This archive report was first published on 14 December 2019.
As I reflect on the holiday season, I am reminded of a young woman named Terry, who fell in love with a man in August and was ecstatic when he asked her to be his wife in December.
However, her marriage lasted only one night, and she soon found herself pregnant and heartbroken.
What followed was two years of tears before she picked herself up and moved on.
Today, I see women making the same mistake, obsessing over what to wear, how to behave, and what to buy in preparation for meeting the boyfriend's parents.
But I want to caution them: a man taking you home to meet the family doesn't mean he is finally off the market and ready to wed.
Meeting the family is not necessarily a relationship milestone, and women should not read too much into it.
Don't break the bank shopping for things you can't afford, or break your back trying to do all the cooking or cleaning by yourself.
Just be a decent human being, and don't mistake the family's hospitality for a marriage proposal.
As someone who grew up with six older brothers, I've seen enough to know that a man taking you home to meet the family doesn't necessarily mean he's serious about you.
