The day I became Mrs. Z

Woke up on a clear Saturday morning with my favorite feeling of coziness which means the aircondition of the room is cold but I feel warm because of my blankets. The sun is up as I gazed across the floor to ceiling window in my room. I can hear the voices of my parents and sisters in the living room. I stayed on my bed, stretched some more and stood up. I went to the window and looked outside. I can see the busy streets of Shaw Blvd below. Cars are speeding up enjoying the still traffic-free streets while jeepneys and cabs are hurrying to earn more. To most people, the 2nd of January 2010, Saturday is a day to relax after the get togethers of New Year, it's an ordinary day to most but an extra ordinary day for me. Today, I am a bride. Today, I will become a wife.


I stepped away from the window and decided to face my excited family in the living room. As I open the door, they were all surprised that I woke up on my own. They said I was excited, I just smiled. It was 8:30 AM and my day has begun. I, together with my parents and Dennise (my sister) went down for breakfast. I ate a lot, thanks to the savory dishes prepared by the hotel. I was enjoying breakfast in between chatting with my family and exchanging text messages with my good friend, Marje. After breakfast, we went back to our room and I took a bath. After my bath, the suppliers started coming in. I fell in love with my dark red equadorian roses and my photographers love my red shoes.

They (my suppliers) said it feels like time stopped during my wedding preparations. It seems like they have so much time to do everything they want. They said, maybe because I am so calm. To be honest, I just want to savor each moment and enjoy it. I was calm because whatever happens, I know I will love this wedding. At 3:15 PM, I am inside the wedding car, I hear the sirens of my security escort as we make way to the church. I have been at Nuestra Señora many times but it was like seeing it again the first time. I'm at awe on how the sunlight touches the elevated church and how rich the history is behind the walls. I can see my family, relatives and friends all dressed up for my big day. I smiled and said, thank God they are on time. My coordinator approached me and said "Is it okay if we start already? Everyone is here and we are ready to start." I asked "What time is it?" She said "3:45", I said "Okay". This is the first wedding I have ever attended to start 15 minutes prior to official call time. I am always late but not on my wedding day!

I heard a soft knock on my window and my coordinator, Amy said "It's Time". I opened the door and carefully stepped down the car. I looked up to the close door of Nuestra. The moment I have been waiting for is here -- my very own "door moment". I have never been this nervous... not since my thesis defense. I hear my wedding march starting inside and on cue (based on my specific instruction on which part of the song), the big doors of Nuestra slowly opened up. First thing I thought of was, I can only see the altar and Al... oopppss I cannot see anything. I can only see the altar and Al (panic mode). Amy shouted, "Jack, start walking and SMILE!". And so I did, I walked looking at the altar for reference of where I was going and to the beaming smile of my groom, AL. We did the usual Catholic wedding rites... it feels fast and we cannot believe that it's over when Msgr. Ruperto Santos declared that we are husband and wife. Al even asked me "So ganun na yun, kasal na tayo?" I replied with "I guess". And so we are finally married after 10 years of being together.

Moving on with our reception, first I messed up our first dance. We even hired a choreographer for it but I didn't anticipate the weight, length and sheer volume of my wedding gown. We chose "I love you Always and Forever by Donna Lewis, it's fast, it's fun and we love the lyrics. We danced a few steps and missed on most but who cares I had fun! Hehehe! I saw a blank table on our left, a table allocated for Al's relatives, her cousin, suffering from cancer, collapsed a few days before our wedding. Her sisters said they are not sure if they will be able attend but I kept their table hoping that by some miracle they will. Guess what, they did. On the afternoon of our wedding, Al's cousin woke up after being in coma for 4 days and so her other cousins followed and attended the reception. Miracles do happen! It was nice to see all my guests, truly I am happy to see all their faces on our special day.

The reception was quick, light and fun. Everyone enjoyed the photobooth. My sister who did the ceremonial toast did a very nice job of making me cry. I will expound more about it in my next post.

It took one and half years, some tears, a little stress and tons of sacrifices to plan and execute this day but one thing I know, I have no regrets. I know that when I am old, I will look back and see my younger (and hot self) looking at me across the pages of my wedding album (I sure hope they will last for 500 decades or more) and think fond memories of this day. It was everything I planned and so much MORE. They say be practical. I say DO IT RIGHT THE FIRST TIME (not on your 10th, 25th or 50th wedding anniversaries). It will never be the same.

So here's to starting 2010 with a BANG! Cheers!