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She made my health her priority
Linda and Jonathan.
What you need to know:
- Jonathan Wasswa and Linda Nalubega met when Jonathan was still nursing wounds sustained in an accident. Although it was hard to nurse him through the pain, when their feelings later turned romantic, she purposed to nurse him back to health.
According to bannerhealth.com, no matter how solid a relationship with your partner is, a serious illness can add unexpected challenges.
In the face of a major illness, you might need to renegotiate roles, responsibilities, physical needs, emotional needs, intimacy needs and future plans, which can be overwhelming. However, keeping your relationship on solid ground is essential. Staying connected to your partner can be a source of support, validation and information.
Jonathan Wasswa, an administrator and Linda Nalubega, a data analyst, met in 2016, a short time after Jonathan had been involved in a car accident.
“At the time, I was doing my internship in Kyenjojo District, western Uganda, but had to travel back to Kampala for a ministry dinner. Although there were other people in the car, I was the only survivor,” recounts Jonathan, who adds that because he could not live alone after being discharged from hospital, he moved in with his aunt.
“I was deeply involved in ministry at my church (St Luke’s Church in Ntinda, Kampala) and since my home was a bit far from the church and most ministry work went on until late in the evening, Jonathan’s aunt offered me a room at her house,” says Linda.
In the confines of his aunt’s home, the two became good friends. However, Linda was greatly affected by his health struggles.
“It was tough watching him in pain every day. He would get these migraines that were so horrible that he would sometimes cry. But I purposed to help him through the pain and whenever I could, we would sit and spend the night talking; in a way making him forget all about the pain,” Linda says, adding that because their friendship had now progressed into a romantic relationship, they had to do everything they could to make it work.
One of these was to seek counselling and praying together. She prayed to God to stop the pain and also grant her the strength to be there for him.
Within a year, Jonathan greatly improved, which encouraged them to take important strides towards making their relationship permanent.
The proposal
In September 2019 Jonathan professed his love to Linda. Although he had wanted to propose in church, things did not go as planned. So, he planned to do it at her parent’s home during their Kukyala ceremony. This plan was however derailed when his health started deteriorating again. The migraines returned and this time, they were aggressive.
“After several tests at the hospital, a scan revealed some kind of pressure on his brain and because I wanted his health to be a priority, the kukyala was postponed,” says Linda.
“I asked my fiancée to stay hopeful that I would recover soon and we would proceed with our marriage arrangements,” Jonathan says.
