Help! The latest bride is hungry
We laughed heartily as we returned to Lagos in the ride from
Obudu Cattle Ranch. Travelling by road to such a far distance
was one of our fun ways of enjoying our wedding preparation.
We had simply travelled for our pre-wedding photo shoot.
I didn't have to stress much convincing my fiance to have our
shoot there. He raised an objection which wasn't strong
enough for my innocent pleas. How can I have a change of
mind about having my shoot there when all my friends had
theirs there. I wouldn't want them to think I was getting
married to a 'broke' man.
Just the other weekend, my choice wedding dress had arrived
from Canada in company of the 'human hair' and accessories
for my wedding. I remembered I was in a wedding store in
Novare Shopping Mall, Lekki picking some other things I
couldn't order abroad when I got the call that my package had
landed.
My wonderful friends and colleagues demonstrated enough
support by buying my 'aso-ebi'. To think I was very sceptical
about picking the all stoned fabric because it was highly
expensive but Tammy who accompanied me to the stall had
encouraged me to pick it saying people will buy irrespective of
the cost. 'Sebi I have always bought theirs too na, I've paid my
dues joor, they just gat to buy mine too' I concluded that day.
Truly, the aso-ebi sold like wild fire. I sold to the point I lost sexy mother of the bride dresses
count. You needed to see the packaging for the aso-ebi. I
ensured it went to every single buyer with the souvenir. I even
paid a courier company to help deliver to all my buyers.
I had a good job which easily facilitated all my frivolous plans
for my wedding. Whatever I requested from my fiance who
worked in a bank and he couldn't provide I attended to
without stress. My savings suffered a great deal. My alerts
after every unnecessary purchase reminded of how lean my
savings became but I didn't pay any attention to it. "Sebi Kunle
will pick up all my bills once we get married and my money
will remain solely mine' I thought selfishly.
We planned to have our honeymoon in Cape Verde. The trip
was quite expensive but my darling kunle raised no objection.
Reception for the wedding was scheduled to hold on a yatch
and attendance would be strictly by invitation. Kunle and I
were prepared to do a 'pepperdengang' kinda wedding.
We hired the best catering outfit in town. We had two top
ranking musicians perform live and a hot popular DJ for the
party.
Our parents didn't stop us rather they supported our 'childish'
plan and even went overboard in their planning too. Both
mothers loved classy parties and they couldn't be less joyful
their children were having such.
Through it all, kunle and I never discussed finances. I never
asked if he had savings or investments and he never asked
too. Somehow, our discussions never tilted in that sacred
direction.
The wedding day finally came and needless to say we had a
fabulous one. Everything went well. The wedding smelt 'class'
in all regards. I was glad I had the kind of wedding I had
always dreamt of. Even Betty who picked my bouquet couldn't
stop talking about how expensive it was.
Two days after the wedding, we travelled for our honeymoon
which lasted three weeks. We had maximum fun. Kunle took
me on shopping sprees that left me wowed. I was enjoying my
new status no doubt.
Three weeks lapsed in no time and we returned to our newly
rented apartment in Lekki phase 1. We had just a week left to
resume work. Still basking in the euphoria of the wedding, we
ate out often.
Funny how I shopped everything but foodstuffs for the house.
Kunle didn't even say a thing about it too. I planned to do that
the weekend before my resumption. On Saturday, I dressed up
early to go to the market. I asked my darling husband for
money to that effect and I got the shocker of my life.
Kunle was dead broke and so was I. Here we were with no
food in the house. All the while we prepared for our
prestigious wedding we failed to plan for our marriage. We
didn't think we would eat afterwards.
The silence in our home that day was more than the
graveyard's. Kunle couldn't look me in the eyes. I felt really
ashamed of myself too. We quietly had cereals for dinner and
went to bed. He warned me never to tell anyone especially my
parents about our wants yet the next pay day was far.
We had to really manage the little he had on him for fuelling
our cars while I emptied mine to salvage the imminent hunger.
We had our first outbursts the week before when he returned
home to no meal and he was truly famished. "You are a
woman, wife or whatever, so fix it" he said fuming.
I have since endured hunger to ensure he had something to
eat whenever he returned home. I have wept too especially
when hunger pangs threatened to tear my intestines apart.
# fiction
# thethirdeyedgirl
PS: The real meaning of responsibility awaits you after the
wedding day. It's far beyond the glamour of that one-day
event. Be guided!
YOUNG MAN/WOMAN DONT JUST PLAN FOR THE WEDDING
PLAN FOR THE MARRIAGE
it is gross foolishness to spend all you have for the wedding
and be drinking garri in marriage.
BE WISE
WEDDING IS AN EVENT MARRIAGE IS A LONG JOURNEY