My Address is Earth: History: Our Wedding Invites

After 11 years of being married...

After having 3 kids and watching them grow up a little...

After spending so much money...buying milk and pampers...

After 11 years of being asked when do we get a church wedding...

We have decided that we can afford a simple church wedding...finally...

We have envisioned our wedding to be simple, warm and cozy...

The two of us, our three kids, my parents, his parents, one ninong, one ninang (from our civil wedding), and a very few cousins, tita's and Tito’s and ONE Priest.

I'd be wearing a little white dress from Plains and Prints ...nothing fancy,

He'd be wearing a polo shirt from Levi's,

The kids would be wearing Gingersnaps clothes which we bought on sale.

Nothing spectacular...it's like going to a Sunday church on ordinary times...

We had decided that a little corner in church at Ma Assumpta Seminary would suffice our simple wedding...

The date is set on...May 23 Saturday...because May 21 was our civil wedding date...

There would be an early dinner 5 pm at Acropolis Restaurant...not a 3 star hotel even...but we have chosen it...so that the kids can play at the swimming pool...which, by the way ,made the kids very excited about the wedding...(if only for the swimming)

No big deal...

We did not tell the receptionist at the restaurant that the occasion was an early dinner intended for a wedding, anyway, I eventually I slipped ... and the receptionist timidly commented that it was unlike other wedding being organized. It made me feel pleasant...we really did not want the fairy tale wedding of the century -like thing ...really...really...just a warm and cozy family affair...

Finally...

We informed our parents that we would get this church wedding that they always wanted...

My mama was happy...and was planning ahead already.... Of who were to be on the guest list...but I told her...”mudra...we’re not inviting the whole clan...it's a small family affair”...she was slightly offended I think but got over it...

Mother in law, on the other hand, was ecstatic...I think I saw her tears brimming over her eyes but I shrugged it off na lang...She even gave us money for spending for the wedding...which... honestly...gave me a whole trivial problem...now we have to invite other relatives initially not included... (Additional 10 is my ultimate limit...still manageable)

We asked our close friend mam Virgie who would take care of the church ceremony, if it is possible to be wedded without Aras, the rope and other church stuff, including, if possible, to skip the wedding ring (since we have been without them for 11 years...why would we need it now...) If only to cut down expenses... Anyway, Vlad and I would be there along with our three kids and our family. What could be more important than that? But ...she found my reasoning hilarious and volunteered that she’ll take care of the “church stuff” with that funny look on her face.

And about the ring, my mother was surprised and immediately fitted Vlad with a ring and volunteered to take care of it. Mother-in- law was also surprised and volunteered their ring instead...but I countered that my mama would take care of it already...which made me think...I should have accepted the rings mother-in-law was offering...then sell it to EBay...

Anyway...

Everything was all set...I think...

Until...

Mam Virgie (our Mam Virgie who only wanted us to have a decent church wedding) scheduled the whole affair with the priest at the church...

She said we needed:

2 2x2 pictures

Marriage contract

Birth certificate

Baptismal certificates

That’s what we gave them: 2 2x2 pictures. Scanned, and colored NSO marriage contract and birth certificates, a photocopy of my baptismal na maraming punit na because of old age and vlad's original baptismal certificate which his father kept for so many years for a time like this...

This is easy...we'll be married in no time... no sweat...

It’s okay...

Because everything was already planned and ready, I jokingly informed mother-in-law na we would leave Baler at 12 noon after clinic hours then head straight to the church at Cabanatuan City...to say the wedding vow achoochoo.

...Well that's what we all thought...

The thing is....the things are...

The baptismal certificates needs to have a stump ng FOR MARRIAGE PURPOSES... mine was easy...it was stumped at Sta Rosa church because Mam Virgie knew the priest there...so ...that's easy...

Vlad’s was more technical...he was baptized at Los Banos church at Laguna...

(These scenarios made us reflect hard... that all these years that he kept his baptismal certificate... was for nothing...because we still have to get a new one with annotation on it...and with this, there was too much money getting involved with this simple wedding plan)

Then...

We couldn't get the time 430pm church time; it has to be 330, because the priest needs to be somewhere else at that time...

Then,

There was this Bann. We couldn't get the May 23 day ,because arrangement should have been made 3 weeks in advance...(as if somebody will come running down the aisle to object... as if we have not been married for 11 years already...as if we needed this papers from the church for passport? Visa? TIN number? Residence Certificate? Philhealth accreditation? Income Tax Return? Facebook account???? ) ...Dismaying, right!? ....Come to think of it ...what we wanted was... our family ,one priest and just a 20-30 minutes ceremony ...we don't need papers from the church...we have what we need....I'm certain God is nice enough to understand we don't need the churches' papers....

But anyway ... so the date was reset to May 30...a good thing I am not a fungsuey advocate or else, I will be doomed to wait ‘till the next century...

As for the baptismal...

I’ve calculated that if Vlad and I were to get that baptismal certificate from Baler and back, 10,000 pesos is not enough for gas and other expenses...

So...we asked if it was possible ...because of limited time and resources,...instead of going to Los banos for a new annotated baptismal ...if we could just have Vlad baptized again?...I’m sure it's a lot cheaper...We don’t have to endure the trouble of travelling...and we don't have to miss our clinic days, our source of livelihood...Sounds reasonable, right?...It’s not illegal to be baptized 6 times, right? Nobody goes beyond the limits of heaven, right? There is no contraindication, right? God I think will understand...We are not committing deceit or violations either...

Sorry, not possible...

They need a new baptismal certificate with annotation...(Unbelievable...if Vlad was baptized in Mindanao or...another country...then definitely ...a church wedding is impossible...)

...The reasons

...The logic

...very WICKED, right?!

I told my mama that I would just like to quit about the whole wedding thing...and have the wedding after the next 10 years when the kids are old enough to take care of the papers and the priest...by then, we would not need to haggle for the date we wanted...and as early as now...get the damn schedule... (For sanity’s sake...)

I told that also to mother in law that exact words...

Funny...they both said the same thing..."iha, there are requirement needed by the church that you need to accomplish..." (they are mothers after all...I wonder if I would say the same thing if that happens to my kids...probably I would say...”anak, if you wanted a church wedding ...brace yourself for a lot of disappointments...back in our times, priests like SPOILING our day ,whether it be Yanna's baptismal o our wedding...I don't know about yours...”)

After receiving a crushing blow that almost severed wits and reason, apparently, lady luck is still alive...fortunately...

My mama is fixing up something needed from NSO

His mama is fixing up his baptismal

Mam Virgie found a priest

A wedding will happen...

May 30, 2009 330pm really,

In a little space in Ma Assumpta Seminary, I honestly don't know which part.

Cabanatuan City

Join us.

Wish us well.

Love always,

Gen

Roman Catholic Since birth...

PS 1

Do you think...? I will get sick enough to ever need to receive the last sacrament...or do I die quickly enough to skip it...if I’m doing this over?...I hope to skip it...

PS 2

And because Vlad and I will receive the sacrament of confirmation then marriage... that's 2 confirmations and 1 marriage ...that's 3 sacraments...do you think we could get a discount on our church bill??? How much do you think will that be? 10% off? 15% o 50%?

But wait,

If you pay within the next 15 minutes, you not only get 10, you get 20 sacraments of communion absolutely free!

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