THE WEDDING

Author, Abigail L. Johnson lives and works in Sheridan, Wyoming USA. For paid employment, she presently works as an activities assistant in a nursing home. On a volunteer basis, she is involved at other facilities in the community that serve senior citizens. She has also facilitated a support group for the visually impaired and has served on the advisory board to a state trust fund which allows visually impaired people in Wyoming to purchase adaptive equipment and services.

      It was with some trepidation that Mark climbed the front porch steps to the old red brick house and rang the front doorbell. Years ago as a boy, he had come to this house almost every day to collect his friend Steve and they had walked to school together. Now, he was here on a totally different mission and he was starting to wonder if he should have come at all. But then again, he figured that for Steve's sake, he had to try.
      "Hello, Mrs. Wilson," said Mark to the woman who opened the door. "I don't know if you remember me but I'm Mark Bradley. I used to live across the street from you and Steve and I went to school together."
      After a brief pause, Gladys Wilson's face lit up with recognition and she smiled warmly. "Of course! It's been a long time since we've seen you. Come on in."
      She led Mark into the living room where Steve's father was contentedly reclining in his chair, reading the morning paper. He looked up as Gladys spoke to him.
     "Henry, look who's here. It's Mark Bradley. You remember Mark. He and Steve went to school together and he lived right across the street."
      With a broad grin on his face, Henry rose from his chair, flinging the newspaper aside, and offering his hand to Mark. Mark, breathing a little easier now, extended his own hand and the two men shook hands heartily.
      "Oh, Henry," moaned Gladys as she picked up the scattered sections of the newspaper. "I wish you wouldn't be such a slob, especially when we've got company." She neatly folded each section of the newspaper and laid them on a nearby coffee table .
     Ignoring this, Henry replied, "Sit down, Mark."
     Mark obeyed, taking a chair near Henry's recliner. Henry settled himself back in his chair and picked up the newspaper, which Gladys had placed on the table next to him.
      "Henry and I slept in this morning and I was just about to fix us some breakfast," said Gladys. "Are you hungry, Mark?"
      "Yes," answered Mark.
      "Bacon and eggs ok?" asked Gladys.
      "Sure," replied Mark.
      "How about toast?" asked Gladys.
      "That sounds great," answered Mark.
      In truth, Mark was not a bit hungry. But he was glad of any excuse to put off stating the real reason for his visit. He had shared many meals with the Wilson family and he and Steve had spent many sleepless nights in Steve's attic bedroom, driving Steve's older sister Sarah, whose room was below Steve's, to distraction with their noise. The Wilson house had become a second home to Mark over the years and so it felt totally natural to chat amiably with Henry in the living room and then move into the dining room when Gladys had the meal ready.
      "I saw your mother in the supermarket not long ago," said Gladys as they ate. "She said that you are now at the school of mines studying electrical engineering, is that right?"
     "Yeah," answered Mark, nervously pushing food around on his plate. "I guess Steve didn't tell you."

      Henry put down his fork and sighed. "Steve hasn't spoken to us since I told him I didn't want him marrying that girl that he's marrying today."
     "Oh, Henry," Gladys exclaimed. "I just don't understand why you don't like Kathleen. You haven't even met her. Did Steve tell you, mark, that he and Kathleen came by one day so we could meet her and when they told us they were coming, Henry insisted we go out somewhere so we wouldn't be home when they got here. I've never been able to forgive myself for going along with that."
     "Gladys, you know very well why I don't approve of Kathleen and I don't think Mark came over here to listen to us drudge that up again," said Henry, his face growing red with anger.
     Ignoring her husband, Gladys continued. "As it turned out, when we got home that day, they were still there, waiting for us. They'd just made themselves comfortable in the living room, as if they expected us back any minute and were watching tv. We'd gone to Perkins for coffee and dessert and I guess we were gone about half an hour."
     Mark grinned, remembering the incident as Steve had told it to him. Steve had said that he figured his parents were purposefully trying to avoid meeting Kathleen, since Henry had voiced his disapproval to Steve over the phone when Steve had told Henry about Kathleen. So, thinking that Henry and Gladys couldn't stay away from home forever, Steve and Kathleen had decided to wait for them. Steve had brewed a pot of coffee and they had turned on the tv in the living room and were watching an old movie when Henry and Gladys finally returned.
     "Anyway," Gladys continued. "Henry didn't even stop to say hello. He didn't even look at Kathleen. He just marched upstairs to our bedroom and slammed the door. But I stayed downstairs and had a very nice visit with Steve and Kathleen."
     "Gladys, I don't want to talk about this right now," said Henry darkly.
