A Tale of Two Stories
November 2, 2019
Omg y’all, have I got some stories for you this week! It was a surprisingly exciting couple of days. This happens from time to time. I feel like life is like that. When nothing is going on, it is completely empty. But when there are things going on, it happens all at once! Well, I have two stories I want to share. I thought about saving one for another time, but they are both kind of short.
The first story takes place on Sunday. It actually started earlier than that, but I did not know about it until Sunday, so that is where we will start. I was with my parents and we were visiting relatives that lived about an hour and a half away. While there, my mom got a call from my cousin, he is actually my second cousin, but it is simply easier to leave it as cousin. My mother went into the other room to take this call, so unfortunately I did not hear the whole conversation. But I did pick up on one little snippet of conversation. She goes (in Malayalam), “-haha- yes, she does have an m4marry profile…oh your friend?”
Oh no…oh no, oh no, oh no. Is this what you call up my mother to tell? Chettai, what are you doing? Also, does no one follow the unspoken code anymore? Why did he not come to me with this first? So many questions! And of course, I am in the kitchen trying to hear my mother’s conversation while everyone is talking around me. Needless to say, I was not able to gather much at that time. I did, however, get more information later on.
Turns out, he had called to talk to my mom about something else, and in the normal flow of conversation, he happened to remember that he came across my profile. How did he come across the profile, you might ask? Well, he has a friend who is on M4Marry. My cousin wanted to see what kind of fish were out in this sea (since he himself is not on this website), so he and his friend were scrolling through the different profiles. Lo and behold, he comes across a familiar face! Imagine how surprised you would be if you found out your friend algorithmically matched with your family member.
I talked to my cousin on Wednesday to see what the deal was, and more importantly, why he did not tell me about this guy first! He was not sure if I knew about this profile, after all, it does say the profile was made by my parents. Fair enough. But that goes to show you, for those who may have doubted parents secretly putting up marriage profiles for their children, that these kinds of things do happen. For these parents, their end goal is to get their children married, at any cost. But I think it ruins the trust between parents and children. What about those people who do not want to get married? Do they not have a say in the course their lives take? We no longer live in a time where marriages are a form of alliance or means to survive. People can have fulfilled lives if they are married, they can also have fulfilled lives if they are not married. I hope we can remember these things when we become parents.
Okay, my second story is more of an update: Lucas finally messaged me! I was really caught off guard by that! It was on Halloween as I was heading over to my cousins’ (another cousin, I have a large family) place when my phone suddenly vibrated. Thankfully, I had not left my driveway yet when the message came through, do not text and drive! But in my mind, I was like, do I have time for this? I was about to go to my cousins’ and that could easily take two hours, being there not driving. And I did not want to be over there constantly on my phone texting this guy. And what if someone asked? Oh you know, it is just this guy my friend said might text me. I did not even know his last name! And if that information got back to the wrong person…needless to say that is unnecessary drama! So I figured, I will respond once I get back, if it is not too late, or I will just message him tomorrow. Besides, did he think I would not have plans on Halloween?
I messaged him yesterday morning, and we have been talking a little bit today. Apparently, he knows next to nothing about me as well. All Lenny said was to text me, and that I am someone like him (Lucas). Hmm, what does that mean? Because, I am not a big fan of me. Are we going to be like magnets and repel since we are similar? I guess time will tell. Also, should I be worried that he knows hardly anything about me and yet still messaged me? I know I hardly know anything about him and I responded, but this is something completely in character for me. Is it for him as well? Is that what Lenny meant by we are similar?
As for now, Lucas seems decent enough. His texting grammar is good enough that I have not immediately shut him down. Listen, I hate messages that are “wat” “u r” “4eva” type of lingo. No, type properly or do not text me! I will let the occasional “cus” or “tom” slide, but I feel your texting voice imitates your actual voice. So do you talk like that in real life? If so, then I have nothing to say to you. I have stopped talking to potential suitors for less. Anyway, I guess we will just have to see where this story takes us.
Before I sign off, I have a very special shout out: today is my parents’ 30th anniversary! You two are a prime example of a loving, working relationship. It is amazing to see how the two of you have been through thick and thin, good times and bad times, in health and in sickness, but have always had each other’s backs. I sincerely hope that my married life would be a reflection of yours, but maybe a little less bullheadedness. Congratulations on 30 years guys, and I hope you have countless more years together!
- Aemi
