1 minute read
About Marriage
SHERI JOY C. NAMANYA
Iwill remain single forever!” I always responded emphatically whenever my high school classmates persuaded me to jump on the bandwagon and join the rest of our classmates who were already in a relationship. Well, I am now happily married, and I wouldn’t want it any other way.
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Jokes and fears
Perhaps just like many others, I grew up with a distorted picture of marriage because of the influence of soap operas depicting mostly the ugly in marriage and couples joking, “What’s the difference between getting married and getting a dog? After a year, the dog is still excited to see you.”
If marriage was only fun for a short time and the rest of the time it is a pain, why marry?
The concept of marriage used to be uncomfortable and scary for me. One day, a professor gave my friend a simple but wise advice: “Inday, life is already difficult in itself. Don’t make it more difficult by choosing a difficult husband.”
There, I found the root cause of my fear of marriage. So, my husband now was the only boyfriend I ever had. You can already imagine how cautious I was.
Before I say further, let me underscore the fact that God is always the author of beautiful love stories and only He can make things beautiful. So, as you read my succeeding discussion, remember that this is the fundamental principle my husband and I live by.
A change of heart
So, what became of my high school oath? I broke it, and I couldn’t be happier that I did. And after eight blissful years of being married, I am still convinced—in fact, more than ever—that marriage is one of God’s most precious gifts.
I’ll let you in on a little secret: I used to dislike my husband before he started courting me and even more when he started showing interest in me.
I so despised the thought of sharing the same house with this stranger, or anyone for that matter, but now I feel like a stranger in my own house without him around.
He must have used some African potion to get me into this. But whatever he did, it worked! Now I see marriage as not only exciting but also altogether desirable.