     "Kathleen's a very sweet girl," Gladys went on. "And she's amazing! She can't see a thing but she can live on her own and hold down a job. And I think it's wonderful that she works in a nursing home and sings to those poor old people there. Sarah says she has a wonderful voice and isn't it a funny coincidence that Sarah and Kathleen work in the same nursing home? I think Sarah deliberately put Steve and Kathleen together."
     "and that's another thing," exclaimed Henry in an apparent attempt to change the subject. "What's Sarah doing wiping old people's bottoms anyway? She should find a husband of her own and settle down."
     Mark ignored Henry and tried to draw the conversation back to Steve and Kathleen. "I think you're right, though, about Sarah putting Steve and Kathleen together. When they met, Steve's band was playing at The Golden Eagle."
     Once again Henry interjected. "And why is Steve playing that damn rock and roll music? Why, when he was growing up, he'd play his drums to my Oscar Peterson record. You remember that, don't you Mark? Now, he's playing this stuff that isn't even music."
     "Oh, Henry, pipe down," exclaimed Gladys in exasperation. Turning to Mark, she said, "Now, what were you saying about Steve playing at the Golden Eagle?"
     "Well," continued Mark. "Sarah brought Kathleen to The Golden Eagle to hear Steve play."
     "A bar," Henry muttered. He opened his mouth as if to say more but Gladys Glared at him and with a sigh, he shut it again.
     "A night club," Mark corrected with a grin. "Anyway, during a break, Sarah took Kathleen up to the band stand to meet Steve and they hit it off right away. I was there too that night and as I recall, during every break after that, Steve went over to the table where Kathleen And Sarah were sitting and visited while Sarah went to the ladies' room. After that night, those two were inseparable. And you know the rest of the story."
     "I wonder what Steve saw in that girl," Henry grumbled.
     "I think it's their interest in music that brought them together, as well as Sarah's match making, of course," said Mark. With a wink at Henry, he continued, "And I think you'd be interested to know that Kathleen's been trying to convince Steve to help her form a jazz band that would play some of those old standards at the nursing home."
     "I remember that day they were here," said Gladys. " Kathleen said she plays the piano and the guitar and then she also has one of those electronic keyboards."
     "Oh, really," said Henry with interest. "But how's she going to take care of Steve? Can she even cook or clean?"
     "Kathleen's an excellent cook," said Mark. "She does almost everything by feel and her stove and oven are marked in braille. And she's got a talking timer and a talking bread machine. As far as cleaning is concerned, she hires someone to clean for her once a week. Of course, it used to be once every other week until Steve moved in."
     "You mean they're actually living together," exclaimed Henry, his face once again growing red with anger.
     "Well, yeah," said Mark uncertainly, not knowing what else to say. Then, he thought of an idea. "Nowadays, finding a wife is like buying a car. You have to test drive them first."
      "That's bull shit," Henry shouted, rising suddenly from his chair. His quick movement caused the chair to topple over backwards and it fell to the floor with a loud thud. "I'm not going to listen to any more of this," he sputtered and then he stamped out of the room. A moment later, his footsteps were heard climbing the stairs to the second floor and then a door slammed. Mark noticed that Gladys's face was expressionless.
      "I hope my last remark didn't offend you, too," he said nervously.
      "Not at all," replied Gladys sadly. "I suppose that nowadays, women think the same way about getting husbands," she continued with a weak smile.
      "Yeah, I guess so," said Mark, now wondering what to do next. Finally, he decided that now was as good a time as any to state his business. "As Steve's best man, I actually came by today to personally invite you and Mr. Wilson to the wedding."
      "Oh," said Gladys, looking startled. "We did get an invitation and that's another thing Henry doesn't approve of. For some reason, he doesn't like the idea of them getting married at the nursing home. I, on the other hand, think it's quite sweet."
      I agree," said Mark. "Kathleen has developed friendships with some of the residents and she says it's like having extra grandparents. So, she wants every one of them who can to attend, and the staff as well."
      "Sarah told me over the phone that she's going to sing "I'll Take You Home Again, Kathleen" as the bride is coming down the aisle." said Gladys. "Now that's certainly different."
      "Well, you see," said Mark. "Kathleen heard Sarah singing that song to one of the residents as she was bathing her and she liked it so much that she asked Sarah to sing it at their wedding, exactly as she sang it in the tub room, without any accompaniment. And instead of saying vows, Steve and Kathleen are going to sing songs to each other but neither of them knows that the other is doing that. They each think that the other is speaking the vows."
      "Now that's interesting," said Gladys. She lowered her head and sighed. "I'll talk to Henry. Maybe I can convince him to come. If not, maybe I'll come on my own. I don't know. I'll see." With that, she put her elbows on the table and rested her chin in her hands.
      At this point, Mark decided that it would probably be best to leave. He had said his piece and now, it was time to move on. However, there was one more thing he could say. "You know," he said, rising from his chair. "This is one of the most important days in Steve's life. He needs you. Don't you think you should at least attend your own son's wedding?"
