In the 10 months of our marriage, Mr.B and I have been by each others side day in and day out and to say we’ve grown accustomed to each other is an understatement. For instance, I’ve started to get used to the A/C and even switch off the boiler, well most of the time anyway. He makes sure we’re always stocked up with Coke, even if it comes with the nagging warning of how bad it is for my teeth. Like Mickey & Minnie, Jay-Z & Beyonce, Cheech & Chong (minus the pot) we’ve been joined at the hip. So it’s understandable that it’s a struggle and a half when I leave Mr.B’s side for the first time as I make my way to London.
Few nights before leaving, we lay in bed and were watching some telly when I realized I wouldn’t see him for two weeks and began to choke up. I understood that this wasn’t going to be easy for Mr.B either and I needed to be considerate about the emotional toll this would take on him. I turned to him and gently placed my hand on his arm. As the flickering light from the television reflected in his subtly hazel eyes, Mr.B asked what was wrong. I contemplated telling him that I wanted to stay back, I didn’t want to leave his side and I’d miss him terribly but I chose to be strong for him.
‘What are you going to do when I go?’ I asked with genuine concern.
Mr.B turned and looked at the TV as he pondered. Perhaps I shouldn’t have asked him the question as it turned his attention to all the time we’d be spending apart. I bit my bottom lip and tried to come up with a topic changer when he finally turned toward me and said;
‘I guess, I’ll sleep in the middle…’
Marriage Tip No. 36
Just because you feel something, don’t assume your spouse does!
Welcome to our ‘touching’ married life.
About the author:
Born in Africa, Chandru grew up between Nigeria, India and the UK. With a Masters in International Business from the University of Westminster, he moved to New York where he worked as a Business Development Manager for three years. In 2002, he returned to Nigeria where he currently resides and runs a trading company. Chandru has been writing for Beyond Sindh (www.beyondsindh.com) since 2004 and has published numerous articles in the quarterly publication. His story entitled ‘The Love Letter’ won the Mirage Book short story contest and was published in an anthology titled Inner Voices in January 2009. His short story ‘Zero’ is scheduled to be published in the anthology Indian Voices towards the end of 2010.
In December 2009, Chandru’s first novel, ‘The Journey of Om’ was published in India by Cedar Books.
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