     Basra | Saturday, January 13, 2001 - 02:03 pm
It was maybe one of those lingering beautiful moments,when the stars shined sparkly,the moon appeared mighty bright,and ofcourse no sound of birds to suit the harmonious mood but the sound of distant traffic beckoning far away in the mist of city life.Perhaps somewhere in the split seconds of thoughts,a woman once declared to reason -'why do bad things fall on good people?'
Recapping on the events that had be fallen me,much could be sympathised and less could be generalised,after having a horific experience in Somalia,getting a proposal from a Gorilla named jimbo,and literally discovering that your own parents are planning for your future husband to be portfolio,also ignoring the crucial point of my likes in a Husband-which is,'Must be super good looking'.My parents conveniently thought looks could be the last thing they prioritised,good for them to say that-i am the one who will be facing him every unbrushed dental morning of my life.Needless to add all this happening in one single year;Last year!
So it was a fresh New Year-2001,and i was not out celebrating with my friends,missing the yearly party we ordinarily have,and simply dreading to leave my room;ofcourse having developed a selective fever Syndrome,obviously from the terror realisation that i was to marry a wealthy,Ugly,medicine student named Xassan.I cried all night long,gazing at the sky and yelling from my balcony,WHHYYYYY IS THIS HAPPENING TO ME?My lilly flower pajamas all soaked from the tears that came from my sorrow soul.Subsequently all this started on that Eid evening,where My mother tosed to a future relationship developing between me and Mr. jimbo!I was heart broken and most cynicaly withrowned.As i sat on my bed,i began visualising the 'IF' point of persepective,i thought what if the marriage becomes a reality?My vision gave me a preview of my life;i saw Basra carrying one ugly baby on the back and the other pulling soaking my dress with vomit,and two twins running around the house wearing nothing but cute little white baby underear,crying "Hoyoo i'm hungry-i need to eat Muufo'!I rose up from the nightmare and began theorising the most affective way to stop this union!HELP!
So i called for a family meeting the next day following New years day.My parents obviously worried because i only called family meeting when something major had happened,like once i got expelled from school-because i slapped a crippled teacher-she called me a witch!Anyways,everybody was there including Ali and Zahro.The family were not thrilled somehow,they new what i was about to say.So i began my speech.
"Look Hoyoo and Aabo,i am not going to marry that guy,out of the question.I have my school to finish,i only have two semester and i will soon graduate.I dont need a husband,much less that Xassan,i mean do you two love me?How can you marry me to an ugly man who is awkward and nerdy?And most of all; i dont want to bring you ugly grand-children for visits.So please understand if i say no to this marriage?"
My parents looked at me and began laughing loud,they said."Hooyo we're not going to marry you to Xaasan anymore,".I was so reliefed,i mean i had two exact semesters to escape my home,once i had my degree i would find wings to fly and run away to look for my prince charming.Then out of the blue moon again,Hooyo says."But we found another good husband for you,he's our neighbor and you used to know him when you were little,his family are good and wealthy.He is what your father wants you to marry.Do you remember the one eye Ahmed,who's the son of mama Timir?"
I cried out loud.One eye Ahmed?All i could think of then was,i was going to be known as Basra Timir-the girl who's husband has one eye.Zahro and Ali were on the floor laughing at me,i began slowly to move backwards looking for the telephone,until i got it under the sofa table."Heloo....911 PLEASE! |
| Mohamed | Tuesday, January 16, 2001 - 08:28 am
Basra,
Love the essays. I know about planned marriages and those sorts. I am hitting that stage in life where people are trying to fix me up. I am a lone spirit and can't see myself settling down esp. since I am only 23 but ppl think I am at least 28. It must be my mature behavior and wisdom.
I was on a trip out of state. More precisely, Minnesota. I decided to stop by some relatives. Mothers began introducing me to their daughters over some hot tea and xalwa. I somehow did not get this until my cousin told me what was going on. I thought that these folks were being friendly. Whatever the case, I was asked about if I graduated from university, where I worked and if I had a girlfriend. I never tell Somalis about my personal relationships. Our people tend to talk a lot so I played it off.
What I found funny was that how would people imagine trying to hook me up with their daughters when they know so little about me. Do they know if I am a drug abuser, or a criminal ? All they know is that I come from a good family and that I have wonderful parents. It leads me to ask are they trying to get their daughters to marry my family or me. All I knew is I had to get out of Minneapolis quickly and I couldn't be more happy when I jumped on my flight to Newark.
During these conversations, my cousin was laughing at me. He saw how uncomfortable I got. The slight sweat, twitching of my leg... But the bastard could not warn me ahead of time or even have the decency to help change conversations. Luckily, I was rescued by my colleague who called me on my cell phone. I quickly excused myself and made a run for the hotel.
Now I have learned not to go to relatives houses. If I ever do go to a place where some relatives, I plan not to visit and simply call them from the airport as I await my return flight.
Basra, honey good luck with the ugly duckling. I am glad that in my hometown, my nearest kin is 800 miles away.
Mohamed. |
