When family gathering plans go wrong
Oh! I see you are back.... Well, welcome to the normal world where things go back to normal after a long weekend of activities.
So you consumed a lot of money and time planning a wedding, graduation party or even a birthday that only lasts a few hours?
Are you happy? Were your expectations met? Did you enjoy the event?
These are some of the questions that most of us ask ourselves after preparing for a one day event for almost a year.
If you've never planned or been part of a planning committee, I'm not sure if you should be happy or pity yourself because reactions and emotions are always different.
I attended my cousin's wedding a few weeks back. Trust me when I say it was beautiful, colourful and glamorous (I'm not saying this just because it was a close relative but it was indeed all that and more.)
Everything started well. But then the lights decided that we were not going to shine.
We were, however, not backing down. We decided to look for an alternative and let's say we thank God for candles and flashlights.
Our makeup had to be done using candles and flashlights and we were pretty glad that the makeup artiste knew exactly what she was doing.
She did her part knowing pretty well that, "If I don't do my job right, then I will not be recommended to someone else. This is how I earn my daily bread," she confessed.
She did an excellent job and we were all happy about that. So we are down to hair. So we called the hairstylist to know how far he was. He picked up his phone and said he has sent someone else. That was initially not the plan as he was the one who was supposed to do the work.
We asked him to communicate with the guy and after a few minutes he called back and said the guy had gone 'mteja'. This is when you know the devil is literally trying your patience.
At this point we all felt stuck not knowing what to do next but we decided to improvise and use the skills that we know and we finally had our hair done.
The maids dressed and were ready for the day's event . After the bride had finished dressing, we realised that the veil was missing. The house was literally turned upside down but no one could find the veil.
At this point, you could see the bride was worried that things wouldn't go as planned. So we had to think fast. Someone had to rush to the CBD to get another veil because the bride could not go to church without the veil.
We were running late at this point and so we decided to head to church figuring by the time we get there, the veil would have been bought and rushed to church.
True to the words of my mother, the veil was found and within 45 minutes or so later, the bride was ready to walk down the aisle.
As those hiccups happened, most of us including the bride were worried that things would go wrong but everything went as planned.
The bride looked amazing and the bridal party looked stunning as well. After about an hour, my cousin was officially married and the wedding was glamorous.
Most of us have been through something similar to this, with some giving up while others look for alternatives because there's always a solution to everything.
Sometimes the problems start with family members or even service providers.
Family members can end up sabotaging your day and it might be out malice, spite or jealousy, but for those who do not let their words brings them down, end up dealing with the situation and continuing with what was originally planned.
When such hiccups come, it's best to first stay calm but at the same time, think of a solution very fast because not everyone has the virtue of being patient.
Njeri had a traditional wedding ceremony she had been planning for months after her fiance went on one knee and asked for her hand in marriage.
Everything started well and she knew that her fiance wouldn't let her down and that his family would support her as much as her family was.
But the devil always finds his way to make things turn left.
It was already 11am and her future husband had not yet arrived. They tried calling him but his phone was off and when his family was called to ask about his whereabouts, they were equally confused that he could not be found.
His best man was also clueless of where he was because he had not said he would be going somewhere or had something to take care of.
Njeri was now devastated thinking of the worst things that could happen. She cried her eyes out saying that her future husband had developed cold feet and didn't want to go ahead with the traditional wedding.
"My mum tried to cool me down but I couldn't hear any of it. I was so pissed I wanted to just pack my things and go back to Nairobi," Njeri narrated.
As everyone was trying to make phone calls left, right and center, a car drove into the compound.
"It was him," an excited Njeri explained.
"I didn't want to know if I wasn't supposed to be seen outside until I was called but at this point no one, not even my father could stop me. I ran and before I could even hug him, I slapped him."
She says she had mixed emotions but she was just happy he did not leave her stranded.
"I felt guilty after slapping him, so I hugged him tightly and literally started crying. He explained to me that he had something very important he had to take care of and he didn't want to tell anyone and that's why even his best man didn't know his plans."
Both their parents were eager to know why he was not picking up his call but he said that he would tell everyone what happened as the ceremony continues.
"I went back to the house and finished up with my makeup and later on the ceremony started. After we were officially joined, he asked to speak. My heart skipped because I didn't know what he was going to say."
Wen he was given a chance, he apologised for worrying everyone but it was all for a good cause.
He asked Njeri to join him and once again apologised to her then asked her to close her eyes.
"I was not ready for any more surprises because I had still not digested the fact that he was almost missing our traditional wedding. I closed my eyes and he placed a box in my hands then asked me to open my eyes and open the box."
Njeri says she was not ready to see what was in that tiny box but had to find out. When she opened the box, she couldn't believe what was in the box.
"It was a car key, with a key holder that had my name engraved on it. I could not believe my eyes and I couldn't control my tears. He told me that he had purchased the car a while back and it was supposed to arrive the previous day but the car dealer had messed him up," an overly excited Njeri explained.
So he walked her to where he had parked the car he had come with and officially handed it to her.
"I couldn't believe my eyes as he opened the door for me to have a look at my brand new car."
She says that was one of the most memorable moments of her life and in as much as she thought that things would go wrong, everything turned out way better than she had imagined.
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