Pick one woman in history or fiction to converse with for an hour. What would you talk about?

Graca Machel has the unique position of being widowed by two great men,  Nelson Mandela, the Nobel prize winner and former president of South Africa, and Samora Machel, the first president of independent Mozambique. However, Graca Machel is a hero in my eyes because of who she is and not because of who she married. Millions around the world saw her grief-stricken at Mandela’s recent funeral. I wish they and I could get to know her better.

Graca Machel’s life story took her from a remote village in colonial Mozambique to a liberation war and service as minister of education under a free government. Her life encapsulates much of the recent history of southern Africa. I would ask her about her childhood--how after her father died (before she was born), she managed  to attend school and go on to university at a time and place when women and girls had few such opportunities. I would ask her how it felt to be a woman training in a guerilla military camp. I would ask her how she felt when Mozambique became independent and how, as minister, she managed to reduce the illiteracy rate by 72%.   I would ask her about her life with Nelson Mandela and what they learned from each other. I would ask her about South Africa’s future, and what should be done to improve the public education system there. I would ask her if we could talk for another hour!