No need for the flashes, the thrills, or even, the firecrackers, going off, to let the world know, that we’re, married, just the families, and the, small, but delicate items needed, a simple wedding, translated…
By the start of last year, my wife and daughter-in-law already, set their wedding date for the end of March this year.
The two families were joyous, sampling the dishes, selecting the wedding pastries, discussing the flow of the wedding, the men met up at the same shop to get their suits made, the ladies spent a ton of time, setting up the wedding dress, the jewelries too. As my daughter-in-law brought the simple, but elegant white wedding dress home, I can hear the wedding bells ring, not far off, in the, distance.
During the New Year’s this year, the two families gathered up for the meals, and, the topics of MERS-CoV came up, but the children are still, optimistic, hoping, that the outbreaks are to end soon. At the end of February, my son went on a business trip abroad, and, after he came home, he’d, self-quarantined for fourteen days, and, by mid-March, the situation became, even more, serious, no signs of it, slowing down, or going away yet.
illustration from UDN.com
Comparing to our worries, the two young ones are, actually, quite calm, they’d, drafted up an alternative plan for the wedding, used the webcam, to show both sides of the parents. As we’d, agreed that for the sake of everybody’s wellbeing, we’re to, cancel the wedding banquet, and not taking in any money or presents for the newlywed, that as the outbreaks slows down, then, we will, host the smaller gatherings then.
We’d, canceled the banquet, but, there’s, still a ton of preparation for the ceremonies. We’d decided to have a reception of sorts at the groom’s home, a miniature, but still elegant, ceremony. The house, after being painted over, became, brand new. The few days before the wedding, we’d started, scrubbing down the furniture, ordering the fresh flowers, pasting on the red, with the red ribbons, decorated the stairway, and the entrance, and lain down that red rug in the living room; I’d also, busied, ordering up the pastries, and prepared the sweet teas needed for the ceremonies.
On the day of the wedding, my son dressed up, and went to his soon-to-be wedded wife’s home to offer the incense, to, usher in the bride, I’d, prepared the sweet teas, the pastries too, and waited quietly, for our in-laws and the newlywed to arrive. My youngest son became the announcer, the photographer, and the usher. Everybody dressed up, even the elderly grandmother who’s demented and had a stroke, dressed up in her red dress.
The kids traded the gifts they’d designed themselves, offered the teas, and showed their gratitude to their parents. What’s interesting was, instead of the traditional tea offerings by the bride to both sides of the parents, my eldest son smiled, and offered the teas to his in-laws, and, both children showed their gratitude toward us all.
There’s no band, no emcee, no rehearsal for this wedding, in a short thirty-minutes, the newlywed made their promises to one another, and, both sides of the parents, saw their biggest wishes come true.
The weddings during these, trying times, became, even more joyous it seemed! My daughter-in-law is lowkey, didn’t like going big for the weddings, and, this sort of a ritual of marriage, that’s, well-thought-out, and simple, I’m sure, she had, loved it too.
And so, it didn’t matter, how big the wedding is, or if, there’s, that three tier cake, or the five-star chef prepared meals, so long as the two of you are in love with each other, the ceremonies are just, a formality, and this newly wedded couple did it, their ways.