Life with traditions

Life had been normal. Well, as normal as normal gets for foreign people. My parents were like most, allowing me and my two young sisters to grow up and live our own lives. But every parent in our village has one tradition, for their children to marry before they are twenty. However, my parents weren’t too keen on marrying their daughters off to people they didn’t know so they settled for an easier solution; marrying me off instead to a family friend.

But that didn’t mean my sister, Amber, would let them ‘forget what they did to me.’ Not that I minded being married to someone whom I grew up with. I had no grief about the situation but she apparently did and boy did she make it known to everyone.

“Amber, don’t start this again! Your brother isn’t even this upset about this and it’s HIS marriage!” Tsacnmie had beads of sweat at her temples, partly from anger, partly from the long day she worked through. “I don’t care if he doesn’t have a problem with this… this… bullshit of a marriage!”

Koltao couldn’t let go of the unfairness of this marriage, though not hers, she felt like her brother just folded and did whatever their parents wanted. She didn’t know who he was marrying but that didn’t matter to her, the fact that he was getting married at a young age was enough to set her off.

“Enough! This wasn’t your choice, it was mine.” I was tired of the back and forth about this marriage. It already took place; simple and fast and everything my parents had hoped for with me. What hurt the most was that we’d been married since we were six and seven years old. My sisters didn’t know that it was awhile ago, they both thought it just happened out of nowhere. And I really didn’t care to correct them.

“Is it yours? Or is that what they want you to think?” Ambers’ eyes were pleading, her green hazel flakes seeming darker with anger. “Oxhno is a common practice in our religions. And it is not like this just happened. They have been married for years. We just finally decided to tell the both of you.” Jaxla's voice was calm like he didn’t think they deserved to know this knowledge either. “What?” Confusion struck Ambers’ face, but it didn’t replace the anger she held onto. “How long have you been married?” Amy asked in a calm questioning tone, like she wanted to understand before she judged. “We’ve been married for seventeen years.” I felt nothing when explaining this to them. I didn’t feel like I needed to tell them anything. Especially after the way Amber talked about my marriage.

“Now do you understand why he and your Yaxlo have been upset at your reaction? It is like someone commenting on our marriage, which in case you forgot is also a oxhno.” Jaxla continued to weave the basket before he stopped to look kindly toward his wife, almost as if he was reminiscing their time together.

“So you’ve spent all this time lying to us?” Amber seemed determined to still prove me in the wrong. Exhausted, I gave into her way of thinking, hoping my Yaxlo would let it go. “Yeah, I’m such a horrible brother that I’ve been lying to you for seventeen years about my happy love life.” My voice had no feeling to it, my Yaxlo understanding what I was doing and staying quiet.

“Are you going to make your hoanaities unhappy for the rest of their lives so that you can live in a state of bliss?" We all froze, although my Jaxla didn’t raise his voice, he’d never been so direct to anyone, not even his own children. But his tone suggested that he was getting annoyed at this conversation. “If so, then I should be glad that I told your Yaxlos’ family that we were not marrying you off to an old Řetoirie.” I had known that either of my sisters could be married off but I never thought it would be Amber, her tongue was too sharp to withstand a marriage that she did not ask for. Amy would be unhappy but she would listen to our parents with no hesitation. But after I was married they decided that was enough.

“If you are done having this fit, I would like to have a calm meal with my son-in-law and his family.” Jaxla seemed set on this dinner as was I. My Yaxlo was the only one who worried, stating that me and Jaxla were too similar to one another.

“Because if it is not a calm meal, then it will not be a calm night.” Jaxla had always said that, when me and him would fight, when he and Yaxlo fought and even when he had a bad day at work. It was his way of saying don’t go to bed angry.

“Yaxlo, I’ll help with dinner tonight. Amber, dishes.” With Amy telling Amber to take the dishes that meant that Amy didn’t want to continue this argument either. “Whatever, if you insist on doing this to us I have one question.” Tired and a little intrigued, I thought it’d be best to answer. “What’s up?” I wondered, only one? What was it? “Does your Xonxe know?” The one question I would never have to fear. “Yes.” With that Amber left the room. And Amy had a knowing look on her face.

Thank you for reading, I’m very nervous to see where this goes but I think it will be okay. Let me know if you have any thoughts about it and I will post soon:)