Traditionally Friday night is pizza night in the Mink household. But lately we have been having a couple of staff over as well for this all-American meal. Jenny and Simushi, a married couple that both work here, were our honored guests for the evening. Around the dinner table, we shared our “most exciting moment,” the table topic for the evening. Jenny, originally from Umtata village in South Africa, shared about the night before her wedding. In that area it is customary for the future groom to undergo a customary obstacle course at 4 am the night before they are scheduled to be wed. In this custom, the woman is to be in her house waiting patiently while many of her male relatives gather together outside the house with a bull and a spear. When the man arrives, he is given the spear and must spear the bull. When he is finished, the male relatives line up and form a barricade into the house that the man must break through to get to his wife. If he succeeds, the wedding occurs later that day, but if not, the wedding must be moved until he does succeed.
Before this occurred, Simushi told us about how he was so worried he wouldn’t get through, so Jenny came up with a bright idea. She jokingly told him to put on a dress so that her male relatives will just think it is a girl and he will get right through easily. Well, later, while she was anxiously waiting for him to arrive, one of her girlfriends informed her he had finally arrived…only that he was seen off in the distance putting on a skirt! So whether it was the skirt or some fancy moves that got him past that night, who knows, but they have been happily married for 7 years now.
So the picture above is of course not Jenny and Simushi, but rather just a fitting picture to the topic of weddings. While my brother and I were handing out clothes, one of the boys stumbled upon a dress and tried it on…yadda yadda…eventually one of the girls put on the dress and he came up with a “tux” and they had a mock 2 minute wedding outside with my brother as the officiator.
You lead maybe the most interesting life on the face of the planet!
ReplyDeleteI hope things are holding together there. I know it is a time of turmoil. I've been preoccupied with COZV over the last couple weeks and I pray for the best for all of you.