The love story of Boniface Mwangi & Njeri Mwangi

 Boniface Mwangi and his family Photo: Courtesy

"The moment I set eyes on her, something in my mind assured me that this would be my wife,"says Boniface Mwangi, an award-winning photo-journalist,political activist and a parliamentary aspirant. He was 23 then but he knew without a doubt that Njeri was going to be his wife.

"It was love at first sight," he explains.

The day was a Sunday; he had just come from church and was meeting with friends at a fast food joint in the city centre. That's when he saw her, seated among his friends.

"Njeri's beauty and brains were so captivating. She defended her points with authority and passion, and in my hearts of hearts, I knew that she would make the perfect wife for me," narrates Mwangi. He had just got himself a sports motor bike and proudly thought it would be a plus for him to win Njeri.

But that was not Njeri's first impression. "All I remember is seeing him come in carrying a helmet and in a leather jacket. It was much later that I asked for a ride on the bike," she says. To Mwangi's disappointment, everyone except Njeri went outside to admire the bike. He however got her phone number from his friends and asked if she'd like to feature on the cover of the Pulse, the magazine in the Friday Standard Newspaper where he was worked at the time. His efforts didn't pan out and it wasn't until a month later that she accepted to meet him on condition that he'd give her a ride on his bike. That was the greatest news for Mwangi; he couldn't wait for the lunch date they planned so he could tell her that he loved her.

Njeri, a Daystar University graduate had been brought up in a strict and stable Christian family. She had what anyone would call an excellent upbringing. But for the young photojournalist, life was rather different. He hadn't been living with his father and had lost his mother almost six years before he met his soul mate. His life was a complete opposite of Njeri's. " I wanted her to see the real me and appreciate me for who I was," says Mwangi, adding that he took her to a simple food café in Westlands for their first date. Njeri seemed to enjoy his company and when he escorted her later that evening they stood and chatted the night away by her gate.

That marked the beginning of a romance and before they knew it, Njeri was pregnant with their first child. This was only a month after their meeting. That cut off any dating dreams Njeri had. Mwangi says that it dawned on him that he had to start taking his responsibilities seriously and though their respective churches condemned them, the love birds were determined to make their relationship work. Mwangi confesses that during the pregnancy, the two fought a lot over small things.

"I realised that it was now up to me to be calm and patient with my pregnant girlfriend." His patience with her is a quality Njeri adores in him.

"I needed him to be very patient with me. He has worked hard at being a supportive husband."

Nine months after the birth of their first child, on March 2008, the couple had a colourful wedding at the Nairobi Sailing Club. He proposed to Njeri after a trip to South Africa. Njeri wept though it.

The first test in marriage was in their first year when they found out that Mwangi was suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder as a result of the photos he had been taking during the 2008 post-election violence. "We fought over everything and anything," Njeri says. "Things only cooled down a year later though he didn't get any treatment."

Mwangi agrees that it was a difficult time and urges couples to understand and support their spouses. The couple now has three children; Nate 10, Naila 6 and Jabali 5. Mwangi's worst experience was when they lost a baby in 2009. He had spent the night in a police cell after interrupting a Presidential speech only to come home the following morning to find his pregnant wife sick. "Her miscarriage was one of my greatest nightmares in our marriage," he says

His best experience in marriage, he says, was when he had his family protest against injustice together. "Suffering for what is just is righteous," the Parliamentary aspirant muses. His wife has some advice for girls who would like to get married to politicians or activists, "Get married to the man and not the title." Mwangi also counsels men to strike a balance between serving the nation and being a good father and husband, "In all this, my family comes first!"