by Ward, Vivian
“Judy! I’ve never heard you talk like that,” he laughed.
“Well, it’s true! You were so arrogant and…distant, but I’ve gotten to know an entirely different side of you. And I like that side.”
“I’m glad you do!”
“Let’s call it a night. I’ve had a very tiring day,” I said to him as I put the last of the dishes into the dishwasher.
“Yeah, I’m pretty beat myself.”
Chapter 13
The following Sunday after service, our church had a potluck luncheon in the basement. Everyone brought their favorite signature dishes in honor of our new engagement. All of the women flocked to see my engagement ring after the service was over before we headed to the basement. While they were busy boasting over my ring, I glanced over at Jeff, who was being congratulated by all of the men. Nat and the other children scarfed down their meals before running outside to play. By the end of the afternoon, we were all wore out and ready to go home.
“Everyone seems excited that we’re going to get married,” he smiled at me.
“I know. They’re very supportive—that’s one of my favorite things about our fellowship. We’re one big family.”
“I’m glad they like me. I’ve actually grown quite fond of them, too.”
As we got on the highway, he turned and looked at me.
“What?”
“I’m still waiting to hear when you’re going to move in. I know you still have a little time left in the house, but I want you two living with me. I want us to start our life together.”
“Well, I wasn’t going to tell you this, but I discussed that with some of the women as we were setting up the potluck before service. They said any time I’m ready to move, they’ll all pitch in and help.”
“That’s awesome,” he gloated.
“You know Mary?”
“Um, she’s the one with the two young boys, right?”
“Uh-huh, well her husband, Sam, owns a moving company. She said her husband could let us use one of his trucks so we wouldn’t have to rent one.”
“Let me get this straight. Your church is going to let you use some of their moving trucks and they’re all going to pitch in to help with the move…what do they want in return?”
“Nothing.”
“Why?”
“Why are you so suspicious of everyone?” I laughed. “Thomas’s great grandfather helped Reverend Lockridge found our church many, many years ago. His family has deep roots in First Christian Church. I told you, we’re all one big family.”
“That’s the best family I’ve ever heard of. I’m so excited,” he reveled. “So, have you given any thought as to when you’re going to be ready to move?”
“I thought about it, and I think I’ll start packing this week. It’ll take me a while though because I have so much to go through. I’m hoping that maybe I’ll be ready within a couple of weeks.”
He took my hand in his as we exited the highway and kissed it. “Judy, you make me the happiest man alive!”
§
Packing was the easy part as far as I was concerned. I was so glad that the men from the church were helping with the move. There were boxes stacked from the floor to the ceiling in almost every room. I didn’t think I’d ever finish going through everything, and the sad part is that I tossed a bunch of stuff. On moving day, there was an assembly of men carrying box after box out to the truck. It was the end of August and hotter than any summer we’d had in a while. I made sure there was a steady supply of lemonade as the men made their way in and out of the house. They were so thirsty that I had to unpack a box to get out a third pitcher.
Once the truck was loaded up, everyone headed to Jeff’s house to help unload it. When we pulled up to the house, there was nowhere to park in front of the house. The driveway was filled with white vans. I got out of the car and went inside to see what they were doing at the house. Jeff was talking to a group of people in the kitchen. As I made my way in there, I saw they were wearing red uniform shirts and black pants. When he noticed I was standing behind him, he dismissed them and turned around to greet me.
“You were quicker than I thought you’d be.”
“What are all of these people doing here? They’ve got the moving van out front with nowhere to park so we can unload it. What’s going on?”
“I hired a catering company to feed everyone tonight. I’ll go ask them to move their vans. I’m sorry, I didn’t think you’d be here so soon. They’re still setting up.”
While he went out back, I headed up front to let everyone know the vans would be out of our way in a few minutes. They were excited to hear that Jeff had hired a caterer for dinner. Most of them hadn’t eaten since breakfast and were starving.
That night, everyone enjoyed a delicious chicken dinner with all the extras catered by one of the best catering companies in town. He even went out of his way and hired a band, which everyone loved. By 11:00, all of our guests began heading out as the cleaning crew took care of everything.
§
For the first time in her life, Natalie started school at the end of fall. With the help of Jeff, we enrolled her in a school for the deaf. She absolutely loved it. Before the school year started, we took her to tour the school. She was a bit apprehensive as we visited with the teachers and met the principal, but now she was happy to be there. Every day when she came home, she told us how she’d made another new friend. Eager to please her teachers, she flourished in her studies. The only set back she had was not attending school there the first few years of her life so she had a lot of catching up to do when it came to making friends and knowing everyone. She had a ‘sky’s the limit’ kind of attitude and challenged herself every afternoon to study her books. And just like me, she loved reading. Her tiny brain absorbed all the information she read and she loved reciting things she’d learned.
The school was about a 45-minute commute, which meant I had to drive her back and forth each day, but it was well worth it. It meant so much to her to have a whole different community that she could communicate and interact with. I’d never seen my baby girl smile so much in her entire life. She even became more confident about being around others, which really showed when we went to church every Sunday. Her Sunday school teachers noticed that she was asserting herself more and becoming more involved in activities; something she’d rarely done in the past. It was incredible to watch her self-confidence skyrocket.
One thing that neither of us had thought about was the school teaching her how to read lips. We’d always been able to talk about things freely in front of her since she was deaf, but we quickly found out that was no longer possible. It was near Christmas time when Jeff realized she could read lips and brought it to my attention. At the time, he wouldn’t tell me the exact reason he knew, but he made it very clear that we couldn’t discuss presents in front of her.
“How do you know she can read lips?” I asked as I put dinner in the oven.
“I was on the phone today, ordering you a Christmas gift, and when I hung up, she knew what I’d said.”
“What did you get me?” I teased him.
