I almost married the wrong one - Then Destiny took the lead

 

Welcome to My Wayward Musings.

Today's blog is about my journey through almosts :) ....

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I met quite a few guys for marriage, and honestly, each meeting could have been a blog post by itself — full of its own drama, lessons, and some serious eye-roll moments. But topping them all were four guys, each with a distinct story, complete with unexpected twists, drama, and, eventually, my polite (and sometimes not-so-polite) rejection.

This is the story of Guy No. 4.

When I started looking out for my Mr. Right, I wasn’t chasing fairy tales or tall promises. I had a checklist — simple, non-financial, non-materialistic, but absolutely non-negotiable. These were not about cars, careers, or bank balances. They were about values, everyday kindness, emotional maturity, and the ability to laugh together even on tough days.

This list wasn’t made to complicate love, but to understand compatibility in the least time possible — to sense whether we could walk through life not just hand in hand, but heart to heart.. 

So there was this one guy who almost had all the points ticked. 

We met through Jeevansathi.com. Since he was out of country for a project, we started chatting on Yahoo Messenger (yes, good old Yahoo!). Soon, he was back in Mumbai, and in true arranged marriage fashion, his parents visited my home, we visited theirs, everything seemed perfect, and a wedding date was set.

As Catholics, we don’t have muhurat — the date is based on ground availability for the reception. The ground was booked. It was early May, and on my birthday (6th May 2008), I happily told friends and relatives about my upcoming wedding scheduled for 28th December.

But life, as always, had its own plans.

Soon after, we discovered some unpleasant facts that hadn’t surfaced earlier. Situations unfolded, and my parents strongly advised against moving forward. For me, if I’m honest, it was still just a few weeks of web chatting with the guy.

What hurt more was the embarrassment — the ground was booked, the date was announced to all my friends and relatives.

In the midst of all this confusion, I heard that the boy had discussed matters with a priest from Orlem Parish — Father Reuben Tellis.

Father Reuben is legendary among us Catholics — known for his calming presence, his non-judgmental view on life, and for being a wonderful counsellor.

So, one evening of May 10th 2008, I found myself at Orlem Church, looking for him. I forced my parents to come along.

The watchman informed me that Father was attending a wedding reception. Somehow, I managed to get his number and called him.

Despite the background sounds of laughter and music at the reception, Father Ruben took my call. I quickly explained who I was and why I was calling — hoping that he would say something convincing so that I could go ahead with the marriage, maybe even convince my parents.

Father Reuben, being a priest and being non-judgmental, did not speak anything negative about the guy. Instead, he patiently asked me to calm down, to breathe, and to take my time to think things through peacefully.

There was some disturbance in the background; I could hear music playing as he was attending the wedding reception. He ended the call saying;

"Sharon, your soulmate must be somewhere very close to you or me right now — and probably you have no idea about it. Please don't worry. I will call you back soon, right now I have to go."

Eventually, I broke off the proposal myself.

I was heartbroken, of course. 15 years ago, the world was different. Breaking a proposal after the wedding ground being booked meant society talked — and not in a kind way.

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Months passed.

And then, one day, a call came.

A lady named Jennifer said she got my number from Hilda.

The mention of Hilda made me furious — she was a well-known matchmaker and a friend of my mum. Hilda had once years ago pushed a match at me where she said the guy insisted that we meet, not alone, but at church with both families and the matchmaker present!

(Needless to say, that was Guy No.1 — my first rejection.)

Jennifer, however, spoke sweetly. She asked where I had done my schooling.

I mentioned the school name (till 4th Std.) and then shifting to Andheri to another school 

Her excitement grew — her daughter too had studied at the same school the one I was till 4th!

After a few more questions, it clicked.

Her daughter was my very good friend in primary school!

And the boy she was suggesting?

Her son. My childhood friend’s brother.

Suddenly, all my walls dropped.

I gently mentioned that I wasn’t comfortable meeting in a church setting with parents and matchmaker around.

To my pleasant surprise, Jennifer said they didn't want that either.

Without digging too much into the past misunderstandings, I agreed to meet her son on August 2nd, 2008....

A date I’ll never forget.

In fact, even today, we celebrate August 2nd more grandly than our wedding anniversary.

This time, I took it slow.

We became friends first.

We introduced each other to our families gradually.

There was no dramatic proposal — everything just flowed.

And soon enough, we were married.

Father Reuben was the one who solemnized our wedding nuptials.

He was also the one who raised a heartfelt, beautiful toast at our wedding reception,

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Picture Abhi Baki Hai Mere Dost!

The next day after our wedding, we decided to visit Father Ruben to thank him and give him a small token of appreciation.

While chatting, Father mentioned excitedly that his friends from Australia were visiting. Even my husband mentioned that his friends were visiting too from Australia.

As we spoke further, we realized — he and my husband were talking about the same couple.

Turns out, my husband was the 'best man' at that Australian couple’s wedding!

Father Reuben looked at me with twinkling, almost shocked eyes and said:

"Sharon, do you realize which wedding he is talking about?"

And in that moment, everything became crystal clear.

The day I first called Father Reuben, broken-hearted in May 2008, begging for guidance... he was attending the wedding of that very same Australian couple.

And standing right next to him — was my future husband.

The soulmate he spoke of — was literally standing right beside him that night.

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Sometimes, when you least expect it, Heaven gives you a wink and a smile — and says, "Just wait... your story is about to begin."

- Sharon