"Are you happy? Does he treat you well?"
Those were the questions I never got to answer.
"Where is he from? What's his family name?" are the first questions I got asked.
"Does it really matter?" I should have answered. I keep forcing myself to forget how our Lebanese society is built, in vain.
Had he been a foreigner, would you have still asked? No ...But he is cursed to be Lebanese.
Cursed. I said it.
Had there been a purely Lebanese matchmaking website, you'd see added features in the form:
Parents' occupation/ Parents' education/ Region raised in/ Political affiliation/ Social standing/ Total assets/ Yearly salary/ Appartments owned + locations
Did I forget anything?
Oh yes, I did.
I forgot how I was raised to believe that a kind heart is all that matters.
I forgot that mister perfect is not enough. Forgot? Forgetting entails first knowing. Never did I think that I would need to aim higher. I should have asked for more. I, the idealist, found society to be even more demanding!
"More".
Much more than a soul mate.
I did not know there was such a thing as "more"; more than the 10 pages criteria I was looking for in a man. Apparently, priorities were set differently for society.
You see, when you are Lebanese:
It doesn't matter if he really prays, shares your beliefs and practices the same religion. All that matters is your religion to match the one on his ID. Actually, that itself is not enough. Your religion should match the ID of each and everyone of his family members.
It doesn't matter whether he worked his way from scratch and raised himself a fortune, a name, and a beautiful reputation. All that matters, is his father's name and origins.
It doesn't matter whether he is educated, or has great understanding. All that really matters is that he earned his degree, yes, even if he cheated all his way through.
Apparently, I could tear my 10 pages apart.
Here, in this part of the world, all that really matters is appearances.
