What Makes Ruth Tick
She’s Got The Healing Touch
Sometime in early 2023, we visited Oasis SDA Church on their Music Sabbath. It was a hot January afternoon. The sun came down hard on the tent structure and given the place was packed to the rafters, I felt dizzy and stepped out for fresh air. I didn’t tell Ms Right that I was unwell but she followed me to the open field where I lay down under a tree’s shade. Problem is I couldn’t stand up. I had lost all energy. I could hardly explain my sudden sickness
Ruth quickly ordered a cab and took me home. She had to pull me up the stairs. She made me lie on the bed, served me a cup of water and wiped my face with a wet handkerchief before she had to leave. No sooner had she arrived at her home than she called to check on me only to hear the background noise of someone who was anything but sick. I had recovered and gone watching a football match at a nearby club! Was I sick that afternoon or was I short of vitamin TLC? Your guess is as good as mine.
She’s Got A Knack For Guesswork
It took me a full year to discover Ruth was an academically gifted A student. How can someone whose favorite YouTube channel is Wa Jesus Family be taken seriously? How can someone who loves watching Instagram reels more than reading books be a top student? There’s this time I used her laptop for a day. My oh my! Didn’t I want to smash it? The right side of the laptop was full of Netflix notifications dropping one after another and pinning themselves to the screen!
Ruth’s genius is not in studying and retaining academic content. Her genius is in guesswork. Ruth never gets lost in new places, she never chooses the wrong smoothie,
Watchmen, Boda Bodas And Matatu Drivers Love Her
From Kamukunji to Kenyatta Avenue, there’s always a boda boda saying hi to Ruth and offering her discounted fare. Last December we visited a certain restaurant where I was denied entry because I couldn’t agree to leaving my water bottle at the entrance. I was on my way out when Ruth told me she knew one of the watchmen from her Pathfinder days in Kasarani. She had a chat with him and I was let in with no more questions asked.
One day coming from a hike outside town Ruth got the last matatu to her home. Being one of the last passengers to drop off, the driver left the main road to Mwiki and took Ruth home and only left when she was through the gate. Just the other day, Ruth got one front seat on a Super Metro matatu so I had to look for one at the back. But before she could board, the driver ased her if she was with me. When she said yes, the driver asked the guy sitting next to him to drop and take a seat at the back so Ruth and I could sit together!
She’s Detail Oriented
If the saying is true that the Devil is in the details, then I love a good devil. What makes Ruth a planner is her attention to detail. I taught her to use Google Sheets. She hit the road running and has never looked back. I wish I could share the humongous Google Sheet she’s used to plan our wedding. She’s got everything down to a T. Every coin coming in and going out, Ruth has her finger on it. There’s a Google Sheet for everything. From the critical budget to the socks and lotion. Weddings are tough but I’m typing this one day before the wedding because her meticulous planning has kept our sanity.
She’s Got Great Attitude
One of the things I love most about Ruth is she’s not a drama queen. Men tell me how their girlfriends go silent on them for weeks on end. Imagine a woman who’s so mad at you she can’t bother telling you why she’s mad. The good thing about Ruth is she only gets mad for 30 seconds flat and spends the other 30 seconds explaining why she got mad. One minute is the longest time Ruth spends without being nice and lovely. People say a relationship where lovers don’t fight is a red flag. That’s a red flag I’m willing to die with.
She’s Got Great Appetite
The day Ruth declines a meal is the day I’ll rush her to hospital. The day Ruth says she’s got no appetite is the day I’ll know she’s pregnant. While she may not eat like mtu wa mjengo, one sentence that will never come out of her mouth is, “Sina appetite.” Ruth will rather take a few bites than say she’s full. He who said there’s no greater love than the love for food had Ruth in mind. If you want Ruth to stop scrolling on Instagram, put chicken and chips before her. Businessmen say bei nayo hatuwezi kosana. With Ruth hata mkikosana food nayo lazima mkule pamoja.
One month ago we had a morning photo shoot at our wedding reception venue. Ruth was in Westlands at 6 a.m. for makeup. I thought to myself, “Leo nayo atasahau kununua snacks.” Shock on me! When we met at 10 a.m., I discovered she had sent her friends to buy a whole basket of snacks!