Family Ties 2

Sunday dawned and the first order of business was the tent. Two yellow tents had been put up on Saturday prompting fears that the white theme had been replaced by yellow. The ice kacang vendor who was supposed to provide dessert for the wedding feast that would stretch from noon to dusk, could not confirm their presence. No one had spoke to the caterer since the initial negotiations just to make sure that they actually
remember our order. Plus, we had to add tables to make sure everyone had seats even though the plan was that guests would arrive in stages and manageable groups.

The flowers for bridal chamber still had to be arranged and the programme, script and speech had yet to be finalised. The stairs must be decorated at the last minute to avoid sticky little fingers from pulling out the organza and flowers. The table was laid with the dinner set and cutlery bought especially by my late grandmother to serve royalty. Aunts went through the house, tying up loose ends and clearing eyesores. The event was designed to be simple, intimate yet elegant. A wedding lunch cooked especially by the oldest and most experienced aunt, flower petals lining the path of the newlyweds, a simple speech by Brother No. 1 and prayer for all to hear using the local sound system and technicians imported from KL (grandsons and son-in-law), were all part of the grand design. Parking was organized and signage procured also with the help of imported free labour.

At the same time, we were experiencing mechanical glitches – a burst pipe, a faulty telephone, insufficient fans for the tent and as the day wound down to evening, the tent had yet to be decorated satisfactorily. What was worse, the tablecloths were purple but the chairs were red. Somehow, the supplier thought that we would not mind replacing white with purple. By evening, we managed to get white cloth that was used to cover the tables as two separate pieces stapled down the middle. My mother threw up her hands in despair until I suggested that we put white or cream tablespreads from SSZ and SSNun, Aunts’ home supplies; the same source for fans and even furniture and decoration for the bridal chamber The tables could only be settled tomorrow morning and the bride’s entourage would be arriving at 12 noon. But we were confident we could make it. A good omen was the arrival of Major domo's best friends who drove through the night to make it to the wedding. Even the platoon of tabligh (religious group)duly announced by walkie talkie - in their hearing - stopped by amid the preparations to wish us well.

The bridal chamber was almost done but a sacrifice had to be made. We needed runners of the same colour-white and gold for the both chairs but there was only one long runner belonging to my aunt Zaiton. The only solution was to cut the beautifully embroidered runner, imported from Syria into two. With one snip, the problem was solved amid promises that we will get a better replacement. All right, we were still in control. We tumbled into bed past midnight, exhausted yet still confident we could make the deadline, prayers on all our lips that everything will go smoothly tomorrow.

That night it rained. A storm with thunder and lightning that broke the hot spell we had been experiencing the past week. The sound system and television were outside covered by a plastic sheet. The chairs, tables and fans under the tents. Major Domo and hubby dashed out of bed and rescued the sound system and television from the rain as the plastic sheet had been blown away by the rain. As lightning flashed and thunder cracked, my brother-in-law managed to pull at least thirty chairs into the centre of the tents, before he finally heeded his wife’s shrieks of fear that he may be struck by lightning.

The casualty list tallied the next morning came to one stand fan, 20 soaked banquet chairs, one loose scallop and tablecloths that were muddied by the rain. Under my mother’s directive and direction, we tucked in our caftan sleeves, took out our scissors and cut the muddied hems of the tablecloths. The men carried the wet chairs and fan out into the sunshine to dry off. As the morning wore on inexorably to the noon deadline, aunts and cousins arrived steadily with the lace tablecloths to prettify the tables, flowers to scatter in front of the bride and groom. Sound tests were conducted, chairs dried out and slowly but surely the pieces came together. By eleven o’clock , tables were laid, food for the bride and groom’s lunch was ready to be served. However, there was one problem; the caterer was missing. Frantic phone calls established that they were on their way but the massive jam due to school holiday visitors were slowing them down. The bride’s entourage was scheduled to arrive at noon and our guests at one p.m. We had to have more time. The groom called his new family and requested an additional half an hour. 30 minutes later, the caterers arrived and a hugh sigh of relief reverberated through the family. Okay, we are go!

Once the bride and entourage arrived, everything went on smoothly and everyone knew their cue. Flower girls, usherers and guests. Even the ice kacang van finally arrived albeit at the same time as the bride's family! Once the guests were seated, food served, prayer read and speech given, all the problems we had faced seemed to melt away. Guests kept arriving and the food was plentiful. The bridal chamber was beautiful and the stairs, painstakingly decorated with organza and baby’s breath by Irina, Farisa and assistants, remained intact. I was designated to wait on the guests of honour and did fairly well even though I did miss the cue for the closing pantuns until reminded by my uncle!

There were other minor glitches but the family rallied together and presented a united front to ensure that everything go smoothly. With God’s Grace, everything did. Still, there were those whose presence we will continue to miss greatly, my late father and grandmother especially. Through it all, although tears were shed, voices raised, tempers flared, we still laughed, worked and even sang together in a hilarious late night karaoke session at the end of the day.

The moments that made this wedding unforgettable were not always the happiest ones. But the tears made the joy more intense, the glitches and mishaps made the success all the sweeter. Family ties strengthened not just through the union of two individuals and families but within our family as well.

A Special Dedication To:
Razin and Zie, congratulations and thank you for providing an occasion where we strengthened our bonds of love and tolerance. To our aunts and uncles, thank you for the unstinting support in every shape and form, To our cousins, we appreciate the time and effort taken to help us all in the greatest and smallest of ways. A special vote of thanks to Ozzy for the wonderful images of almost every member of this family. To my children, I love you all for your patience and willingness to work cheerfully. You made me look good! To my siblings and their better halves, you are all incredible and I count myself lucky and privileged to be a part of ths family. To my mother, you are the glue that binds this family together and the brains behind it all!