Dearest Afia,.....See Full Story>>.....See Full Story>>
I am hoping this letter has found you on this day as you are celebrating your 35th birthday. May these confessions from my heart warm up yours. You know I would have plucked the stars and offered them to you as a birthday present if it was physically possible. Having known you for sixteen years, and been married to you for almost thirteen years has been one of the best things that ever happened to me.
I know our journey has not been a smooth one but my dear, with you in my corner, the world could rage and I would be as still as a rock. That’s the kind of strength you give to me. You make every hurdle easier to overcome.
My darling, my support system, my teammate, and my biggest cheerleader: thank you for choosing me. After all these years, you still remain my calm and restful oasis. I believe your resilience and grit is one of the reasons we’ve made it this far in our journey. Do you remember how we began all the way back to 2008 in Kumawu? Every time I revisit those early years, my heart swells with pride especially when I look at how much you’ve grown. You were only twenty then but look at you now. You have metamorphosed into a great woman.
One thing that gives me joy is that we remain inseparable after everything we’ve been through. The changes and relocations have not torn us apart. From Kumawu to Kumasi, then Bawku to Koforidua, and back to Kumasi. Now we are together here in Scotland. Although you got here before me, we made the long-distance work. Our love indeed has defied time and space.
I am not trying to sound cheesy but my love, I am in awe of you. As I type this letter on the iPhone you gifted me, I am sitting in the hall of our new apartment which you alone paid for. I have yet to settle in and find a job since I got here but I haven’t experienced any lack because you’ve been holding the fort. Right now you are in the bedroom trying to catch some sleep after returning from a night duty. I wish you could rest more but tonight you have another night duty.
In the past, you always met me halfway but presently you are the one paying all the bills. I know that not many women would do this without treating the man like a burden. Thankfully, you are not many women, you are my Afia.
When I start to fret about the financial responsibilities you are burdened with you calmly assure me, “It’s okay to let me shoulder everything this time. I know it’s not your fault that you can’t help. I still remember how you solely took care of me and the kids for those few years when I was in school and didn’t have a job. So now it’s my turn to take care of our family until you get back on your feet.” This is how you remind me every day that I made the best choice ever.
Tell me, how many women out there will give their credit cards to their men and encourage them to go to town and buy whatever they need for themselves? As a man who was raised to provide for my woman, I appreciate this gesture more than anything. I pray that I start work soon so that you can have some rest, my dear.
Over the years you have proven to me that partners can work through problems in their marriage without hurting each other. We fight for each other and not against each other. Because of who are to me, I am ever poised to continue to stick to the rules of our commitment till death do us part.
I promise you that I won’t do anything to jeopardize my place in your life. Yes, they say men have the tendency to stray. I am not going to lie and say that notion is foreign to me. As human as we are, we are prone to temptations here and there but be rest assured that, somewhere deep in my conscience, a warning bell sounds whenever those temptations come knocking on my door. It’s important that this bell keeps ringing because I don’t want to lose you. I swear by the sun of the day and the moon of the night that no woman born of a human can destroy what we have.
You are the sun my earth revolves around. Whenever I am alone or in a crowd, there is a greater part of my mind that is always with you. Although we’ve been together all these years, you still continue to be my last thought before I sleep and the first person on my mind when I wake up. I always consider myself fortune’s favorite for bringing you my way.
On this special day, I want to remind you that I love you more than you think I do. It is only God who knows the magnitude of the admiration I have for you. You may not believe it but it’s true that there would be enough evidence to convict me if I’m arrested for loving you too much. In the archives of my brain, it is only your strengths I keep.
I don’t want to wait for the worst to happen before I write a lengthy tribute. So I choose to celebrate you while you are here with me. Thank you for all that you’ve done for me and our family. Though I have written loads of appreciation messages on my WhatsApp status and your Facebook pages on countless occasions to let you know how lucky I am to have you, I am doing it again here with a larger audience. I want the world to know how much you mean to me and celebrate you with me. Have a happy special birthday, my Manager!
Yours ever,