It was a very windy day and from time to time, the clouds obscured the sun and caused a chill. Nosipho was sitting in front of their dead garden. When they came to live in their home, the garden was blossoming. Her mind was travelling down memory lane and the tea in her hand had gone cold.

“Where did we go wrong?” She pondered, as the tears endlessly ran down her dull face.

Nosipho was the only daughter of Pastor Lukhele, who was pastoring a church in the rural areas of Nongoma. She was the apple of her father’s eye. He taught her everything about life and godliness. In a nutshell, she feared the Lord and shunned evil. She was beautiful with a lovely and smooth face that was decorated with a dimple, which was known as a sign of adorableness in her village. She was a talented singer with an extremely sweet voice.
However, she was never touched by a man for she believed that true love waits, and she was waiting for her husband. As they say, good things come to those who wait, Nosipho finally found a husband.

It was during their annual church conference when a man by the name of Siphamandla Dludla approached her. He was a pianist. He was handsome and wore expensive clothes. He owned several salons in Richards Bay and Empangeni respectively. He lived in one of the exquisite flats in Richards Bay.

It was during lunch, before their second session, when Nosipho felt a firm, yet gentle touch on her shoulder.

“Ayibongwe sisi!” Siphamandla greeted with a smile. His teeth were as white as snow.
Out of astonishment, Nosipho greeted back. “Ayibongwe bhuti! It is such a pleasant surprise to be greeted by you, man of God,” she added.

They sat, conversing about how Gospel music had evolved. They argued that nowadays Gospel music is no longer about the message and conviction, but fame and fortune. They giggled as if they had known each other for years. For the first time in her life, Nosipho felt some indescribable feelings warming her inside. The connection she felt was splendid. As the conference ceased, they exchanged numbers. They called each other on a daily basis and talked for hours from that day onwards.

It happened that one day they decided to pay each other a visit. So, Nosipho travelled from her home to Richards Bay. They watched movies and went to the beach. At the beach, they listened to the waves that were singing, jumping and dancing. They sat on the rocks and marvelled at the beauty of nature. Nosipho laid on Sipha’s chest and could feel and hear his heart jumping in excitement.
As they sat looking over the sea, they kissed.
The kiss was slow and sensual, bringing both their blood to boiling point. That’s when they decided to head back to Sipha’s flat.When they arrived at the flat, Nosipho admired the eye-catching and expensive furniture that adorned the apartment. As she walked from room to room checking the place out, Spha played one of Boyz to Men’s classic melodies: I’ll make love to you. And so he did, he made love to her in a tender and deep way. Nosipho kissed her virginity goodbye that day, but she felt no remorse whatsoever for she was madly in love with Sipha.

A month later, Nosipho discovered that she was pregnant.

“Sipha… I am pregnant,” she spoke out of dismay when he picked up his cell phone.

“I’m sorry to hear that, but do not worry…we’ll work something out,” Sipha replied.

Later that day, he called her to tell her about this astounding modus operandi.
“Hey, baby! Let’s get married before people find out that you are pregnant,” he insisted.
At this time, Nosipho thought of the shame she would cause her well-respected father.

“Yes! Let’s get married,” she replied with a lot of enthusiasm. This was a brilliant idea. Besides, she was already in love with Sipha.
The next day, Spha went to Nosipho’s house where they both shared the news of their engagement with her family.There was so much joie de vivre and conviviality at the news.

A few months later the lobola negotiations were done and dusted. In the twinkling of an eye they were husband and wife. It was the most dazzling wedding their town had ever witnessed. Thereafter, they went to the Cape of Hope for their honeymoon. They explored places like Table Mountain and other adventurous places. Then they bought a house at Aquadene, Richards Bay, when they returned from their honeymoon. It was a warm home with an extremely extravagant garden.

They had a baby boy later that year. When he turned two-years-old, Sphamandla stopped coming home every evening. When he did, he abused Nosipho and called her names. They had stopped making love after their son was born. As a matter of fact, he did not even look at her, nor touch her. Sadly, she couldn’t even talk to anyone about it because he promised to kill her if she did.

It was a very windy day, and from time to time, the clouds obscured the sun and caused a chill on Nosipho. She was sitting in front of their dead garden. When they first moved in, the garden was blossoming. She was sitting there, her travelling down memory lane the tea in her hand had gone cold.

“Where did we go wrong?” She pondered, as the tears endlessly ran down her dull face.

The roses that once smiled were dead.

“Happy people, as old people say, do not have dead roses in their gardens,” she muttered as she looked at their garden. “I am going to leave this dead marriage. It is clear that Sipha never loved me. He married me because I was pregnant and, therefore, he was protecting his reputation and dignity, not me.” she concluded.

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Tell us what you think: Why do you think Sipha changed after the birth of their son?