The Visit
Shewn is a guy I met on one of the social media, what I saw about him intrigued me. I developed interest in the salient things he puts on his profile and I decided to write him an email. I checked for his email on the social media and I wrote a letter to the email with which he registered for the social medium. After weeks of sending messages to this email I received no response from him. And I discovered that he is frequent on the social media, at least he will check into the social medium twice a week, because the icon will show the person’s last activity on the social medium. “What could be the matter with him?” I asked myself. I decided to give him a time more maybe he will reply. When I discovered that he did not reply after 6 weeks I decided to send personal message to him on that social media.
He replied to the personal message I sent almost immediately.
“Can we know ourselves further?” I asked him in my next response.
“Oh! That would be wondrous”, he replied me.
“Please send me your email and I will send you the details about myself”, I replied him.
In his response, he gave me a completely different email from the one on the social medium that I accessed. I was confused. Why would he open a social medium with an account and be using another email? Well, people have different emails I said to myself. As I was about to get to him, something jumped into my heart like a flash of the light, will this guy not be one of the fraudsters around? I asked myself, “hey, hey, Covery tread this path cautiously”, something dropped that in my heart. As if talking to someone, I replied in a low voice to myself, “I will thanks”.
I took out my laptop and started composing my letter to him like this,
Exchanged Email Messages
“Dear Shewn,
When I come across you for the very first time on the internet and on one of the social media, I was happy reading through your profile on the social medium. After going through your profile, I saw that we have so many things in common, and I decided that it is good if we can get to know each other better.
I am Covery Stoller by name, a lady living in Progressive island. I do hope you would have heard the name of my island before. I am 30 years old, 169 centimeters in height, never married before and have no children. I am a medical practitioner in this island. My personality type is phlegm.
I am hoping we can get going very well through this medium and with time other development can follow.
Could you please tell me some basic things about yourself? What is your age? Your names? Are you married or not? And other things about you that you will want me to know.
I will be waiting to read from you soon.
Kisses.
Covery Stoller”
I re-read the message I have typed again to be sure of what I typed and then I clicked on send. The message was sent. Checked my inbox for recent messages and recent news from some newsletters and newspapers subscribed to, after which I signed out.
I started preparing for work, because I am on the afternoon shift. Soon enough I was done with the preparation and I set out for office.
After seeing the patient and relaxing, I received notification on my system of a new message from Shewn. Oh! This is a surprise; I said to myself, I was not expecting his reply so soon.
I opened the message and the content of the message is like this.
“Dearie Covery,
I am well pleased to read your message today. I am about to go out and see some of my customers when your message entered. Since I have an appointment, I couldn’t wait to read and reply your message. But immediately I returned to office, the first thing I do is opening your message and reading them. The contents of your message were well understood. It will also be my warmest desire to get to know you more through this medium.
My name is Ayewa Shewn, I am 35 years old, 174 centimeters in height and a black man. I am at the moment one of the sales representatives of Fair-Enough Company in Rearay island. As you are so I am, single and never married before, therefore, I have no children. I am however a Christian. I do not know much about the personality types, but I am quiet and easy going man.
How is your work? I will be looking forward to reading your message very soon.
Warmest love from here,
Shewn.”
This is surprising, I said to myself. What makes him not to respond to the message I sent to the email I got on the social medium? With time I will know why.
After the day’s work when I got home, I settled down to write another email to him.
“Dear Shewn,
I am glad to read your mail. I was in the office when I received the mail because I was on the afternoon shift. I decided to wait till I get home before replying your message.
All that you said in your email is in tandem with what I read from your profile on the social medium but one thing that is not in agreement with it all is your email. I have sent messages to the email on your social medium but you did not reply to that email, why?
I have not heard of your island before. Where is your island located on the planet?
I hope you indeed enjoy your day in the office today?
Have a lovely day.
Covery”
Heavy Burden Lifted
This is how we continued to send messages to ourselves every day. He told me in his response that he couldn’t access the email he used to open the social medium site again because he has answered a question half heartedly and couldn’t remember the answer he supplied on the internet again, whenever he tried to access the email the question would be given, after the third wrong attempt, he will be asked to wait for sometimes before trying. He has done these times without number, and when he could not access the email that prompted him to open another email account.
Since the email has not affected him in accessing the social medium he left it at that, but when anyone asks of his email he will give the recent one to them. He apologized for the difficulty I may have passed through wanting to get to him through the email.
After reading this message, I was contented and the heavy burden on my heart was lifted off. In my next message to him, I attached to the message my pictures. He replied attaching his recently taken pictures to me too.
Cultural And Religious Beliefs
I asked him the kind of foods they used to eat there and he described them to me, telling me the ones he likes most. I said to him how would I know how to prepare such foods, won’t it take me forever to know how to prepare the foods in their island?