      Gladys said nothing and did not move. As Mark walked out the front door and slid behind the wheel of his car, he reflected on his visit with the Wilsons. Although he was distressed by Henry's reaction to everything, he was glad that he had at least tried to set things straight between Steve and his parents. Steve did not know that Mark had planned to visit Henry and Gladys and Mark had no intention of telling him about his visit with them, especially since the outcome had not been as he had hoped. Maybe the Wilsons would come to the wedding and maybe they would not. But at least, Mark figured, he had made an effort to smooth things over.
      Later that afternoon in the crowded chapel of Pine Ridge Manor, Mark stood with Steve at the altar, waiting for the bride to enter. Mark glanced around the room, hoping against hope that he would spot Henry and Gladys but he did not se them. With a sinking heart, he looked at Steve to gauge his reaction to the absence of his parents but by the look on Steve's face, Mark guessed that Steve was not even thinking about his parents. His eyes were glued to the doorway in anticipation of Kathleen's entrance.
      Behind them, Sarah began to sing. "I'll take you home again Kathleen, across the ocean white and wide." There were the usual bride's maids and flower girls and then finally, Kathleen came into the room on her father's arm. Mark was relieved that at least Kathleen's family did not disapprove of her union with Steve. Although they were devout Catholics, they welcomed Steve, even though he chose not to convert to the religion. Mark thought that perhaps Mr. And Mrs. O'Brien were glad that someone was willing to marry their blind daughter. In any case, they had welcomed the marriage and had even hired a non-denominational minister to conduct the service.
      When Kathleen and her father reached the altar, they stopped in front of Steve and as rehearsed, Kathleen extended her hand and Steve took it. As the minister began a short sermon on the meaning of marriage, Mark happened to glance toward the doorway. He looked again. Could it be? Yes it was! Standing uncertainly in the doorway, arm in arm, were Henry and Gladys Wilson. Mark nudged Steve and when Steve turned in Mark's direction, Mark pointed at the doorway. Steve's mouth gaped open in astonishment. Steve then turned and whispered something to Kathleen, who looked surprised. Sarah had also noticed the couple and was hurriedly putting chairs down in the front row for them. They were just getting settled as the minister was saying, "If anyone has any reason why this man and this woman should not be joined in holy matrimony, please speak now or forever hold your piece." Mark held his breath, expecting Henry to say something. But for once, the man who had been outspoken that morning was now silent.
      After a pause, the minister announced it was time for Steve and Kathleen to give their vows. Kathleen was to be first and as Sarah sat down at the piano and played the opening bars of "You Light Up My Life" and Kathleen began to sing, her sightless eyes seemed to gaze lovingly into Steve's eyes, which were wide open in astonishment, as she sang the words "Alone in the dark but now you've come along." Mark noticed that Gladys and a few other women were wiping their eyes.
      When Kathleen had finished her song, Steve whispered to Mark, "Man, I can't do this. I don't sing as well as she does. Tell Sarah not to bother. I'll just say something instead."
      But before Mark could say or do anything, Sarah struck up the opening bars to "How Wonderful Life Is When You're in the World" and Steve resignedly turned and looked into Kathleen's eyes and began to sing, hesitantly at first but then growing stronger.By this time, some of the men were wiping their eyes and Kathleen's maid of honor gave her a Kleenex to wipe her eyes as well. But Henry remained motionless, with a disgusted scowl on his face. Granted, Mark realized, Steve was a better drummer than he was a singer but his words were clear. "I hope you don't mind that I put down in words how wonderful life is when you're in the world."
      After Steve and Kathleen exchanged rings, the local chapter of Sweet Adelines, a barber-shop group of which Kathleen was a member, filed onto a set of risers. Kathleen did not join them, however. As they sang, "Every day of my life, I'll be in love with you," Mark noticed that there wasn't a dry eye in the crowd. He pulled two handkerchiefs out of his pocket and gave one to Steve. After their song was finished, the minister pronounced Steve and Kathleen man and wife. Kathleen then took Steve's arm and as Sarah played Mendelsohn's wedding march, they filed out of the chapel.
      The reception was to be held in one of the resident dining rooms. As Mark stood in the receiving line with others in the wedding party, he looked around for Henry and Gladys. Sure enough, there they were. As they grew closer, Mark noticed that both Henry and Gladys were smiling and so was Steve.
      "Kat, Mom and Dad are coming," Steve said excitedly as he put his arm around Kathleen. "Dad's right in front of you now."
      Kathleen extended her hand. "Hello, Mr. Wilson. It's so nice to finally meet you," she said.
      Henry grasped Kathleen's hand and shook it warmly. With a broad grin on his face, he said, "Welcome to the family, Kathleen."