Brahim Ainabi and I have known each other for just over a year now. We’ve been discussing plans to marry for about that same amount of time. Last year, he came into the weaving association, where I was helping the women make price tags for their rugs and blankets. He was looking for his mother, and he found me. Lucky guy.
We were in negotiations throughout the Rose Festival that soon followed in the neighboring gorge. As flowered floats and waving beauties paraded by, Brahim and I laid out our future plans.
“Aren’t you terrified?!” I asked. “You’re a nice girl.” responded Brahim. Fair enough. We’ll get married in Morocco, having a traditional Amazigh wedding in the village. When we get back to the States, we’ll have a big party in Wisconsin. We’ll move to New York; live and work there until we tire of it. We’ll go back to Morocco as we can. Brahim wants to work hard and have a good life. Sarah wants to dance. Two point five children, but not yet. Our kids will speak English and Tashelheit and be beautiful. They will visit both grandmothers on either side of the Atlantic. That's settled.
Here we are a year later, putting the plan into action. I spent last week in Rabat on a scavenger hunt for official paperwork. Running around from Embassy to Consulate to Ministry of Foreign Justice, I gathered one stamp, seal, signature after another. These papers all need to be notarized and translated into Arabic by a certified translator. Brahim will gather his paperwork from the local officials next. He’s already gotten security clearance from Homeland Security in Washington. Guess all those trip wires and booby traps he set with the local boys in the village didn’t make it on his rap sheet.
Next comes the fun part: Wedding bells. Or, in this case, give the bride a ride on a mule and let’s play the tom toms until dawn. This won’t happen until all of our paperwork is finished and the heat of summer passes. Then there’s Ramadan, not exactly the best time for the feasting, dancing debauchery of a wedding. So we’ll see. You’re all invited.
