We woke up to a warm, sunny Wedding Day! I sent Keith to the hotel desk to retrieve Jeff’s wedding dinner and wedding cupcakes that I’d prepared at home and which were in the hotel’s freezer. I started Jeff’s IV fluids and prepped the flushes for after the infusion in case Jeff had to do it himself. He is squeamish about it so I was pretty sure he would wait for me to return from my hair appointment. Besides, he’d had a rough night (which Kerry noticed from the next bed but assured us hadn’t disrupted his sleep too much) and his gut was causing him some trouble. As soon as he was settled and the IV pump running, Kim, Addie and I left for the hair salon where the bride’s mother is a regular.
We met the rest of the ladies at the hair salon. Kelly, the stylist assigned to me, was very personable and we soon learned that we each had husbands who’d had lengthy hospital stays. Her husband’s was a 4-month stay following gall bladder surgery during which a piece of equipment malfunctioned and damaged his pancreas. He lost 1/3 of his pancreas and, against the odds, lived to tell the tale. At the time, they had a 10-week old baby. No matter how bad things get, you don’t have to look far to see someone worse off than you are. Anyway, after we were sufficiently beautified, Kim left the salon with the bridesmaids to go to the Andrejack’s house. Before Addie and I left we saw Theresa’s hair-do in progress. She is a lovely woman, a lovely bride!
Jeff had evidently slept through most of his infusion while we were gone. It had finished a few minutes before we got back to the hotel. I unplugged him, flushed his lines, and got myself dressed. Addie got dressed, too, but Jeff lounged. He felt rotten. I offered gentle suggestions that he get ready for the wedding. I think he was hoping he would begin to feel better. He refused anti-nausea medicine because he didn’t want to fall asleep. In my mind I laid out Plan B: call Dan and ask him to stay with Jeff at the hotel during the ceremony and hope Jeff would be up to the reception later. Finally, I said, “If you can’t make the ceremony, that’s alright. Maybe you’ll feel well enough later…” Jeff’s response was a sharp, “No!” He got up and got dressed. We all looked so spiffy that we took some pictures. When he thought he was ready to travel, we left for the church.
When we arrived at the church, I dropped Jeff off at the door but there was no one outside I could ask to park my car. I knew parking would be a problem at 20 minutes before the start of the ceremony. Kerry had instructed us to arrive much earlier. Oh, well; it couldn’t be helped. They might wait for me. After driving around and finding only permit parking on the street, I found an empty permit-only parking lot but the sign said that towing was enforced all the time, not just weekdays. I finally found street parking, began feeding quarters into the meter and someone yelled from a passing car, “It’s free on Saturdays!” Oh, well. As I walked to the church, Dan called and asked where I was. He met me on the street and we walked to the church together. I don’t think I was late but it was too close for comfort.
I met Jeff in the narthex. He gave me my wrist corsage and did not make me feel bad about cutting it close. I stepped into the sanctuary and, out of habit, I slung my sunglasses onto my coiffed head. Kerry’s friends, the groomsmen, gave me a funny look. I said, “Oh, did I just put my sunglasses on my head?” They nodded. I carefully plucked the sunglasses back out of my hair and put them in my clutch. You can dress me up but you can’t take me out. Then I greeted Jeff’s cousin and his wife and called her by her sister-in-law’s name. Smooth! I realized my gaff and was powerless to fix it at that moment because duty called. The bridal party was in the narthex; the door opened a crack and I got a glimpse of Kim and the other bridesmaids, all so beautiful! The waterworks began.
Keith was ready to usher us down the aisle. Although we had rehearsed Keith ushering me with Jeff following us, I told the men I wanted to be flanked by them. So I grabbed each of them by the arm and began down the aisle. Maybe I wasn’t blubbering. I am sure my face was contorted with the effort, though. Jeff saw the photographer ahead of us and reached up to yank off his face mask. His bold move empowered me and I recovered my composure by the time we were seated.
