My son got engaged to an enchanting girl at the
beginning of the New Year. I was
requested by his fiancée to say a few words on the occasion… and I was pleased
to be offered an opportunity to give him a piece of my mind, that too by his
fiancée. So there I was center stage
after they had exchanged rings in a brief engagement ceremony. As I took stage, my son got agitated,
wondering if I’d toast him or roast him.
I began by asking the couple, to hold hands till I
finish. They frowned, but did it. I then asked them, what in hell were they
doing, getting engaged on world peace day?
I told his friends, that even though I put my arm
around him often, I was not privy to all of his secrets. They heaved a sigh of relief. I then revealed
one. The couple often pursued their romance at my brother’s house, and it was
he who tattled. As they were leaving his abode one day, she asked him to give
her a ring. He replied – Why ring? I’ll Whatsapp you!. He realized his mistake
pretty fast, for here he was with a ring - a real solitaire....not a ‘smart
phony’ (Smart phone) one.
Addressing his fiancée, I said, my son knows how to
handle women, and make them dote on him. Her eyes widened in fear. What was I
about to reveal?
Just that, he was given birth to by one, was
brought up in the laps of 11 others, and
was doted on by his maternal grandmother (a mother of 15, 12 girls and 3 boys)
who is 93 and was at the venue to check out the new woman in his life! She could’ve sent her blessings by whatsapp,
on which she keeps herself abreast of her children’s, grand children’s and
great children’s and son in law’s shenanigans, but she didn’t. Dutifully, still
holding hands they went down to her seat and received her blessings and
possibly well hidden secrets to a flock of kids…
I then went to a little secret of my own - A little
while before the love birds decided to feather a nest, I found myself in a
dilemma. My daughter, four years younger
than the bridegroom, opened a line of conversation that was headed into
forbidden territory. “Dada , I want a
sister”, she said. We were very giving
parents, but some things were beyond us.
So I said, “Tell your brother to
find you one. She did, and the rest is history!
I concluded with these words, “It was Michael
Leunig who said “Love one another and you will be happy. It's as simple and as difficult as that”, and
in explanation, I told them that the longer they held hands,
the less chance there was, that the rings would fall off.
They smiled,
but kept holding hands till they had to break apart and shake mine!
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