I was lost for words. Never been articulate in a verbal expression, I just stood there, staring at her from the back. She looked like a stranger, looking all regal and alluring. Vulnerable still, yet seemed untouchable. Has it been that many years? Have we grown that much older? I felt like I was loosing something that was meant to stay put. But there she was. My little sister, in white.
It had not been a smooth sailing for her. I learned that she knew the groom back in college in Seattle. But it was not yet meant to be. Not until they both graduated, went back to their home country, and mingled with a mutual circle of friends years later, that a spark started to ignite little by little. It had been a long 14 years worth of journey since they first met, and finally it ended with a new beginning.
Both being the youngest member of their families, the extravagant of the wedding was not to be spared. The celebration was anything but humble. Splendidly done, it was set at a rented villa overlooking the beach in the island of Bali, with a free-standing pavilion for the actual ceremony to take place during sunset.
The invitation was extended to four hundred guests. The dinner feast featured a buffet of western style salad greens and several local dishes to go with steamed white rice, including Balinese style spicy pork satay and a generous supply of fire-roasted suckling pig or babi guling. The later was the smash of the evening. Not much of a surprise considering the crisp outer skin, the tender-moist meat, and the fiery sambal chili accompaniment. A much sought-after staple in Balinese cuisine, and personally picked by the bride and groom.
Despite the outdoor setting, the evening felt rather formal. From both sides of the family, the women were in their best and newest hand-sown gowns, fit for Oscar. Determined, the bride even went on a diet to achieve perfection in body dimension, to look her best in her wedding dress. I looked at her and noticed she looked frail, yet perfectly fierce at the same time. The men had all their suits custom made especially for the evening. Mine included. I wore a beige-cream linen suit, body fitted with a matching colored vest and silk tie, complimented with a white linen shirt, and brown leather belt and shoes. Yes, even the shoes were new. I have no photos to share but I can assure you I exuded suaveness through and through. More than 007 can ever hoped for. Trust me.
The event beautifully ended with a release of battery-lighted balloons to the evening sky, sending teeny tiny bright dots lighting the vast open ceiling, floating among the stars.
Though the celebration was filled with a glamorous setting and endless smiles and laughter, it was the take-home gifts that got the guests kept eyeing like hungry eagles. As thank-you gifts, the couple had prepared a notebook and a cake for everyone to take on their way out. The notebook was ordinary, but the cake… well! The cake placed in a clear plastic box, complete with a ribbon bow, topped with a red colored faux flower, and came with a choice of two flavors, coffee-mocha or chocolate-rum. As luck would have it, me being the tham-ciak family member of the wedding couple, I got to try both flavors of the cake. Moist, delicate, aromatic, and perfectly balanced in sweetness, they surpassed my palate expectations.
It was a joyous occasion. For many reasons. For one thing, we were all thankful that rain never intervened. We were also thankful for no one got wasted and make a scene. I think I can speak for my sister when I say we both were thankful for our Buddhist family’s patience to endure the Christian’s way of wedding ceremony that is imperative to the groom’s family, despite our difference in religion. I am also grateful to be able to witness the wedding of my baby sister and to gain another brother.
This is exactly the reason why I decided to return home in 2006. To be present at my two sisters’ wedding. In 2007 for my middle sister’s wedding, and this year for our youngest sibling’s. I had not been much of a big brother to my two sisters when we were young, and so this is the least I could do for them both. To be present. After all, nothing is more important than family.
It seems not so long ago when I had my baby sister sat on my knees. She was so light then. Looking at her now, I come to realize she is not so little anymore. She is a full grown woman. An adult who’s about to take on a new venture in life as a wife, and maybe soon after, as a mother. But I can’t help to still think of her as that little girl who once rested on my lap, leaned her head against my chest, and dozed off. I wonder if she would have the same recollection of memory.
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