He laughed when replying. Preparing our food is easy he said, when we get to know better you will see that preparing those foods are not difficult he said.
He shared with me his religious beliefs, and I told him that religion is not that important here, everyone does things, worships at his or her pace. I have never been to church before, I told him, but because of him now, I think I will be getting close to church so that I will not be completely naïve on church issues when we see.
I think this would be better too, he said in his response to me, adding that he will also try to be changing to the ways and manners you people are thinking over there so that he will also not be completely gullible to my lifestyle when we see. “That would be great of you” I replied him.
Environment
When we talked about the environment, the weather, he said the temperature of his place is different from our place, their temperature now is around 38-40 degrees Celsius. I shouted on reading this. How are they coping? How are they living? That is damn too hot, it is like oven, I said in my response to him.
Well as you have been accustomed to the climate in your area so have I adapted the climate changes here, the weather changes, but to be sincere with you, it is hot darling.
Climate And Health
He added that the temperature change is part of the reasons why mosquitoes have not been eradicated from their side of the world. As medical doctor, I know you are aware that mosquitoes are the transmitter of malaria, this is why malaria is still one of the predominant diseases we suffer from in this part of the land. We really hope something could be done against this disease, he said.
Planning to Visit
After several talks and shares and discovering that we have common foci, I asked of the time we can talk on phone, through any of the video calls. He said he did not have an android phone and that the phone he is using is a Nokia 200 phone. Talking through video calls would be difficult, he replied.
“What of your laptop may be we can talk through skype”, I asked him in one of my emails. “That cannot be possible because I do not have a laptop of my own and the one I am using in the office has faulty camera”, he replied.
I insisted on talking with him over the phone and he said that will be welcome, he sent his phone numbers to me and I called him. We talked at length when I called. During the call I told him that I will be taken a leave in the office to come visiting him in his island. He welcomed the idea, but said he at the moment is not living alone.
Don’t worry. I will be booking for an hotel on line from here, what you just need is come and meet me at the airport, “can you do that?” I asked him. He said he will do that. He will also be taken some days off his duty to welcome me.
After the phone calls, knowing the voice of the person I am dealing with, I used to call him. I took four weeks leave at my working place, I am going on a tourism to Rearay island.
I have booked for an hotel through the internet after checking the details of the hotel, I felt this is okay, the security and other things are okay for me. I booked for the flight ticket, applied at the embassy and was not denied the right to visit Rearay.
Everything Set
After I was through with all of these arrangements, I told him that everything has been set, and I will be leaving my country the following day, which happened to be on Saturday. According to the information gathered on the trip, the trip to Rearay island from my island, Progressive island, will last 6 hours. He wished me a very safe trip, that I will get to his island safely. According to him, he will start praying for me as from now on. Well since I am just getting myself acquainted with the faith, I do not know what to say.
There was no delay as such in the airport in my island, after checking my papers by the immigration workers, I was cleared to go.
At Rearay Airport
Before entering the plane, I called him to notify him that there is no delay here, in Progressive Island and that I should be airborne within minutes, that he should start timing my movements now so that he will not be late in getting to the airport to welcome me.
He told me that I will definitely see him in the airport.
I have bought a new android phones along that I will give him and some of his people since he said he is still leaving with his parents. I also have two laptops in my bag and other necessary things. Other things that cannot be carried I hope to buy in his island with his assistance. Since he has no car neither his parents, one of the first things to get in the island of Rearay is a car, for I cannot afford to be hiring cars to everywhere he will be taking me to, that would not make sense, it won’t give us time to be together, and I will love to see some beautiful places within the island.
I started thinking about him in the plane as we took off. The pilot telling us the altitude we are and the weather condition as we move on in the space.
Our plane touched down five minutes after taken off from Progressive Island’s airport. As I alighted from the plane, I saw a man looking at the people alighting from the plane, I know it is him. The photos I have seen are exact same.
I went and clear my luggage. He has also seen me, I was not different from the picture he has seen he also attested to this. When we came face to face, I do not know maybe I should kiss him or not, I am not too familiar with their culture here, I just rushed into his open arms, and he embraced me, giving me a peck. “Wow!” I said to myself, this is lovely. “How do we proceed?” I asked standing by him with my luggage beside me.
“Let us go to where the hired car is” he responded. He has hired a car that will take us to the hotel I have booked. I told him before we go to any hotel; he should let us go to his house. He asked if I am sure I want to go to his place first without taken my load to the hotel. I answered in the affirmative; I want to go to your place first.
At His Family House
That is okay by me he replied and told the driver the street we are going. Soon enough we get to his family’s house.
The house is a four bedroom flat, it is fenced with the floors cemented. We entered into the building and I told him to tell the Uber man to go. “We may not get a better vehicle like this if we want to move to your hotel later”, he said.
