We meet Yuka Itakura, a Japanese lady and Nick Mwashimba at Hikari gospel music.

Their union is a true testament that love remains unshaken, knows no boundaries and can conquer even the harshest critics.

Mr Mwashimba notes "My wife and I met back in 2007, in England where both of us were students partaking music. Yuka who was interested in music was introduced to me being a band master by our school pastor"

According to Mr Mwashimba he was impressed with Yuka the first day he set his eyes on her but he couldn't express it. He preferred to give himself time to be sure on Yuka as he always believed beautiful ladies are hardly single.

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"It took me almost one year to open up about my feelings towards her, but during that one year period I was stalking her facebook page without commenting nor liking just to get to know her," he expresses with a giggle.

Mr Mwashimba states that once he was done with his one year Masters course they stayed in one room with Yuka and a few others.

"While in the house as a large family, the people around us always gave hints of us being good together as a pair. One day they all excused themselves from the room, and I had no choice but to man up and struck up a conversation by requesting to see videos of her in Nigeria that I had stalked through her Facebook page. The rest is history."

After a while, Mwashimba's studies in England came to an end, but their love story was just beginning.

He narrates how he had to keep on the daily conversation through emails, Facebook among others.

"Our love blossomed gradually as we explored and embraced the fusion of our two worlds. With that, I took the next step of proposing to her, to ascertain her of my undying love, care and support till we become grey," he discloses.

Sadly, Yuka's mother was against this union.

According to Mr Mwashimba he sent letters to his mother in law, assuring her that he would take care of Yuka.

"It really took a lot of time to affirm her that Africans do not live in trees, and that I will take care of my wife as required. There was light at the end of the tunnel in 2010, where my wife being my pillar of strength, made sure we did a beautiful wedding, blending our cultures and traditions.

Yuka, being brought up in a broken family where her father would assault her mother in her presence and that of her two siblings, she had lost hope in getting a better man for herself, to a point she wanted to contemplate suicide to end the pain.

Yuka expresses "meeting my husband is the best thing that ever happened in my life, and despite the fact my mum cut off communications with me after letting her know I am in love with a Kenyan man, I had to do according to my heart."

The challenges the couple face is Mr Mwashimba getting to be confused for a driver while driving his wife.

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Another challenge is getting to run up a business together, Hikari Music, sometimes it's is difficult to differentiate work and personal issues that come up.

Over a decade later, Yuka and her husband are raising three beautiful daughters in Nakuru. Their love stands as a reminder that love when genuine and pure, can bridge even the widest of gaps.

mandikizella@gmail.com

The inspiring story of a love that beat all odds

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Winnie Kimani