My son got engaged to an
enchanting girl at the beginning of the New Year, on World peace day! 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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