is an advantage in my future endeavor. Coping with challenges is applicable to countries or groups of people. Countries that experience conflicts and whose people learn to be united become strong and successful in their quest to attain development.
As an individual, I sense success as a health counselor. I know what I am and what I have been. Now, when people look at me that way, I sense they feel guilty. Friends call me by my real name as if they have known me for a long time. The gap is getting narrower. Two things can get me closer to my goal: either I can take advantage of my cultural background to become a health counselor, or I can use my education to help my people. Both goals involve health or well-being.
Health counseling involves mental health for both the counselor and the client. If I may proceed to practice counseling, I have to examine my mental health. Both the counselor and the client should have the right mental health in the course of the counseling. (Palmo & Palmo, 2006, p. 197)
We can reach the goal. The Congolese have to deal with cultural oppression and acquire healing gradually. Our people are still in that process and I am sure we will reach our goal because we are united in this endeavor. Health counseling should be gradual, continuous and rigorous, but there has to be close coordination between the counselor and the client.
References
Blonna, R., Loschiavo, J., & Watter, D. (2011). Health counseling: A microskills approach for counselors, educators, and school nurses. Sudbury, Massachusetts: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Lindsay, A. (2003). The research methods of an artist-ethnographer on the Congo coast of Panama. In M. Davis & M. Meskimmon (Eds.), Breaking the disciplines: Reconceptions in knowledge, art & culture (pp. 129-162). New York: I. B. Tauris & Co. Ltd.
Nzongola-Ntalaja, G. (2002). The Congo: From Leopold to Kabila: A people’s history. New York: Zed Books.
Palmo, A. & Palmo, L. (2006). Counselors in private practice. In A. Palmo, W. Weikel, & D. Borsos (Eds.), Foundations of mental health counselling (third edition) (pp. 197-218). Springfield, Illinois: Charles C. Thomas Publisher, Ltd.