Diary Adventures of LagosMums DALM | How A Gift From A Wedding Caused An Accident
Are you one of those people who cannot get enough plastic bowls at weddings or parties? You might want to read how a gift from a wedding caused an accident.
Weddings in Nigeria are notorious for giving out all sorts of gifts as part of the thank you to guests. You can get a range of gifts from simple notebooks and pens, salt, sugar, plastics to phones and material.
Types of Wedding Guests
Giving out the gifts on the other hand is not fun! There are few things I hate more than being the one to hand out gifts. Simply because guests can get straight up nasty should you miss them and God save you if the gifts finish. It surprises me because I know it is not that they need another plastic bucket.
Guest type number two, is the guest who insists on getting gifts for their spouse even though you say it is one per couple. Or that guest like Mr Pele who insists on the gift, even when it is an ankara makeup bag for women.
Gifts, what the westerners call favours is an integral part of Nigerian weddings. Because of the pressure to give out gifts to the large crowds, the person bearing the expense is conscious of costs. But IÂ want to appeal to both the giver of the gifts and the receiver of the gifts – It is NOT by force to give (or receive) gifts!
How Wedding Gift “Awoof” Went Wrong
I attended a wedding some years ago and one of the gifts was a hot water bottle. The first thing that tipped me off was that the wrapper was covered completely with mandarin and looked rather “cheap”. However, I am not suggesting that everything from China is poor quality at all.
Anyway a couple of months ago I was feeling tense and needed to use a hot water bottle to relax. My main hot water bottle was not available, so my nanny poured the hot water in this one I got from the wedding. Side note: My husband had always warned me to stop using such hot water.
Anyway I wrap it in a towel and lean back on the hot water bottle and next thing I jumped up because the hot water bottle had split right in the middle! I was only lucky (thank God) that I had leaned forward at the very moment it split open, so it did not scald my whole back.
Apart from my aversion to hot water bottles now, I am an advocate for #ItIsNotByForceToGiveWeddingGifts. I am still nursing the burns from this home accident. We should all be careful about the quality of products that we buy and use in the house.
So if you see me at a wedding, do not be offended if I do not accept your hot water bottle gift. I will just enjoy the party jollof. Now I am choosy about the gifts I accept. Of course if you want to give out a smartphone I will take it. Thank You.