“Don’t worry about that, let him go, whatever vehicle we get I will manage it as you are also managing it here,” I replied.
“Okay. If you so said”, he replied.
“Is this not going to be my new place? Let me feel the environment first. Outside that you know I am on tourism, I need to see how things are being done here”, I responded.
He asked the driver to leave, paying him off. We moved my load into the compound and into the living room. At the living room I saw his father and mother, they were watching the television. It must be a news in their language.
“Mama, Papa, this is my friend I said would be coming to our land on tourism”, he said pointing to me as I stepped forward, “good day ma and sir” I said.
“Oh you are welcome”, his mother said standing up from where she was sitting down at to move to where I am, “welcome dear”, his father also said, asking, “I hope the journey is not stressful?”
“No, not at all sir”, I replied, as his mother ushered me to an empty seat, please sit here she said pointing to the seat.
“Thank you ma”, I replied. I am yet naïve to their cultural way of greeting, though I have checked through it on social media, but practicing it is different.
“What do we offer you?” His father asked. “Has she been to this part of the world before?” he face his son to ask from him.
“No sir, he has not been out of his country until today”, Shewn replied his father.
“That is wonderful. Eh, maybe she should first go and shower while your mother go and prepare something for her”, Shewn’s father said.
I nodded my head in support of the idea, as Shewn led me to an empty room to take my bathe there.
Shewn is using a room while there is a visitor’s room. It is the visitor’s room that he took me to bathe there.
While taking my bathe I heard him talking with his parents. They must be discussing what they will offer me.
They got for me fried rice with chicken and juice.
My Plan
It is has been my plan that I will not lodge in the hotel, though I told him that I will be putting up at the hotel, but along the line I changed my mind that I will not do that. While I settled down to eat the food gotten for me, I told Shewn that I am not going to any hotel that it is this place I will be staying. He asked of what will become of the money paid and I told him that he should leave that, I will resolve that later. It is you I have come to know, and how can I know you when I am away in hotel?
He said he is yet to inform his parents about that. I told him to go and tell them, for all I could sense from their actions they will not say no to me staying with them.
He told his parents what I said and they agreed.
After I finished my food, his father asked to know if I still have parents. I told him that I have parents. Did they know that you will be coming to Rearay Island? His father asked again. Yes, I told them I will be traveling to Rearay island on tourism. Have you call them to intimate them that you have gotten here?
It was when he talked of calling them that I asked Shewn if he has gotten me a registered SIM card. Shewn said yes. I opened one of my luggage to bring out an android phone there and the line was inserted into the phone. I have charged the battery before leaving Progressive Island.
I took out my diary and call my parents. They answered the call wishing me very good stay in the island.
That is good, his father said. As his father and mother excused us and leave the living room for us. As we are about to start talking there was power outage, the temperature of the place changed and everywhere is heated up. I cannot stand the heat; I asked him how long would it be before the power is restored. The power would not be restored until the following day. I shouted. How are you coping with this kind of heat? This is our island he replied. We have adapted.
Hey! We need to do something about this, I told him. Asking him what he thinks we can do. He replied that we need to get a generator. Do you have money to get a generator? If you have money, we can go and get one now, tomorrow we shall be changing money to Rearay’s currency and we will be able to do some other things, I said
He asked me to let us go to his room, where he opened his wardrobe to take money there. After taken the money, he told his parent that we are going out.
I can see from his parents face that they are happy. They wished us a very good outing. They did not know what we are going out to do.
At The Market
He waived down cab as we move to the place to get the generator. Before we buy the generator he said I will need a cloth that is not too thick he thence took me to where they are selling ladies wears to buy some cloth, after which we left for where we buy the generator. He called an electrician for the installation and we returned home. The electrician did the necessary things and the generator was put on. We did not sleep in the darkness that day. We talked and talked into the night.
The following day, we left for Bureau-de-change place in Rearay Island where we change the money into the island’s local currency. After this we left for where cars are being sold in the island and bought a new car. With this car he started taking me to see places.
Observing
As I lived with his family it gives me room to observe how things are being done in the island. His mother took me through their cultural beliefs amongst other things. She will give me room to try my hand in food preparation. It was a fun to me.
Before I finished my leave I have learnt a lot about his culture and religious beliefs and could see how they view things in their land. the trip was a fun.
Back Home
Before I returned home we have made promises to each other, promise to ever be in love. I will have to inform my parents of what I want and how the wedding will be done.
When I got back to my island, I went to my parents and ironed it out with them. They do not mind me marrying him in as much as I will have peace and joy with him.
The Clause
For the wedding to take place, he has to come to our Island. I know his purse, this means I will be the one to sponsor his trip to our land. I sponsored the trip there and we got wedded. After the wedding he started working in our land. Two years after we visited his people in Rearay Island.
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