Last weekend I attended the wedding for a local Christian couple. In Niger, amongst the Hausa Christians, a "uniform" (or more acurately a certain fabric) is purchased by members of the church, and friends of the family, as well as the wedding party, and musical groups that play/sing. Everyone has it made up in their preferred style, and wears it to the wedding. (The shawl is an extra piece of fabric that married women wear whenever they go out of their home--no matter what the weather! On hot days it can be difficult for me to have a good attitude about this extra layer!) This is a show of support for the bride and groom. The invitation is open to members of the community, and the church building quickly gets filled. The wedding was at 10, but we left at 8:45 to get a seat. (Not a good seat--just a seat) By 10 am, the place was packed from front to back with standing room only. The ushers spent a great deal of time ushering people back to the back of the church, so that family would have room to sit. The benefit of my football-like uniform was twofold. First, I had a bit more space for my bum, as it appeared more like I needed it, and second, I had a bit of ventilation, as the fabric was not actually touching my shoulders. The wedding was filled with singing, by the choirs from the church, and also a local christian group "Ebeneezer" as the brides nephew was one of the members of the goup. Armed with 1.5 litres of water (and a last minute potty stop) I managed the heat, crush of people, and the power outages until the conclusion of the ceremony, at 1pm! (about 4 hours long) I didn't even stay for cake, or to go to the home of the bride, as many do afterwards. One interesting note is that the bride is not supposed to smile at her wedding. She is supposed to be "sad" about leaving her parents' home. (I'm sure that I could not have pulled that one off at my own wedding!)
Last weekend I attended the wedding for a local Christian couple. In Niger, amongst the Hausa Christians, a "uniform" (or more acurately a certain fabric) is purchased by members of the church, and friends of the family, as well as the wedding party, and musical groups that play/sing. Everyone has it made up in their preferred style, and wears it to the wedding. (The shawl is an extra piece of fabric that married women wear whenever they go out of their home--no matter what the weather! On hot days it can be difficult for me to have a good attitude about this extra layer!) This is a show of support for the bride and groom. The invitation is open to members of the community, and the church building quickly gets filled. The wedding was at 10, but we left at 8:45 to get a seat. (Not a good seat--just a seat) By 10 am, the place was packed from front to back with standing room only. The ushers spent a great deal of time ushering people back to the back of the church, so that family would have room to sit. The benefit of my football-like uniform was twofold. First, I had a bit more space for my bum, as it appeared more like I needed it, and second, I had a bit of ventilation, as the fabric was not actually touching my shoulders. The wedding was filled with singing, by the choirs from the church, and also a local christian group "Ebeneezer" as the brides nephew was one of the members of the goup. Armed with 1.5 litres of water (and a last minute potty stop) I managed the heat, crush of people, and the power outages until the conclusion of the ceremony, at 1pm! (about 4 hours long) I didn't even stay for cake, or to go to the home of the bride, as many do afterwards. One interesting note is that the bride is not supposed to smile at her wedding. She is supposed to be "sad" about leaving her parents' home. (I'm sure that I could not have pulled that one off at my own wedding!)
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