'With this ring I thee wed'

I stood in the gardens of Fitchlea Primary School before my bride and charismatic Pastor Victor Mashoko, who declared us married on September 5, 2010.  I turned slightly and looked at my mother who was full of joy and remembered what my grandfather had said to me years ago before he passed on: "Give your mother many tears, tears of joy, and you will live the longest days," he said.

I married a woman I love, adore and respect. But a strong sense of sorrow crossed my mind not because what I had done was regrettable, but because I was stepping on unfamiliar territory. My close friends from university and church who were part of the bridal train were still single and I had listened to their conversations the night before and realised how we were moving in different directions in life.