A Blind Date with My Wife by Shadi, Palestine

In Palestinian society, if you can’t find a girl to marry, you can ask your mother or sister to help you find a wife.

One day, in 2010, I was working for a company in Ramallah as a call centre agent, when my phone began to ring repeatedly – it was my mother. I thought to myself, “something must have happened to her or my family, because she knows that I’m at work at this time”. My brain started to worry: “What could have happened to them?!!“

After a while I took a break and called her. The conversation between me and my mother went like this:

Me: What happened, Mom?? Did something happen?

Mother: Yes! I found the girl you want, I like her so much, she has come into my heart, and I am making a date with her parents on Tuesday, when you have your day off from work!!

Me: What are you doing, Mom?? Oh, my God!!

Mother: I don’t know how it happened, but she has come into my heart! I am going directly to her mother to make the date!

Me: Okay, Mom. When I finish work, we can talk about this…

On Tuesday, I went to the market to buy new clothes for the blind date. My father told me he wanted to come too, with my mother and me. When we arrived at the girl’s family home, the parents welcomed us in. Straight away my father started saying, “We have come here to ask for the engagement of your girl with our son”. He asked, “could we see the girl and sit with her?” Her father said: “You are welcome, we would be proud to be your relatives. Let me tell the girl to come and sit with Shadi.”

That was the first time I saw her. She was such a beautiful and wonderful girl! We talked together; she liked me and I liked her – it was a very interesting date with an amazing girl!

After leaving the girl’s home, my mother asked me what I thought about her; and I told her we agreed on almost everything. Three months later, we got married. Now, after 7 years, we have two wonderful girls and one amazing boy.

Today, I must thank my mother for knowing me well, listening to her heart, and for wasting no time when she found Sanaa!