Wedding day! One of the most memorable days in a woman’s life— for women who want marriage and those who are not in pursuit of celibacy and holy order. As the first child and daughter in a Nigerian home, we were raised with marriage at the back of our minds. You’ll hear statements like, ‘Sarah, why are you so lazy? If you continue like this, you wouldn’t be able to take care of your home when you’re married’. It is exasperating most times, but for the most part, our mothers are right. You can't blame me for imagining my weddings in various ways. I must wed to build a home of my own; it is one of my desires.
I have considered all things regarding my dream wedding, such as the number of people, location, size, colours, and how expensive it is. I believe that my wedding doesn’t need to be large; I just want family and friends, nothing more.
As a Nigerian, there are two weddings: the traditional wedding and the church wedding, although these days, people include another wedding, which is the court wedding. I think I am going to do all three, but the first two are more important to me.
I want a Catholic wedding. I have sung for so many, and I have coordinated the choir for so many in the years that I have lived. Anything less than that isn’t what I want. I want the blessings of various priests and sisters.
My traditional wedding would only include families and friends and no one else. It is going to be simple, elegant, and prayer-filled. I would have a local band play and a good ‘Alaga’ (MC) be in charge of the affairs. The bride receives a lot of money during the traditional wedding, as the groom must show that he is capable of spending money and taking care of the bride. I intend to exhaust all the money he has that day😉.
No matter what I do, I can’t have a minimalist wedding, as my extended family is large on both the maternal and paternal sides. I have lived in four different locations, and I have good friends from all places, plus my bosses and workplaces. When you add these people to my church members who have seen me grow up to this age, you will see that it is going to be a moderate-sized, if not large, wedding. There are days I imagine eloping with the love of my life and just popping up with him to see my mother after I am pregnant. Laughing out loud😂😂. My mother would kill me.
I want my dream wedding to be warm, festive, and real, and I will be choosing warm, bright colours to achieve that effect. I want it to be fun and filled with laughter. There must be lots of flowers and candles lit at my wedding. I would love glass chairs or comfy cushioned chairs arranged at the reception.
I don’t really care about the crowd, just as long as the love of my life and the people we both care about are there and seated in the front row. I am going to have a moment to dance with my mother and my sisters; they are my support system. I will have a moment of silence for my father because I already regret that he wouldn’t be there to walk me down the isle and no one can ever take his place.