The ceremony was very nice. Kerry remembered to turn around to watch his bride walk down the aisle (something his father did not do and, so, was warned about). Kerry and Theresa were both so easy, cool as cucumbers, enjoying the moment. I did not cry overly much but just enough to make it difficult to read the hymn lyrics. Jeff and I were both relaxed and happy.
Father Acri’s homily included a story about a husband who for 40 years gave his wife the heel of the bread. I turned to look at my mother, seated just behind us, because we have discussed this more than a few times. The husband gave his wife the heel of the bread despite her not liking it and, after 40 years, she finally said, “Why do you give me the heel of the bread when you know I don’t like it?” His answer was, “Because it is my favorite piece.” I had always thought my mother ate the heel because she was frugal and a martyr, eating what no one else wanted. I learned as an adult that she preferred the heel!
The photographer took all the pictures involving our family first so that Jeff could return to the hotel to rest before the reception. The bridal party went on to the Capitol fountain for pictures - which I cannot wait to see! My mother, siblings and their families met us in our hotel room. Jeff “rested” in a roomful of people and he probably should have had his mask on then, too, but he didn’t. We had fun!
At 5:30 p.m. I drove Jeff to the Antique Auto Museum which was really just to the other side of the parking lot from the hotel. Still, we were conserving his energy and the parking lot is on a hill. Unfortunately, I forgot his special food: lasagna and roasted carrots. Our friend, Ken, saved the day by both parking my car and retrieving the dinner from the fridge in our hotel room. Almost as soon as we arrived, the staff asked us for Jeff’s special food. They were very attentive to his needs.
Cocktails and appetizers were served in my favorite gallery which meanders from exhibit to exhibit and is made to look like a street. There is an old gas station and a mock-up drive-in movie theatre and, of course, cars parked all over the place. Theresa’s young cousins, students at a performance arts charter school in Bethlehem, provided music. Jeff sat and visited with his cousin, Joyce, up from her home in South Carolina, and his sister, Debbie. I saw friends, family and spoke with the Drexel engineering geeks, all really nice guys, and their gals. We began hearing the recurring comment, “This is a great place for a wedding!” My mother found a version of her first car. The kids sat at the “drive-in” and watched a movie. There seemed to be something for everyone and the exhibits facilitated conversation and mingling. The bridal party, meanwhile, was upstairs in the rotunda. We went up there briefly for photos with the kids. I wish I had taken some candid pictures of the bridal party then.
Then we went downstairs to the lower gallery and dinner. The nearby galleries and photo booth drew people from the main gallery so that there was a lot of movement and mingling. Kerry and Theresa performed many of the traditional customs – cake-cutting, first dance, bouquet throwing. Theresa danced with her dad – lovely! – and Kerry and I danced to Jim Croce’s, “I’ll have to Say I Love You In a Song.” Not too shabby.
We sat with the bride and groom, Steve and Stephanie Andrejack, her Aunt Betty and my mother. Jeff’s lasagna was plated by the caterers and served with the other meals for our table. Perfect! Jeff saw the same perfection when dessert was served. His cupcakes were served when the cake was cut. He removed his mask to eat and drink and sometimes forgot to replace it.
We took some fun pictures with friends in the stainless steel diner at the end of the gallery. The photo booth in a nearby gallery was fun for young and old alike. Duplicate copies of everybody’s photo strips will be given to the bride and groom. Jeff and I were in line for the photo booth during what we were told were the only slow dances the DJ played. So when the last dance was announced and we hadn’t yet danced, Jeff obliged, even though it was not a slow dance. I think he had to muster all his strength because he was pretty beat by then. The young people, on the other hand, did not want to leave the dance floor. Everyone was having such a good time.
Jeff wished he could have socialized more. A lot of people came to him, seated at our table in his board room chair which I had called to request last week. The special chair was a godsend with its wide seat, tall and movable back.
At the end of the evening, back in the hotel room, he sat on the edge of the bed – hunched over and looking miserable. I began to rub his back and he said, “I told you I could do it.” Yes, he had!
1 comment:
Whew! :) Thanks for the play-by-play. So glad Jeff didn't have to miss a moment!
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