Nigeria is best known for its parties (owambe), as we fondly call them. Feasting is a normal lifestyle in Nigeria. There is hardly a weekend without a celebration of one kind or another in almost all the states, and this is one thing Nigeria cannot do without no matter how hard the situation in the country is.
I don't go to parties much except the ones I'm invited to and must be at. There are some that I am invited to, and yet I still skip them with some excuses, but for the ones that I choose to attend, I do so to have a nice time and to see and relate more with people I've not seen over the years. Celebration brings people together; that is one thing feasting does: it brings families together and strengthens the bond between them.
I was invited to a wedding feast, but I felt reluctant to go because I could not finish sewing the cloth I wished to wear, so I had to improvise and put on something else just to honor the person who invited me. "Will you attend the party or not?" my mom asked after I grumbled for some minutes thinking of what to wear. "I think you should attend just for you to have a nice time; you've been home for more than three months without going anywhere," my mom said as she walked to the kitchen. "I don't like the clothes I wanted to wear, but I'm too busy to complete the ones I wish to wear," I replied to her as I murmured to my room. "Do I have a choice?" I asked myself as I slammed the door behind me and concluded to wear the alternative to the feasting, which is the next day.
The day for the celebration came, and I set out not too happy, but I tried as much as possible to put on a smiling face. On getting there, I met some friends that I haven't seen in ages; it was a wedding celebration of one of our alumni, and everyone in our set in school then was invited. As I was not too good with crowds, I looked for a secure corner of the hall to sit in after the solemnization in church. With my earphones on my ears, I was stylishly looking at all the events around me.
I raised my head occasionally just to take a glance at my environment, but each time I did so, my eyes were always in contact with a guy sitting opposite me. "Didn't he have the courtesy of staring?" I said to myself, looking at him with disdain, and I picked up my phone just to press randomly as I smiled at the dancing steps of the groom and bride. The bride happens to be the one who invited me. "She doesn't know how to dance, I said to the lady sitting next to me as I grinned.
After a while, the food was served, and as I was about to put a spoonful of rice in my mouth, the guy who had been staring for a while sat down on the vacant chair next to me. With annoyance, I dropped the spoon in my hand as I had lost my appetite. It's a free world; he can sit wherever he wants. I couldn't question him on why he was sitting next to me. "What is this one looking for?"
I asked myself as I hissed. He noticed I was talking to myself, and he decided to start a conversation, which if he was waiting for me to do, would be a big mistake because I don't know how to begin a conversation with a stranger. "Hello, miss!" he said as he smiled, and I murmured to myself, "What's so funny and why is he smiling?" I replied, Hello, mister, and how can I be of help?"
He introduced himself, but I couldn't give him a proper response because I wasn't interested in whatever he had to offer. "I would love us to be friends if you don't mind because it seems you dislike the sight of me". Those words touched me, and I was forced to look at his face. I hate the fact that I made him look rejected because if I were to be in his position and I was being acted upon in that manner, it would also feel bad. To take that notion of me disliking him off his mind, I introduced myself properly in a way I should have before and gave a smile. I guess he was satisfied with that as he began to crack jokes.
In no time, I found myself laughing at his joke, forgetting I was not in a good mood with him beside me some minutes ago. After a while, he began a conversation, telling me about himself—not too personal, but basic things someone you are just meeting should know. Fortunately for me, we are in the same line of career; he is a medical doctor. "I didn't know you were this friendly," he said to me. "Seeing your stone-cold face from afar scared me, but I had to be a man enough to approach you," he further said. "I'm not that bad; I'm not just good at approaching people first," I replied, picking up the spoon of rice I dropped earlier.
Checking the time as I was about to leave the venue, we exchanged phone numbers and promised to keep in touch. Before I got home, I saw his message on WhatsApp, to which I replied, and gradually we built a friendship bond beyond what I expected. As an auxiliary nurse, I asked him lots of questions, as he is more knowledgeable than I am and is always ready to help. He has been a blessing to me ever since we met, and he did more than I expected of him.
He became my doctor, and if I complain of ordinary headaches, he will drive down to my area to drop off drugs for me. He also gave me a job opportunity in a hospital, which I gladly accepted and which also helped my financial situation. Don't judge a book by its cover. I thought he wouldn't be useful to me, but I was wrong, and I'm glad today that I didn't lose such a great friend because I thought he wouldn't be good to me. The feast I didn't want to attend due to my clothes turned out to be a feast of success for me, where I met a wonderful person who didn't care about what I was wearing that day.
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