A different kind of Valentines

Mwangi Kimani and Rose Mwangi [Courtesy]

Love wins. Even during a pandemic, perhaps even more than ever, the pursuit for the perfect love story became urgent. In the midst of stories of death, disease and desperation that came with Covid-19, humanity sought for that which draws them closer: love.

On this year’s Valentine’s Day, it is a bittersweet moment for many. For some, it is a reminder of how their love story has defied odds. For others, it is a reinforcement of the fact that the force of love remains unbowed no matter the situation.

Mwangi Kimani and Rose Mwangi say coronavirus taught them the real meaning of “in sickness and in health…” and this Valentine’s Day, they will be celebrating the turbulence they have navigated over the years.

“I have an autoimmune disease, so you can imagine the anxiety that we faced when the pandemic came,” says Kimani.

“My wife stood with me through a double organ transplant and here we are today...healthy and still in love!” he says.

He had a kidney and pancreas transplant and he says today, they will be celebrating their love story that started 23 years ago, and not even a life threatening story could stop it.

For newlyweds Rose Mwelu and Benjamin Kibuchi, they will be looking back at the events that preceded their wedding and giving thanks that they held onto their love and went ahead with wedding plans at a time when anxiety lingered globally.

Rose Mwelu and Benjamin Kibuchi during their wedding. [Courtesy]

A few days before the first case of Covid-19 was announced in the country in March, they had just finished their traditional wedding and were getting ready for the church wedding when the restricted movement measures were put in place.

“We decided to wait until October, but then we realised that there was uncertainty about the disease. Instead of focusing on the negatives, we started planning for a small wedding,” says Rose.

Planning a wedding during a pandemic, she says, was one of the most stressful things. The cost of wedding items went high so they ironically had to part with more money for a smaller wedding. They also had to readjust their wedding plans and drop their dream of travelling out of the city to exchange vows.

“We were not sure if there would be a lockdown at some point. Cases were rising and we were following every news item, wondering what plans we had to change,” she says.

Caren Njoka says she will be making attempts to mend her broken heart by watching a romantic comedy in an attempt to recreate the almost perfect ending she missed out on when she decided to break up with her husband of six years.

“Our relationship was going through a rough patch before the pandemic. Then we had to work from home together and we would fight a lot. Two times, things got physical. I left with my babies. It took the pandemic to make me accept that we are not the perfect match,” she says. It has been a season of finding love, embracing a new form of expressing love devoid of too many hugs and cuddles, letting go of love and appreciating the fluidity of love.

As Valentine’s Day approached, Kenyans went online to search for the meaning of the day. According to a report released by Google on Friday, “How to dress for Valentine’s day, where did Valentine’s day come from and when Valentine’s day will be” were among the most searched topics in Kenya.

They also wanted to know the origin of the day, and who exactly is Valentine, the mysterious saint of love under whose name millions of chocolates and roses have been sold, came from.

This year’s Valentines will no doubt be different. The first where global franchises that made a boom by enticing lovers to fly to honeymoon destinations are forced to push the message of staying home.

Hallmark, the largest cards producers in the world, had to change their messaging. They had cards that had toilet paper rolls that were arranged to form the shape of a heart under the caption: “I love you this much, and you know what a big deal this is.” This, for many, immortalised the panic season at the beginning of the pandemic when people stocked up toilet paper.

No candlelit dinners

The public health catastrophe means not many people will have the opportunity to have dreamy candlelit dinners in luxury restaurants; as they have to keep glancing at their watches to beat curfew. Roses are not as plentiful, as flower farmers reel from the shock of the sinking export market that kept them afloat for many years.

“Valentine’s Day was our time to make money. We would get so many orders from individuals and event planners. Now we are just getting random purchases from men, most of whom are saying they have been forced to buy the flowers by their women,” says Prisca Aolo who distributes flowers in the city.

There are those who have found love in the pandemic, some of them using social media platforms and online dating sites as meeting places remained closed. As movie streaming services like Netflix increased the number of romantic movies to meet the growing demand from people holed at home, many people admitted that they found themselves craving for the ‘romantic novel and soap opera’ kind of love. 

“My husband and I made a point of watching at least one romantic movie at least once a week. We never used to be expressive, but this Valentine’s, we want to try doing things together like dancing,” says Valarie Mueni. 

The pandemic changed love stories for some people, but most will celebrate how they have navigated through the worst times.