Life’s Lemons

When life gives you a lemon, they say, turn it into lemonade. However, the bitter taste of the lemon can’t be ignored. Agatha and Frank were love birds right from college; they were never ashamed to display their affection everywhere they went. They agreed to get married in a quiet ceremony but Agatha’s mum disapproved on the premise that Agatha was her only daughter and it won’t be befitting for her social status. They had an elaborate wedding which didn’t go down too well with Frank because he felt his wife took sides with her mother against him, and also because of the consequent drain on his finances. Agatha on the other hand, didn’t see anything wrong in the change of plans, after all it was a once in a life time event.

Problems began to show up when it was discovered in their second year of marriage that Agatha had fertility issues. They, however, decided to keep the issues to themselves while seeking medical assistance. Agatha’s mum kept pestering her daughter, telling her that having children is the only way to secure her marriage. She neither gave Frank breathing space, rather she kept accusing him of not being able to impregnate her daughter. Agatha became overly agitated and began to read meaning into every move made by Frank towards the opposite sex. This suspicious attitude created a gap between them as Frank decided to take solace in working late and spending more time with friends.

On their Fifth wedding anniversary, Frank sat at his desk in the office pondering over their childless marriage, He loved his wife dearly and was willing to stand by her but the pressure on him was becoming unbearable. Jane, his secretary, walked in with a basket of food. She told him she observed that he had been moody all day and that he didn’t go out for lunch so she decided to get him something to eat. The aroma of the food filtered through the air as she opened the flask to show him what she brought. Frank couldn’t resist it because he was famished, having skipped breakfast because he had a little squabble with his wife. Moreover the aroma was tempting. Jane dished the food, placed it on his table and as she went to a nearby refrigerator to get him water, Agatha walked right into them. She was livid with anger; railing derogatory words on Jane and every effort Frank made to calm her down proved abortive. Frank was highly embarrassed but he managed to get her out of the office to his car because he knew she wasn’t in the right frame of mind to drive her car.

As soon as they got home, Agatha made an attempt to get down from the car but Frank’s strong hands prevented her. He apologised about the food and explained how it all happened. He reassured her of his love and expressed his fear concerning her wavering trust in him. Agatha kept mute all through, as she pondered on how cruel life was to her as she couldn’t conceive and how that was affecting her marriage. A phone call from their family doctor broke her thoughts, she had earlier gone to the hospital to complain about her health and she was made to run some tests. Instead of waiting for the result, she decided to give her hubby a surprise visit to apologise for her behaviour earlier that morning, which eventually turned sour. The doctor couldn’t hide the excitement in his voice as he broke the news of her pregnancy to her. Agatha couldn’t believe her ears, she screamed for joy as tears rolled down her face…..

Marriage is like a wrapped gift, we don’t know what is in it until it is unwrapped. Also, whatever we find in it is what we have to live with. Most people get into marriage with high hope of procreation but sometimes it doesn’t work out easily. It is advisable for couples trying to have a baby to be united in their cause, be there for each other, exhibit a high level of trust and not allow any external influence to come between them, bearing in mind that whatever can’t profer solution to their problems shouldn’t be given a chance. It is not so easy though but it is achievable and with God on their side, their expectations will become a reality.

Thank you for your time, please feel free to share with others. You can also drop your comments or send me a mail through info@iretiadeoyinleye.com, or iretioyinleye@gmail.com. Till I come your way again next week, make your marriage work!