Creativenonfiction #149 - The Joyous Occasion

Mum! Mum!! I called as I ran into her room.

“What's it?”, She asked, quickly standing up from the bed as she wondered what must have happened.

“Is it true Uncle Raheem is getting married? I asked, looking excited.

She rolled her eyes looking relieved as I might have caused her tension with the way I called her earlier.

“Of course, your dad and I will be traveling with other family members for the wedding next month”.

“What about me?”, I asked, looking surprised as I didn't hear her say that I will be going with them.

“What about you?” She asked, raising her eyebrows.

I looked at her in a way that conveyed that I expected her to know the obvious.

“Well you can't go”, she uttered, waving her hands casually like it's no big deal.

“What? Mum please” I begged, holding her hands.

She laughed at my theatrics but shook her head.

“It's about a 5 hour journey to where we're going and it can be more depending on traffic”, she tried explaining but I was putting up more drama.

After seeing that she’s not changing her mind, I left her alone in the room and went into the sitting room folding my arms and pouting.

I could ask my dad and I doubt he would object to my going, but deep down I knew my mum is who I have to convince to allow me to attend the wedding.

The thought of not attending the wedding was devastating. I couldn't eat well and was feeling down.

Uncle Raheem is one of my favorite uncles. No, I believe he is my favorite uncle. He not only buys me lots of things whenever he visits us but he just knows the right kind of gifts to get me.

He bought me my first video game for my birthday when I was much younger and even though he doesn't always visit us, the things he gets me whenever he finally does is more than enough to make up for his absence.

About a week before the wedding my mum noticed I was still moping around the house due to the fact that I wasn't taking her decision to not attend the wedding so well so she told me I was to accompany her to the market. I thought she was going to get gifts and other things she was to take along with her to the wedding. Well, she did get them but she got something else.

We stopped at a shoe store and she told me to look for a pair I liked. I was a bit surprised since I wasn't going anywhere but I complied anyways and got a nice pair of black wedge-heels.

She also bought me a nice dress which left me wondering what was going on. My curiosity was satisfied when we got back home. I asked her what the dress and shoes were for and she delivered the news I had been pining to hear for the past few weeks.

I was overjoyed when she told me I would be attending the wedding after all. I jumped on her back, hugged her and gave a kiss on her cheeks.

When my dad got back from work, I hugged him and thanked him for finally allowing me to go with them.

On the day of the wedding, we left very early in the morning, a time I would probably still be asleep. But the excitement of where we would be going was enough to keep me awake through the night before. In fact I was the first to wake up and I quickly went to wake up my parents and we started making preparations for the journey ahead.

After we were all ready, my parents and I took a bus down to one of our family's place where we all waited for the bus that would take us all to Ondo State, which was where the bride's parents reside.

The journey was smooth save for a few traffic stops here and there. It helped that we went with a chartered bus filled with other family members so there was lots of talking, laughing, eating and much more.

We got to the venue five hours later and were welcomed with open arms by the bride's parents.

The venue used for the wedding was well decorated, with flowers adorning every corner. The table and chairs were also well arranged, I had never seen a venue so beautiful.

We all took our seats and the program began in no time. It was a traditional marriage and I learned a lot about our culture and traditions.

When the bride was finally called out, I opened my mouth in awe, she is so beautiful and elegantly dressed.

My uncle was so happy to see me and made sure I appeared in almost all the pictures the couple took.

At the end of the program, it was an emotional moment for the bride's family as they hugged their daughter, shedding tears of joy before handing her over to her new husband.

The journey back was less noisy this time because we were all tired after all the dances we had. It was good we were lucky not to encounter much traffic.

I got back home with a huge smile on my face.

That was the first occasion I attended with my parents outside our residential state. I was so happy that I was able to celebrate those happy moments with Uncle Raheem and his new family.

Thank you for reading.

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