By Ivy Chibanda
For a marriage to be certified, there has to be a marriage officer, the wedding couple and two witnesses. Most people have come to believe that for one to be officially married, they have to have a big wedding yet a visit to the registrar with your spouse and two witnesses will make you official.
6 years ago, Elsie and Godwin Gwasira had their court wedding and looking at the wedding pictures, one wouldn’t know. Having been living in two different continents, it only made sense that they have a court wedding and a small celebration afterwards. Ivy Chibanda caught up with the couple six years later and had an insight on how they went about their wedding and their marriage journey so far.
Ivy Chibanda (IC): What were your engagement, lobola and wedding dates?
Elsie Gwasira (EG): We engaged on the 1st of March 2014, Lobola was paid on the 6th of December 2014 and we wedded on the 24th of December 2014.
IC: How did you go about your wedding?
EG: We had a court wedding. After the ceremony, we went to a photoshoot at Amanzi Lodge which was followed by garden lunch with close family and friends at home. A court wedding was more ideal for us as I was based in the UK and my partner was in Zimbabwe.
IC: With the change in wedding trends over the years, given a chance, would you do things differently?
EG: No, I wouldn’t change anything, we did what we did as that was the best option for us to be together because we where in a long-distance relationship. However, I have always wanted a bigger wedding and that is still on the cards. Hopefully, we will renew our vows someday and have something small and intimate (approximately 100 people).
IC: What have you learnt about marriage over the past 6 years?
EG: Marriage is not easy, it goes through highs and lows; some days it’s a walk in the park and some days you just want to walk out. Some of the key survivals to our marriage have been humility, forgiveness, emotional intelligence, compromise, humour, valuing the needs of each other, respect and God. So much will happen in marriage, but the best secret is to know what to ignore especially those things thrown by outsiders.
IC: What is your advice to future brides and grooms?
EG: Marry your best friend, someone you have the same interests and values with. Never ignore vital signs like rudeness and impatience because what you ignore while courting will only magnify in marriage. Above all, make God the centre of your marriage; fasting, bible study and praying together always releases a move of God in your marriage.
