Couples should stick together

Whenever I recall the lie about our honeymoon destination, I feel hot on the cheeks. See, we had agreed to float a story for anyone who would ask us about our honeymoon destination.

I had read that it was bad luck for a bride to let the groom see her wedding dress before the D-day, but that it was a double misfortune to let other people know about your honeymoon destination until after you were back from the honeymoon.

I told my groom all about this.

“So, if anyone asks about our honeymoon, tell them it is a surprise,” I told him.

He mumbled a response.

My then fiancé had no clue about a honeymoon destination since he was not the type that travelled much. I was worried that if I let that topic remain open, come the day after the wedding; I would find myself waking up to cook and clean instead of enjoying my first week of married life at the beach.

I, therefore, did my research, found a gem at the North Coast, and made our reservations. 

And as sure as the sun shall rise tomorrow, the ever-curious family were already asking us where we would go for our honeymoon.

“It is a surprise,” I told them and went on to make a dreamy elaborate tale about how my groom was waiting to surprise me. I acted like I had no clue whatsoever but that he had asked me to pack swimwear and sunscreen.

On the other hand, my groom could not even recall the name of the hotel I had reserved for us until we checked in. We mostly had our phones switched off during the honeymoon, but one morning, Hubby had his phone on and returned some calls from family.

The same family members I had talked about the ‘surprise’ honeymoon destination called by coincidence. My brand-new husband, forgetting our story, informed them of our location, which happened to be close to where they were holidaying.

In the excitement, Hubby accepted their offer to join them that afternoon as their hotel was only a few minutes drive from ours.

As we chatted by the pool, one of them asked Hubby, “So, was Karimi surprised by your choice of the honeymoon destination?” Hubby, still new in this marriage thing, forgot about the cardinal rule of couples; stick to your story like a pack of thieves.

“I didn’t even know about our honeymoon until after we checked in. She did all the planning and the bookings.”

Egg on my face is an understatement. I nudged his foot with mine under the table.

“What is it?” 

He remained clueless at my mood change.

As parents, we occasionally face the same egg on the face moments with our children when we forget to stick to a similar story. Even when we have thoroughly practised a story, Hubby mostly forgets his lines and blubbers the truth or fails to update me on a change of situation, and I end up sticking to an outdated version. 

Our children have long learned how to get their way with us. For example, we had agreed on a set of conditions for our eldest before she could be allowed her own phone. Maybe we over discussed the issue, and Hubby became overwhelmed with details. All I know is that one day after I had come home from a short trip, I found our daughter engrossed in her brand-new phone.

“Dad bought me.” She had told my stunned self and went back to stare at the screen. When I confronted Hubby, he said that her grades were greatly improved and that she had done all her chores.

“But that was not what we had agreed.” I protested, to which he had replied,

“But why should we deny her a phone? She will end up borrowing from her friends.”

“We discussed this, remember?” He had said that he could not recall the finer details of this discussion; other than that, we would get our daughter the phone if her grades were good.

“Yes, but when she was sixteen, not twelve!”

So, when our son asked me to clarify where the seed that makes babies came from, I told him to ask his dad since dads carry the seed.

Hubby asked me to help.

“You tell him. I don’t want egg on my face.” 

Karimi is a wife who believes in marriage. [email protected]