The Big Detail I Missed When I Planned A Party

Earlier this year, I decided to organise an Eid party for my family. I love family gatherings, they are one of the things I really, truly live for. Our family is a rowdy, loud and opinionated bunch with absolutely zero filter. You can imagine why I love them. This is the stuff of dreams. For some, anyway.

Over the past few years, our families had become quite fragmented and visits were few. We all missed them and we all longed for them. So, I decided that I would take it upon myself to plan an Eid party.

I called up my cousins and aunts and uncles and told them to call up the other not-so-close-that-I-have-their-number relatives. I set the time at 3pm onwards. Realistically, since Eid is a holiday, we all tend to wake up late and take our time to get dressed. Except for the men and boys as they need to attend Eid prayer. I mean, we go all out with our make-up and clothes (especially if you’re wearing a sari) thus naturally it takes a lot longer. I decided to wear a red number, a long dress split from the waist with flared trousers that are the likes of which you haven’t seen since Kareena Kapoor in Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Ghum. (I love to wear something different or tailor/design it in a way that’s different to what others are wearing. No, I’m no narcissist, I just get bored of seeing the same things over and over again).

So, the time and my outfit were sorted as were the invitations. Now, here’s the problem. I let everyone know that the party would be taking place at my aunts’ house in Stratford as it would be easier for everyone to get there. The only person I didn’t tell is … my AUNT HERSELF (Oh, Sophski). For some reason, I already thought I had asked her or simply assumed she had known. And then, my mum and my cousin alerted me to the fact that I hadn’t asked her at all. But the worst part? I realised this big detail a day or two before Eid. Yeesh. So, I called up my poor aunt and, guiltily, told her what I had done and finally asked. Now, I have to count myself very lucky that my aunt loves parties too, so she was more than happy to have the party at her house. But now, she had the unfortunate task of preparing a dozen dishes because we have a very large family. In fact, one of my uncles has sixteen children – he didn’t come, thank God. But she somehow managed to pull off this impossible feat (the beef/chicken pilaf rice and salad were amazing).

The day arrived, and the day was spectacular. The food was great, my family were great, and the conversations and debates were great. At one point, my aunts were so impressed with the car my brother had hired that they decided to pose for the camera in front of the car itself like the undercover gangsters that they are (pose ad for a beamer). My brother allowed my cousin and I to take a ride in his car and boy, did I regret it because my brother drove that car like he stole it… I flew from the end of my seat to the entire other end, my head very luckily hitting my cousins lap instead. I had to hold on to the back of the seat for support, if Ross was in my place he would have multiple panic attacks.

So, even though I forgot to inform my aunt until the day before that the party was taking place at her house and ask her permission, it was a huge success! Everyone had fun and I had effectively reunited many family members who hadn’t seen each other for Eid in a long while. I look forward to organising more family gatherings in the future!

Let me know about any party fiascos you’ve dealt with in the comments section. It feels so great to be blogging again after the busy week and a half I have had where that last half was spent being miserable with the flu. I had a pretty fun-packed week before that and I should hopefully write a blog on it soon.

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Sophia Ismaa