A Downpour of Love

On Thursday of last week I began checking the weather forecast for Humacao Puerto Rico for the upcoming Saturday. Humacao is located on the eastside of Puerto Rico, about a 45-50 minute drive to the southeast of San Juan. Why was I so concerned about the weather there? Saturday was the day of our marriage at the Catholic church in Puerto Rico. The same church where Edmi’s (my wife) parents were married over 60 years ago.

The church sits in the town square with a small park filled with benches and these beautifully gnarly old trees bordering the main path. It’s small, but when you walk through it, somehow you feel the sense of the past. A time when it was bustling with life, people and a sense of celebration.

As the morning approached I woke up and immediately checked the radar. Unfortunately, this was one of the times the weather forecast in Puerto Rico two days out was going stay true. It had already begun to rain in waves during the overnight and there was plenty more where that came from.

I stayed in a small hotel by myself the night before the wedding to make the pre-wedding hours a little less chaotic. Edmi went from her childhood home with her 91 year old father, Don Pablo, in tow. The night before, I told him I would see him in church the next day. He responded with a not very convincing reply, that he might make it. I later found out Edmi told him if he didn’t come, “who would walk me up the aisle” at the wedding. I think that was the great motivator. Guilt.

As I was getting myself ready back at the hotel, the girls were making sure Don Pablo was looking spiffy as well as some beautification to my bride( not that it’s needed). My transportation to the church was to be from a friend Omar, the husband of Edmi’ very good friend Madeline, who was to pick me up around 11:15 AM. I was hoping he might come a little earlier as the morning rain kept me from getting to a coffee shop for some much needed caffeine. As “luck” would have it, I received a knock on the door closer to 10:15 saying an Omar was waiting in the lobby. I know Omar is prompt, but thought that was a bit early, even for him. I was just out of the shower and not even dressed.

At least now I figured we would have the time to find a place to get some coffee and relax a bit before hitting the road. So I rushed to get dressed. Thankfully the AC in the room was quite strong so I was not sweating up a storm. I decided to take my wedding wardrobe with me instead of wearing it on the long drive. A linen suit would likely look like I was wearing an accordion by the time I got out of the car.

As I made my way down into the lobby and turned in, I saw someone sitting on the couch. It wasn’t Omar. Holy s*@t!! It was my friend of 40 years, Joe Avena, all the way from New Jersey! It took the reality out of the moment and for a few seconds it felt like a strange dream. We hugged, of course Joe cried a bit. We are both criers, but I think I was still more in shock. I did need a second to sit down to drink it in however. Another fact about Joe, is we became friends through my wife Nancy as they went to college together. In addition, as it turned out, Joe and I were born on the same day and year, April 27th.

We stopped at a local coffee shop in Mirimar and then hit the road for Humacao. Joe and I joked how it reminded us of our journey through Italy several years ago. To read more on that, look back into my past blogs using the tab on the top of the page, Two Guys & A Car, it’s a fun read with some great pictures of our journey. Of course this trip was to be quite a bit shorter.

For a good portion of the ride the rain had stopped. Of course as we neared the church it began to pour again. This was not the typical tropical downpours that last 5-10 minutes then move on as the sun returns. It would rain for an hour or two, a little lull, then deluge again.

The wedding was to start at 1PM. However, as I have learned over the time I’ve been with Edmi, there is a cultural time zone as well. You should always tack on at least 15-30 minutes to the suggested time. I’m a stickler for being on time, so this is still something I’m trying to get used to.

I was told a changing room behind the altar would be available when I got there. It was there. It was locked however. The woman Lourdes who was running the operation of the wedding was not yet there. The church is old and beautiful but lacks AC. The many fans that were set up had not been turned on so the inside of the church felt a bit like a rain forest. I’ve not felt humidity like that in a long time.

Lourdes finally arrived and things got going. I knew I was taking a chance wearing a pink linen suit, but when am I going to get married in the tropics again, so I went for it. I then moved back out into the church to meet my best man for this wedding. The one and only Maestro, Antonio Martorell, a brilliant artist and activist from Puerto Rico. Antonio is always dressed in some magnificent fashion so I was excited to see his chosen outfit. He didn’t disappoint. I was concerned that I had to wear a soft shoe due to a toe injury that was still healing, so dress shoes were off limits. Of course once I saw Tonio’s bright yellow and orange sneakers I knew we were both on point.

As the music came up and I saw a beautiful vision enter the back of the church I knew it was go time. I was actually pretty relaxed. My only concern was sweating down into a puddle on the altar. I think I lost three pounds by the time the wedding ceremony was over. My emotions were pretty much holding up strong until I saw Edmi being escorted up the aisle by Don Pablo. This truly was the whole reason for having this ceremony in Puerto Rico. I know how much it meant to Edmi and it was just a beautiful moment.

Now I’m struggling to hold back the tears. I’m trying to absorb the moment but also trying to keep myself together. Maybe people would think the tears were just droplets of sweat dripping down my face. I think the moment that saved me, is when Don Pablo started engaging people with handshakes and hellos as he walked up the aisle. At one point he looked like he was running for office.

With the hand off made, Edmi looked radiant as we stepped up onto the altar. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention how wonderful our priest, Padre Juan, was in the entire process of executing the wedding at Concatedral Dulce Nombre de Jesus. He was very nervous about having to do some of the ceremony in English. I told him beforehand that his English was much better than my Spanish. He did an amazing job in a beautiful ceremony filled with genuineness and love. I’m glad we were actually able to give him a round of applause when the ceremony was ending and he told the audience this was his first wedding in English.

I hope I haven’t bored you with too many details but I just felt like sharing a little piece of the day with all of you. Despite the rain it was perfect and I would not have changed a thing…… except maybe the humidity. Of course I would have loved for my Mom and kids to have been there, but they will celebrate with us later in August when we have the bigger reception stateside with friends and family. Tio Oscar & Titi Brenda were missed, as I know Tio grew up in Humacao and for all the world wanted to be present, but for health reasons it was too difficult. The good news is, that thanks to my friends Joe and Omar, all of those people were able to see the wedding through Facetime. Finally, good usage of social media technology.

I also need to mention that part of my WNBC family also surprised me. Darlene Rodriguez and her husband David showed up, which was such a thrill to share the day with friends that are really family, I have no words thankful enough. Finally to all who attended, family and friends of Edmi, who are now my family and friends as well, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for welcoming me into a beautiful group of people. Family is always with you. They are your blood. Friends are chosen. I always say you can find out alot about someone by the friends they spend time with. Edmi truly has surrounded herself with some wonderful people and I couldn’t be happier that I now get to share them with her.

So the journey continues. There is life after loss & pain. Stop and listen and be still and you will receive what you need to heal. It’s not always easy. Be easy on yourselves however.

If you made it this far…..thank you….gracias…..

Sunshine Always!