EXCEPTIONAL PART 1

Her wedding plans were in top gear, she was determined to spare no cost for the wedding, for years she had waited to hear a man ask her that all important question, “Will you marry me?” Though Joy could tell
that Sule was different from all the men who took advantage of her and later left for other women, she still was scared if he would pop that question and end her longing for conjugal bliss. So after four years of dating him, Sule flew back from Abuja one evening and set up a date with her at one of his favourite restaurants in Victoria Island. For her it was going to be
yet another wonderful evening with Sule and nothing more, she expected nothing out of what they had experienced for four years of their relationship.

 However Sule had other plans, as the night wore one, Sule excused himself to go use the rest room. That was his cue to the stewards in the restaurant. As soon as he
disappeared into the rest room, the lights in the restaurant were changed to all dim blue light. The floor of the restaurant was covered with rose petals and candle lights and flowers were set on the tables in the
restaurant. Also about four giant flowers were moved into four corners of the restaurant. Joy was blown away by the romantic decoration which transformed the
restaurant. She couldn’t help but wish she was the woman for whom all that romantic expense was being made.

While Joy took in all the romantic aesthetics on display, the song ‘ All of Me’ by John Legend began to gently play over the speaker. Joy was moved to tears; as she and the other customers in the restaurant waited for the purpose of the decoration to unfold. The song playing over the speakers
began to fade, and a male voice from the speakers hanging on the wall echoed into the restaurant, “Joy Nneka Matthew will you marry me?” Joy was swept off her feet; her breath was taken away as tears
flowed from her eyes. She recognized the voice, it was Sule’s voice. While she struggled to get a grasp of the surprise, a girl of eight years, dressed like a bride, bore
to her table an engagement ring in a tray filled with rose petals. Some distance behind the little girl, was Sule. He came by her table and knelt down one leg and
waited for her reply. Joy was overwhelmed; tears of joy and the cry of excitement would not let her give Sule  her reply for some moments.

However, Sule already knew what the answer was. The customers in the restaurant were all up on their feet clapping and cheering. Some ladies amongst them also shed a few tears. When Joy had gained some control over her emotions, she, as loud as she could to Sule, “Yes I will marry you and love you
forever!” Sule took the engagement ring in the tray and put it on her finger. Joy took a hold of him and kissed him for what seemed like eternity and all that while the
customers in the restaurant kept cheering on. Sule had planned the engagement to perfection with the management and staff of the restaurant.

Soon after the engagement, Sule and Joy began to plan for their wedding. Their plan was to have such a romantic wedding reception that the feeling would tug
at the heartstrings of their guests for a long time to come; Sule had the money to make it happen, so they had no worries. Some of the plans they made were to make the entrance leading into the reception hall
unforgettable. They wanted a florist to create arrangements in the shape of a heart and then hang them from grosgrain ribbons on the open doors. Sule and Joy planned to give their guests a place to mingle between dance breaks by creating a lounge area at
their reception. It would be filled with couches and plenty of pillows to sink into and closed off with curtains to create a VIP vibe. They knew their guests won’t be expecting any drinks until the reception, so
they planned to give them a pleasant surprise by setting up a table of light beverages on the way into the ceremony. They would line up fruit-infused iced teas
they could sip before taking their seats.
Instead of a paper cards that would get lost or thrown away, they planned to make their escort cards something worth keeping or even edible. So they decided to make personalized cake pops with guests’ names and table numbers written on them in icing and engraved martini glasses that would double as favours. They also planned to have their wedding cake shaped after Sule’s
favourite football team stadium, Barcelona.

Because their song was going to be slow and romantic, they planned to have fresh flower petals instead of confetti dropped from the ceiling. Another evocative idea they wanted
for the wedding was to use softly glowing candles to illuminate the reception hall. They would turn off all the overhead lights, and place hurricane lanterns on all of
the tables. They would have a salad course and wanted it to make a lovely statement. The greens would be dressed up with edible flowers like delicate peach blossoms. To finish off the feast with a little romance,
they would have their caterer bake heart-shaped biscotti. Then have cups of coffee served to their guests, with one of the sweet treats perched on each saucer. The reception venue they chose was overlooking a beach, they planned to get on a boat and take off for their honeymoon from the reception. For their honeymoon they planned to go to Hilton Seychelles Labriz Resort and Spa in Seychelles.

After the traditional rites of marriage had been performed by Sule, the couple moved over to Lagos for their white wedding. On the morning of their wedding, April 17 2007, Joy was sitting before the mirror in
her hotel room, being made up by a makeup artist and suddenly she fell of her seat and began to have seizures. While she was being driven to a hospital, she began to
bleed from the nose. When the news of Joy’s failing health reached her parents, Sule and his family members and the guests, almost all of them went down to the hospital to find out how she was doing. There was no
immediate diagnosis, but based on some observable symptoms, doctors feared for her life. Joy strangely began to record blurry vision, changes in speech, inability
to concentrate, minor problems with her memory. On the basis of her condition, the wedding had to be called off.

A few days later when the tests and scan results were out, it turned out the doctors’ fears were not extreme. Joy she was diagnosed of grade IV astrocytoma brain
tumour. Sule’s dream wedding was shattered. Joy on her part was overwhelmed with sorrow. She had waited long for the day she would walk down the aisle with the man of her love, and when it eventually came, ill health took it away from her. Her sorrow knew no bounds; but
as bad as it was for her and Sule, they had to pull themselves together to face the task before them. The doctor invited Sule and Joy’s parents to describe to them the treatment options available to joy, the
expected results, and the possible side effects. The doctor explained to them that because of how the cancerous growth in joy’s head had spread, surgery was not be possible at that stage, which invariably left them with radiation therapy, and chemotherapy.

Exceptional 2 Loading!!!!

Your comments bring out the beauty in our stories. Have your say in the comment box below. To share our story, click on the Facebook share button or on the twitter
button.