I saw a good mother in her

When and how did you meet?
Annet: I first saw him in 2009 when I was in S.6 vacation. My sister and I had gone to see our brother’s art pieces at his gallery and he was among his friends. When we had left, my brother called and asked me whether he could give my number to someone he introduced as Mark. He described him and I accepted because I had seen him.
Mark: The first time I saw her I was stunned by her beauty and the way she walked. Then I asked her brother to give me her mobile number.

So, when did the two of you eventually become close?
Annet: After a year, I would visit him at his residence in Entebbe (then) over the weekends and two years later, he asked me to start living with him. I consulted my parents and they agreed since we knew each other’s families and were close.

Did he propose to you? When was it and how did you react?
Annet: One early morning in January 2013, after I had moved into his house, he told me he wanted to legalise our relationship first with an introduction. I was excited and did not hesitate to agree. I did not want to leave room for anyone to snatch away my dream husband. I wanted to fix a date there and then but I was expecting so I decided to call it off because I feared it would be stressful and affect my baby.
After I had given birth, one bright morning as he prepared to leave for work, he looked at the baby and I. I do not know what was running in his mind but he proposed again and I felt like I am the most treasured woman in the world. It was in the second week of January 2014. So, I fixed a date for the function.

What attracted you to each other?
Annet: The first time he spoke to me over the phone, he sounded so down to earth. This was the kind of person I had always wanted. He is very handsome, loving, caring (he would check on me all the time despite his busy schedule). He is a man every girl would fall for.
Mark: The first time I saw her, I saw a good mother in her. She is a smart, calm, jolly and pretty. She is patient and respectful.

What was your budget and how did you raise the funds?
Annet: Our budget was Shs30m and both families contributed equally during the introduction meetings. About 80 per cent contribution was from us and the 20 per cent was from friends and our families. I do not know how we were able to raise this, but I think because God was in control.

Did you involve a planner?
Annet: Yes, but she came in at the last minute only to guide us with arrangements for the ceremony.

How did you come up with the guest list?
Annet: Both families sat down and decided on whom to invite and how many were to attend. We invited 150 people although we exceeded that number. In other wards we hosted more than we invited.

What were you doing on the eve of your introduction?
Annet: I was ensuring that everything is in place and controlled. Since my husband is always in and out of the country, I had to help him prepare because he was busy with work. He was always out of the country since he works for UN.

Were you disappointed in any way during the function?
Annet: Yes I was. You tell your guests to come at a given time but they don’t. The in-laws kept time but the invited guests didn’t. We had to stop the in-laws for almost an hour in order to wait for the guests to occupy the seats.
Mark: I did not get any disappointments. Everything went well.

What did you enjoy most?
Annet: I loved the time he put a ring on my finger. This meant I was going to be his forever.
Mark: When she got out of their house. She looked very pretty and this was the time I had always waited for. And also the time we exchanged rings was special.

What was going through your mind during the ceremony?
Annet: I was really excited and happy. Thanking the almighty for that wonderful day and also wished that my mum was here to witness my joy.
Mark: The day I had waited for was finally here. I craved to see my wife to be. I became impatient and restless but had to wait for the very long process to see my wife come out of her father’s house.

Did you go for premarital counselling and what did you learn from it?
Annet: There was a ssenga who taught me that respecting a man is very important.
Mark: I learnt that women are very fragile so we have to handle them with a lot of care.

What is your advice to those planning an introduction?
Annet: It is always important to plan earlier so that you can have a month or so of rest. The couple should be prepared for the day. They should not rely on pledges very much because some people may just talk about it but do not contribute. You should have your own money.
Mark: Men should take their wives as their first priority and should remind them how much they love and care for them all the time.

Any regrets?
Annet: No regrets. We have two children and they are the best reward I can give to him for the love and care he shows me.

Did you have any debts after the ceremony?
Mark: Yes we had a debt of Shs600,000 because it is not good to clear everything before the function as service providers may let you down.
Where did you buy her ring from?
Annet: I bought her a nice gold ring at $300(approximately Shs 900,000) from Dubai.