Weddings Galore

In the past year I’ve attended more wedding than I have ever in my life. It looked as if my family was in a contest of who got married first; left right and centre someone was engaged, married or given birth. The cycle of life was passing me by in a blur. And ever couple of months the dreaded phone call would come ‘When are you going to finish school? Why aren’t you married yet? Qof mala socotaa?'. Arrrrrgh. What’s wrong with being single for a while and exploring life & your opinions at a leisure pace? Somalis assume that when a girl reaches a certain age, even in her mid twenties, that her marriageable value lessens. As if we were products on a deadline.

But I love weddings in spite of it all; the dance, the people, the smell, the taste, the colors, the shy, hesitant bride, the rocking songs, everything. It’s absolutely beautiful; headaches galore yes, but at the end of the day; you can’t help but smile and imagine about your own.