Author: E. Verna Turner
Page 26
The Keeping family woke up earlier than anybody else. Jenna was so excited that day including the whole family. Remember today is the best day of her life. It was her Nuptial Day with Loren Torres. Just as they lighted the kerosene lamp, the Torres family lighted their kerosene lamp almost at the same time. Then after that everyone's too busy doing their specific task assigned to them. This will be the longest day ever, murmured Amelia and she was there downstairs on the ground providing the early breakfast. The rest of the clan woke up and helped at the chapel and at the reception area. The Russo family is busy wrapping their gifts for the bride and groom. Of course the busiest is Josephine and Arthur who help their daughter fit in with her beautiful gown of the finest Victorian lace and Italian silk brocade. Josephine sew the wedding gown so creatively will make the bride blush with pride. The chapel was ready, all lit with lamp light and candles and well decorated with the most beautiful flowers and they all are fragrant you can smell the air so sweet scented with fresh ylang-ylang, camia, jazmine and kalachuchi.
The elders helped arranged the wedding reception, the table and chairs made of bamboo are also finely decorated to suit the occasion. The food, the drinks are ready. Amelia, Stephano and the kids helped. With much ease and orderliness in the whole compound everything seemed so smoothly prepared just right in time. All they were waiting downstairs is for Josephine and her family to come down. One more time, Josephine made sure that her daughter is radiantly ready for the special rite. Her make-up, hairdo, the beautiful gown...Then Rosalee gave the nice boquet of flowers to her sister. "Sister this bouquet of flowers are just right for you." Rosalee said. "Thank you dear sister!" said Jenna with a big smile. Rosalee mixed different kind of flowers in her bouquet but mostly of ylang-ylang, baby's breath, white calla lilly tied with a white silky ribbon. It was pretty and looks expensive.
How to get down from above the tree house is hard and uneasy with a long gown. Thankfully the groom surprised her with an elevator-like hammock filled with ornamental fragrant flowers from there she is hoisted down the floor, through the yard where flowers of different kind are spread on the ground for her to walk on going through the path of the chapel. It was the whole clan first who went inside the chapel, the groom was there already wearing the graduation suit (in college) he wore 5 years ago. Mila was there at the altar together with the officiating priest, Grandpa Gustavo and Grandma Olivia. Mila has to sing the wedding song while the flower girls, the ring bearer, and maid of honor and bridesmaid enters the chapel...lastly the bride enters the chapel. All eyes were focus on Jenna and her lovely wedding gown. It was tailor-made for her radiant beauty. Josephine would like to make a renaissance style gown for her but the textile is not enough for the long terrain and cap and long sleeves and double and triple layers of dress with petticoat. So what she made for her is just simple yet very elegant modern day wedding gown.
All the men are wearing the same kind of clothing made from handwoven fiber of jusi and pina, , agave, and rayon (bamboo). The women are wearing long sarong with slit on the left side of the skirt and zabrina style blouse. A long strand of ylang-ylang flowers adorned their waistline and on their heads for garland. Men have vest and short sarong style clothing with the same wrap-around ylang-ylang flowers on top of their heads and around the waistline. That's the motiff. That's the color motiff from the color of this very exotic yet very delicate flower similar to yellowgreen leaves (lime color) from a tree surrounding the chapel. The fragrance is very aromatic and captivating.
Long and familiar homily from Grandma and Grandpa. All were attentive and focus to their words of wisdom. The young ones were attentive this time. Thank goodness. Then it's time for the special rite for the bride and groom. Excitement feels the air as they exchanged vows of solemn promises to keep each other in sickness and in health, till death do they part, to keep their love and to cherish love and respect for each other forever. Then Grandpa Gustavo and Grandma Olivia blessed the matrimony of Loren and Jenna. Then they asked to seal the nuptial with a kiss....and they kissed! How happy the clan is evidently seen with their smile , laughter and loud applause of acceptance.
The reception followed shortly after the mass and the wedding. They all gathered at the reception area tantalizing at the great food on the table. Roast beef, and stuffed turkeys, seafood of all kind. Boiled bananas, potatoes, taro roots on the long table spread with banana leaves used as mantle. Gourmet food such as fettuccine alfredo, seafood primavera, linguini, spinach pasta mixed with banana heart. On another table is designed for the many fruits harvested from the island such as :berries, caimito or star apples, papaya, rambutan, lychees, macopa, banana, pineapple, and mandarin oranges. After the joyous meal, Jameson went upstairs to their house and brought a box wrapped in vines of ivy and told the bride and groom, "this is my special gift for the couple, I hope you'll like it." with a smirk on his face, "he then make a toast with the newly weds and the elders and to all at the reception.
Excitedly, the bride decides to open the gifts one by one. First, Jenna unwrapped the gift from Jameson's. She thought there is something weird with his gift. Loren helped unwrap the box. The ivy vine is used as a ribbon and bow to cover the box. Weird huh. So, when she opened it she was surprise of what's inside it. She was laughing, showing the elders of what she's got.
"Oh well!" "They are no longer wine from 100% grapes ." Loren shouted. "It's now 6 bottles of coconut wine and 6 bottles of banana wine."
"What?! the family roared with laughter. Grandpa Gustavo couldn't help express his anger. His squinty eyes was almost red in shame.
"Hey folks don't worry!" blurted Arthur. " I have another case of wine, red wine in my house." Arthur was smiling, he too couldn't help laughed with Jameson. At least Jameson proved his knowledge about fermentation of another wine. He made use of his knowledge in physics as a protege of Josephine.
Arthur brought Chivas Regal and Don Perignon at the table. This time Grandpa Gustavo keep smiling. He likes good wine, no doubt.
Jameson keeps on insisting his wine is better. They should at least try it for he tried those wines before and he is proud to share them with the whole clan.
NOTE: Please let me know if you want to read the rest of the story. The original version is 92 pages and I 'm not sure whether the readers would like to read such a very long story of adventure, family life, conflict and complicated, revolutionary ideas and several paranormal activity. I should have this novelette in Ebook or book instead however I don't have a machinery to do such thing. My apology to my readers.
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