Love blooms during first date

Edison Marindich first saw the woman of his dreams in 2014 and he was besotted at first sight. He, a workmate of his and several other friends had decided to enjoy a night out. It was while the party was out enjoying itself that his workmate invited her sister along and as soon as the pair met, Edison was smitten.

However, it was not going to be that easy. Despite his feelings, the lady in question was unavailable as she was seeing someone. That, however, did not deter his efforts. “After six months of chatting on Facebook and asking her out, I finally had a breakthrough! One day, out of the blues, I decided to ask her out for tea. I didn’t think she’d say yes but she did, which is a good thing because I had purposed to stop pursuing her if she said no,” Edison explains.

Carol chimes in, “I had broken up with my boyfriend so there was nothing to lose. Besides, I felt like I owed Edison because he’d been asking me out for a while. I did, however, tell him not to raise his hopes as I was sure nothing much was going to happen.” How wrong Carol was! The couple shared a kiss as they parted ways to their various homes that evening. “The date was not what I expected,” explains Carol, “I thought we would have tea and be on our way but the more we spoke, the more I realised we wanted the same things.

I was looking for a long term relationship and so was he. He was also kind, God
fearing and funny.” The couple also realised why their bond was so special: they had been raised by single mothers and both were incredibly close to them. “I know people say opposites attract but I think our relationship works because we have the same background. We both know what struggle is. We don’t take anything for granted and work hard for all that that we have. We also did not have any crazy expectations of each other. For instance, turns out Edison thought I was high maintenance while in reality, I’m not,” says Carol.

Admittedly, while having a similar upbringing brought the couple together, it still presented their challenges, especially for Carol who had grown accustomed to being independent. “After
watching my mum raise four children by herself, I believed I could do anything a man can do.

However, when Edison came along, I thought maybe it was time I took a back seat. My mother also encouraged me saying it was okay for me to find a good man. However, I still struggle with being ‘looked after’,” Carol explains. Edison, however, says he has discovered a way around it. “I understand her. Being a first-born, she’s used to responsibility. I often remind her that I’m now in charge and even when she tries to chip in when I don’t have money, I make sure I pay her back,” he explains.

The couple dated for two years before Edison proposed to Carol. “When I was praying for a spouse, I used to pray while looking at her picture. At the end of the day, God gave me what I wanted. On August 28, 2015, which was on my birthday, I got on one knee and surprised
her with a proposal,” Edison reveals. On November 5, 2016, the couple exchanged their vows at the Parklands Baptist Church. The wedding cost them Ksh1.5 million. “We both chipped in although Edison tried to get me out of it saying he was going to handle everything
but I would have none of it. So with our savings and contributions from friends and family, we were able to have a fairy tale wedding with a honeymoon in Dubai to boot!’” concludes Carol.