Posted on 04/02/2010 8:15:19 PM PDT by cycle of discernment
Colette Armand believes she was hit by a coup de foudre when she first saw her future husband. 'The attraction was instant,' she says.
Meitkini's tribe have no possessions and no running water, and their food is either plucked from the ground or killed with a spear.
Nonetheless, after a courtship of three years, Colette, 24, is preparing to abandon all the comforts of her western lifestyle to join her life permanently with his - even though, to date, she hasn't shared so much as a kiss with her 23-year-old fiance, as Masai rules forbid physical contact between men and women who aren't married.
'The only water came from a small muddy tributary that's home to snakes and crocodiles,' says Colette.
'I was too scared to bathe, so I had to resort to having a makeshift wash in water boiled on the fire -
... after two weeks Colette was told the community had decided to sacrifice a goat as a welcoming gift - a huge honour.
'They slaughtered it in front of me, which was horrible, then put its warm blood in a cup for me to drink. It tasted disgusting, but I had to do it as I would have hugely offended them otherwise. I just closed my eyes and tried not to be sick.'
In the future, she may have to share her husband with other women, as Masai tradition permits any number of wives.
The daughter of a nurse and a businessman, her father's job, took the family all over the world.
Academically gifted, at 17 she was studying in Paris. At 21, disillusioned with her studies and with a failed romance behind her- 'I realised I needed to have an adventure and try and find myself.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
Sure. That is all true, I wouldn’t argue that at all. You stated it well.
It isn’t that she is being criticized that made me think some were being rough on her, it was (to me) the odd nature of it. It almost sounded like there were some who WANTED to see her fail.
The odds are that she will fail, but...the romantic in me would like to see her succeed.
It is like that despair.com poster that shows the rusted bow of a sunken ship sticking out of the water accompanied by the statement: “It could be that your purpose in life is only to serve as a warning to others”
I guess I see enough of those...I am always looking for the OTHER side of that...:)
Wait...wait...she wasn’t a blonde, though...
*ducks*
Maybe so (some want to see her fail). Give them the benefit of the doubt that they want to see her fail because perhaps it’s the only way she’s going to learn this particular lesson or lessons...
Not everyone figures things out the same way, some it’s real easy, others you have to whack over the head a few times...
Wonder if she will be greeted with grosser things than goat’s blood.
Man. That is pretty tough, to marry into a situation like that because you see it as your only way out.
You have?
My I ask if you've ever been to Africa before?
” I’m good enough with archery equipment that I’m fairly certain they’d overlook me being the wrong color...”
I am sure your archery skill would be much appreciated by tribe. :)
My wife now refers to that method (on my recommendation) as "The Two-By-Four Technique" She occasionally asks me if she has to resort to it.
Inside will be a piece of paper with the words, "And I gave you the best years of my life!"
Read 'em and weep, kid.
I wouldn’t worry about her too much. She probably has an agent and book deal lined up: “My Life As An African Bride” or something, maybe a Harlequin bodice-ripper if she can get her hubbie to pose for the cover.
As soon as the bloom is off the rose, she’ll be out of there faster than Oprah on a canned ham.
(I’m not a romantic, as you can see. Good on you, maybe you’re right. But I doubt it.)
She was smart enough not to follow him into some African hut with no running water.
Just tell her in YOUR house women aren’t allowed to pick up two by fours. Then grab her by the waist and give her a really good kiss.
From an Amazon review of the book written by the woman you mentioned:
“
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars What Was She Thinking???, October 26, 2008
By Amy Greenhouse - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)
This review is from: The White Masai: My Exotic Tale of Love and Adventure (Paperback)
I found this book at the library, and the first thing I first noticed was the word Masai, and thought back to some comments my friend Penny had made after her trip to Kenya where she visited a Masai village. She was shocked at the poor treatment of women. I opened the inside cover and read that the book was an autobiography about a Swiss woman who fell instantly in love with a Masai man and gave up her life in Switzerland to live with the man in the African bush. As a woman who also fell head over heels in love with a man from a completely different culture, I was curious to see what would happen.
I actually knew what was going to happen. Like a person who jumped out of an airplane without a parachute and knows what kind of hell it feels like to hit the ground without one, I couldn’t help peeling my eyes towards the sky and watching her hit the ground. This is not out of evilness, but out of loniliness, to see that I was not the only one foolish enough, stupid enough, naive enough, to make such a mistake. Reading the book was like watching a horror movie, where you are like, “No, don’t go into that dark forest at night all by yourself. You’re gonna get yourself killed.” I was shouting out her, “No, don’t go after this man who comes from a completely different culture. You’re going to ruin your life. His life. IT WON’T WORK!!” I also began to read with a little satisfaction that I found someone who had even worse judgement than my own. At least, I did not give up everything for the man I loved and moved to his country. I don’t think I would have done that. Also, there was some communication between him and me. For Corrinne, it seemed to be based entirely on looks. Yes, I can pat myself on the back, I am not the stupidest person out there. It brings up the issue of making judgements when in love. Isn’t love very dangerous? Doesn’t it lead us to situations we shouldn’t be in? Is love ever clear? What separates those of us who make rash judgements for love and those who don’t? Was her love with Lketinga ever real or was it just infatuation? Why doesn’t she see all the warning signs of how they are incompatible?
Besides all the love issues, the book did provide some fascinating insight into the life of the Masai people. Life sure ain’t easy there. Corrinne suffers from malaria and then hepatitis, life threatening diseases that we never think about in our comfortable American lives. She also has to deal with everyday hardships like keeping clean, using the toilet and having a comfortable place to sleep. I was amazed at what a difference her store made in the lives of the people in the village. At first, I thought that nobody would have money to buy any of the items in the store, but the bigger problem was transporting the goods to the remote area. I do give her credit for being so brave in driving through the jungle back and forth. It was amazing that even in the African bush, relationship problems often come back to money. She was working hard, while her husband was wasting money on drugs and beer.”
Perhaps.
Oh yeah, this will work out. She sounds sooo emotionally mature.
Ditto. I was waiting these last few days for the annual Tuckerman’s Ravine fiasco.
Why am I reminded of Stanley Ann Dunham???
I know a woman who would do something like this. I had to check the article to make sure it wasn’t her! ;)
“I wonder how much this young, odd, PHD female will change the tribe before she moves on.”
Probably very little; she’ll be stringy and hard to digest.
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