Harana

At dinner last night, my sister introduced us to her boyfriend. When she told us about the meeting in the morning, my other sister and I thought that marriage plans are in the works. We were wrong. Apparently, it was the guy who wanted to meet us and she merely obliged (plus points, if you ask me!). 

My sister is very private. Growing up, we didn’t know any of her friends; whereas I brought all of mine to our house to hang out, she keeps all her relationships to herself. So this “formally meet E’s boyfriend” is a new experience for us. 

The previous one she had was iffy. Had we not learned about their relationship through the neighborhood rumor mill and had my mom not insisted on inviting him to my birthday party, he would’ve come and gone from her life without us knowing. What sort of man would hesitate meeting the family of the woman he supposedly loves, cares for, and is serious about? They eventually broke up and I couldn’t be happier. My sister deserves someone better.

Meeting the family, especially the parents, could be daunting and stressful. Regardless of the depth of your love for that person, you would always have that sense of anxiety at the back of your mind. What if they don’t like you? What if you don’t like them? Would your love and devotion to each other withstand this “trial by fire”?

In this generation of casual connections and arbitrary choices, performing traditional acts of expressing ones commitment is refreshing. I’m not one to swoon at old-fashioned ways of courtship; it should take more than a harana (serenade) to win a girl over, but I can’t deny that it would be sweet. 

Lovers... of nature.