He helped me bargain for my favourite lipstick

The first time Contance met Simon, he was rude to her. Put off, she decided to buy her favourite lipstick and go back to her hostel. Simon saw this as a chance to make amends by helping her bargain. At Makerere University, he was known as an activist. Word had it that a strike without him was unheard of. However, this stalwart of justice also had a side to him that only Joan Constance Wanyera knew.

Their meeting was coincidental and held no promise for tomorrow. “We met at Mary Stuart, the famous ‘Box’ where I resided at a jewellery stand where I was trying to bargain for a lipstick in 2016, around October.

When I saw this tall man coming my way, I did not give him much attention immediately until I heard him and his friends speak my mother tongue, Lugisu. I tried to talk to him to show that I knew the language but unfortunately, his rude response was a turn off. I think, later he felt guilty so he helped me bargain until I got the lipstick I wanted and then insisted on escorting me to my room. From then on, he would come by or call to see how I am,” Joan says. 

“Standing at the hall entrance with the Chairman of Lumumba Hall, we were conversing in Lugisu when Joan overheard us and said, “I know that language, I know what you guys are talking about.” I shouted and yelled at her, telling her to shut up and asked her how she got the audacity to speak to us; I bullied her. Feeling low and dejected, she replied, “You do not have to be rude.” 

Thereafter, I joined her in bargaining until she got what she needed before I insisted, against her will, to escort her to her room. While she agreed, it was only because she felt intimidated and did not want to be bullied again. Thereafter, I asked for her phone number, and we kept in touch,” he laughs. 

With time, Simon started noticing that Joan was a beautiful, Godly woman, not forgetting her amazing hair.

“Everything about her was amazing. I also realised that she was an intelligent and virtuous woman,” he says.

Was bullying or intimidation, his way of life? Many would agree but Joan thinks otherwise because while his height was alluring, she was drawn in by his immense love and care, responsibility, accountability and his captivating smile that she came to appreciate and enjoy with time. 

Proposal

No wonder, Joan’s heart still beats at the thought of her proposal. “A few days to the proposal, I saw my cousin preparing a dress and I asked her why. She told me she was preparing for a mutual friend’s proposal, which was heartwarming. Later, this friend asked me to escort her to see her parents in-law and emphasised the need to dress decently thus buying something long enough to meet the ‘parents’.

However, she kept me at her workplace for long that I somewhat got frustrated. Then, timid about the meeting, we made our way to the meeting point although the journey was through some dark corridors, which felt strange.

Finally, we reached a certain hall and I could swear my heart stopped beating for a while when I saw Simon go down on one knee in the presence of family and friends,” she remembers.

Simon remembers it to the dot, “I proposed on March 21, 2020 at Las Vegas Hotel in Bunga when Uganda registered the first Covid-19 case. Although this was frightening, the next day, many of our friends and family started congratulating us which somehow drowned the worry about Covid-19,” he laughs.  

The nitty gritty

Being one who gives attention to detail, Simon says substantial thought went into this, starting with meeting with one of Joan’s friends who later formed a Whatsapp group where all the planning was done. Thereafter, they bought the cake at Shs140,000, his friend gave him a fuelled car and the photos were taken by friends; Mondo Arts photography at almost no cost, while a few friends contributed towards food. “The expenses did not go beyond Shs1.2m,” he says. That she was extremely surprised was the best experience Simon would have asked for in all this. 

Although the first year of marriage had its challenges for the Wanyeras, Joan adds that they have handled these through prayer and loving each other unconditionally. Simon adds that they have put the teachings, advice and counselling that was given to them in church to practice. “We are not complaining but are happy and ready to embrace what the future holds. Besides, prayer moves mountains and the love we had and still have for each other is a plus,” he says.

Challenges

Simon says some people discouraged Joan from dating or even getting married to him because of his involvement in the university riots.

“I was labelled extremely chaotic and loud because I led Makerere students against Draconian policies. They also impressed it on her that since I am a political activist, it was risky as I would be killed or imprisoned,” he says.

However, Joan says, contrary to what people think, Simon is a humble and social person.

“I am very proud of him for fighting for what is right and I can happily say, I am proud to be his wife,” she says.

However, the biggest challenge came when Joan became pregnant.

“Most of my family members were under lockdown owing to Covid-19 so I had no one to help my wife. Being first time parents, this was difficult because we did not know much about pregnancy and what to expect,” Simon shares. 

By God’s grace, the couple was glad to welcome a baby girl; Winslet Gabriella Mary Stuart, who is a few months old.