Apparently not..

I always thought arranged marriages were a thing we had long outgrown and were only heard of in the compelling stories grandmothers told, set in a time when houses were built from mud and roofs made from palm fronds.

Apparently not.

I walked into my sitting room a night before Christmas -after a great evening with a number of friends- to have a chubby round faced noisy woman introduced to me as 'Your mother-in-law'.

You remember her son now? The one I said you'll marry. 

My mother asked with a loud chuckle. 

It wasn't funny. Now, this mother-in-law was to stay the night and my mother did her part in making me look as much of a wife material as possible. "Oh, wont you ask her if she wants anything?"   "Go and make sure the heater is working"   "Won't you ask about your husband?".

It got too much and I eventually went to sleep annoyed. I woke up early the next morning and stayed in bed for three more hours, just to emphasize my unwillingness to prove myself as a candidate for her son.

I strolled downstairs to meet her, my mother and father at the dining.

One glance, and I knew she got the message.