A couple’s wedding day is supposed to be the happiest day of their lives, but this woman had a rather unusual wedding as she was forced to attend the ceremony on her own!
According to NST, Badriyah Amirullah, a 26-year-old woman from Johor had to undergo her ‘bersanding‘ ceremony alone as her husband could not attend their wedding. Aww, too bad!
Her husband, Mohamad Syaiful Izwan Mohamad Shah who is also 26 was unavailable as he was training to be a fireman, but his leave was not approved for his wedding.
The couple had tied the knot on November 18 last year and had a ceremony for the bride’s family at Kampung Melayu Majidee, Johor. However, the reception for the groom’s family was scheduled to be held later as they had to make arrangements for his large extended family scattered around Terengganu, Kedah, and Perak.
At first, the couple was delighted that Syaiful’s leave from training at the Terengganu Fire and Rescue Department was approved for the wedding.
“He was given three days leave and was supposed to return to duty on Monday (March 19). So we thought there were no more problems. We were excited at the prospect of having the ‘bersanding‘ for the second time. But as it turns out, we can only plan, God decides,” Badriyah said.
Syaiful, who is supposed to complete his training in July before being assigned to a fire department could not get the necessary leave. Badriyah had no choice but to attend the ‘bersanding‘ ceremony on her own. Although she almost broke down in tears at the thought of doing it alone, she decided to be brave and shouldered on.
“I’m thankful to my in-laws who consoled me and calmed me down. They urged me to stay strong and just relax, seeing that all the wedding preparations were already in place. I don’t think I could have gone through it were it not for them,” she added.
In fact, she almost didn’t want to wear her full wedding garb for the ceremony, but her husband convinced her that she should do so. “My husband said it would be better if I did. ‘You are still a bride,’ he said, and that we would have many family members in attendance,” she explained.
Although there were moments of awkwardness when she arrived at the ‘bersanding‘ ceremony alone at Mini Arena Square, Chenderong Balai, she was relieved when the wedding emcee announced that the groom could not attend the ceremony. Probably thought she was jilted at first!
“I braved myself to walk in front of the guests and made my way to the main table. Only God knows what I felt at the time. Of course I was embarrassed. Who wouldn’t be, if their husband wasn’t by their side on the day of their ‘bersanding‘. But I knew that as the family’s first daughter-in-law, I had to brave myself and make it to the end of the ceremony,” she said.
Berita Harian reported that it was standard procedure for trainee firemen not to be given leave. Mohammed Hamdan Bin Wahid, Assistant Director General, Training Division of the Fire and Rescue Department said that leaves would only be given if there was an emergency or death of an immediate family member. He said that weddings were not considered emergencies.
However, Badriyah said that she is not blaming the Fire and Rescue Department but accepts that this is part of the challenge of being a fireman’s wife.
“Every cloud has a silver lining. My family and I are just grateful that he was blessed with the opportunity to become a fireman. I see this all as preparation for the future, as there may be plenty more challenges in store. But whatever it is, the experience (of ‘bersanding’ alone) is something I probably won’t forget anytime soon,” she said.
We wish the couple a long and happy marriage!
Also read: M’sian Couple Goes Viral After Having 4-Minute Wedding at a Bookshop in South Korea