THE WEDDING FINALE

continued from part 1...

And with our specially made barong tagalog, I, together with my grooms men entered the vicinity of Paco Park Church like the four horsemen of the apocalypse. Each one of us lined up like the backstreet boys wearing our stylish shades feel like superstars. But as I crossed the historic adobe entrance, it seemed as if I entered a whole new world. There were people sitting on the benches waiting for us. Most of them I don’t even know…well except for my relatives of course. But as for the people all on one side of the fountain, I’m not even sure if they are Lany’s relatives. It is my first time to meet the entire clan! I am not even sure if they are our guests. Her relatives that I know aren’t there yet. Her parents are nowhere to be seen. So, without further hesitation I made my way to them. I immediately switched on to Mr. Friendster Mode, and put on my best smile. I try and shake everybody’s hands and introduce myself to them. I tried to utter something smart and hospitable but the first words that came out was “Hi everyone! I’m the groom!” By that time I’m already sweating bullets. They probably think that I’m a shmuck! But who cares I told myself. It’s my wedding! And boy, are they in for a great time at the reception.

After embarrassing myself in front of our guests, I made my way inside the church for a quick inspection. The Velvet Mood Quartet was already practicing. Gary Silang Cruz was amazing during his practice. I have never seen anybody play the flute that well. No wonder those guys are members of the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra!

Inside the church, Chito Vecina’s crew had already set up the lights. It’s pretty simple really. But I still wonder what it will look like on video. Marius the pianist was also practicing with the lady singer. I sneaked in front of him and introduced myself. I asked if he knows the song “I’ll Be” by Edwin McCain. That’s the song that I will be singing for my bride. Its suppose to be a surprise. She’s been bugging me to do sing but I refused. Siempre I wanted it to be unforgettable. He was nice enough to rehearse the song with me. But I was really nervous na! I can pee in my pants anytime now.

3:00pm “CALL TIME”

At this time I felt that somebody poured some ice cold water on me. Bing (PEP EVENTS) the coordinator has already lined up the entourage.
But where is my dad?
Dad!?!
My sis?
Babs!?!
…wait…did I make it clear that my wedding is at 3pm and not 3:30??? Oh no! I reached in for my phone to call my sis. Damn! There were caught on traffic at Taft Avenue! The bride is already here waiting inside the bridal car.
And what is this???
The fountain!
They haven’t turned on the fountain!
Panic attack!!!
The damn! The fountain was a mess. It’s full of dead leaves! The guy out there was draining the water by lawn!
I jumped on the bench and ran straight to the old man. I told them that I paid for the fountain from the Parks Commission, and it should have been turned on since 2:30pm! He asked me for a receipt. Unfortunately, I don’t have it. Good thing that he was kind enough to turn in on after I gave him the evil eye. If not I might have drowned him from what was left of the water in the fountain.

3:15pm

My family is still nowhere to be seen. By this time the coordinator has reminded me of the contract that we signed at Paco.

15 minutes delay – No homily
30 minutes delay – No mass
45 minutes delay – Wedding cancelled

At this time my whole world started to crumble. I am faced with a terrible decision. Do I walk the isle without my father? I can’t! He’s all I got right now. My mom insistently will not be attending the ceremony. She has a different religion …and she cannot break her covenant with God. And I respect that.

5 more minutes and my family still isn’t there. I felt like I aged a million years standing in front of strangers. I thought that everything that we planned for was ruined…by my own family. They arrived eventually after a minute. But I couldn’t wipe the dismay off my face. It’s a good thing that the priest, Father Rex Cortez was lenient enough to give us the full wedding ceremony! I knew right at that moment that me and Lany were meant to be. We are getting married at last!

To be continued…