Tosin Morakinyo

Lagos, Nigeria

The Middle East God

 

As soon as I completed my University Education, my father’s expectation was for me to return home with a fiancée. Prior to my final papers, my father kept ringing it in my ears to bring home my wife to be.

 

“Now that you’re about to write your final papers, don’t forget our last discussion!” He said, as he continued to eat during dinner.

 

“Discussion? I can’t remember we ever had one, dad,” I retorted with a pretentious facial expression.

 

Falling for my trick of pretending to have forgotten, he took his time to inform me again. All my efforts to make him realize that my exams are more important, now, proved abortive.

 

The following day, before I set out for school, he reminded me again.

 

“Dad? You’ll get to meet her soon. But…” My heart was about to tear into two, knowing how stoic my dad could be on matters like religion.

 

“What’s the ‘but’ there, son?” He pulled down his glasses and looked at me with rapt attention.

 

“She ‘s  Muslim.”

 

“What? Tell me it’s a joke! You want to marry a lady that worships the Middle East God? Not in this house,” he stood up and stormed out of the sitting room.

 

I became so confused. When did religion become a problem for lovebirds?