“You’ll find out on Christmas Day unless she tells you first.”
“Oh, don’t worry. She can keep a secret. So what did she say when you got off the phone?”
“I hung up the phone and started to pour some coffee when she told me that you’re going to like your present. I asked her what she was talking about, and she said that you’d like what I had just ordered for you.”
“And she knew what it was?”
“Yes, she knew what the gift was and who I’d been talking to. After talking to her for a few minutes, I asked if she had started to learn how to read lips and she slowly nodded her head with a goofy grin plastered across her face,” he laughed.
“Yep, that sounds like her all right. Did you tell her she has to keep it a secret? And did you ask her why she didn’t tell us that she could read lips?”
“I did! And she said she w
anted to surprise us.”
“Mmmhmm, I bet she wanted to surprise us all right. Surprise us that she could figure out all of her gifts. I’ll be right back,” I started making my way out of the kitchen.
“Where are you going? You can’t ask her what I ordered you.”
“No, I’m not going to do that. But I want to know how long she’s been able to do it. I’ve been talking on the phone with some of the ladies from church about gifts and the upcoming Christmas party. I want to know how much she knows.”
“I’m coming with you,” he followed me.
She was busy in her art room drawing her little heart out. I tapped her on the shoulder and waited for her to turn around.
“Nat, Jeff says you know how to read lips. Is that right?” I signed to her.
That goofy grin he’d described spread across her cheeks as she shook her head yes.
“Yes, momma, I can read lips. They’ve been teaching us how to do it in school. Isn’t it neat?”
“How well can you read lips?” This time, I asked the question out loud instead of signing it.
“I’m not great at it yet, but I can figure out most stuff,” she signed.
My jaw dropped. She actually can read lips! I was excited for her. It would open another door of communication for her that she’d never had before.
“I’ve been on the phone a lot lately with members of the church, talking about presents and the party. Do you know the things I’ve been saying?”
“I know that the party will be the Sunday before Christmas and that you and some of the other moms will be shopping for our presents the Saturday before the party. But I have a question.”
“What?” I asked her.
“Why are you shopping for the presents? Isn’t Santa bringing them to church?”
I looked at Jeff. Crap! I had to think fast.
“Well honey, Santa will be busy in the North Pole. He and his elves will be busy making toys to deliver on Christmas Eve. Once they’ve got all the toys made, they have to wrap everything and pack the sleigh. Santa won’t make it in time for our party that’s before Christmas.”
She thought about it for a moment. “Yeah, that makes sense.”
Whew! We dodged that bullet. “I want to talk to you about reading lips. It’s not nice to do when someone’s trying to have a private conversation with someone else, especially two grown-ups.”
“Ok, I’m sorry. I won’t do it again.”
As Jeff and I made our way back down to the kitchen, we laughed about how crazy it was that she was learning everything so fast.
“She almost busted you on the Santa thing.”
“I know! I bet she didn’t tell us so that she could figure out some of her presents. She’s a lot smarter than she looks,” I joked. “We’ll have to be extra careful about talking around her. All these years, I’ve taken for granted that she can’t hear. It’s always been so easy to say whatever we needed to say and never have to worry about her hearing us.”
“I think it’s great that she can do that, though. She’s a very smart girl. I’m so proud of her. The way she’s adapting at the new school and how well she’s doing in her classes….it’s crazy.”
“That’s Nat for you.”
§
Shortly after the holidays, we began planning our wedding. It was much simpler when Thomas and I got married. I wore my mother’s wedding dress and we had a small ceremony at the church with only our closest friends and family. After our wedding, everyone headed back to our place to have a small family get-together and called it a night. Jeff had an entirely different idea of what our wedding should look like. He wanted a big wedding with everyone we knew, complete with a band and a huge reception. I only wanted flowers and a small cake, but he insisted that we go all out.
During the months of planning, I consulted with various flower companies, bands, and a few different bakeries. As I interviewed the bands, a revelation came to mind. I should have the church choir sing for me as I walk down the aisle and save the band for the reception. It would mean so much to the choir to let them do that. I asked Melinda, the head of the church choir if she would be able to coordinate music for before and during the ceremony. She was thrilled and immediately accepted. Melinda didn’t waste any time getting the choir together to practice songs for my big day.
With everything seamlessly coming together, our wedding was going to go off without a hitch. I had every detail planned out from the tuxes and bridesmaid dresses to the cake, flowers, food, music, and decorations. Natalie and some of the women from church accompanied me to the bridal shop as I tried on various dresses. When I found the dress that was perfect for me, I started to cry as the women gasped when they saw me in it. I tucked the dress away in the spare closet of Nat’s art room to keep Jeff from seeing it before the big day. If I even got half the response from him as I did from the women when they saw me in it for the first time, I’d be the happiest bride in the world.
Chapter 14
Ann and Nat finished helping me into my wedding dress after I’d finished my makeup. I stared at myself in the full-length mirror in the church dressing room. My palms became sweaty as I thought of becoming Mrs. Pincetti.
“What’s wrong momma?”
“Nothing honey. I’m excited is all. Come on, let’s go get in our places. The choir will be starting soon.”
Everyone took their positions as the choir began singing. Melinda did a fantastic job of getting everyone together to practice the songs and they sounded angelic as they sang. Every church pew was filled with members of the church, friends from the community and all of our relatives. It was bittersweet. The last time I’d walked down a church aisle to say, “I do” was when I married Thomas. This time I was marrying a man of different cloth, but I wouldn’t change it for the world. It was a new beginning for my life.
When the choir began singing “Here Comes the Bride,” everyone stood as I started making my way to the alter. Jeff stood tall and proud in his black tuxedo. His eyes lit up as he watched me walk towards him.
“You look beautiful,” he whispered as I took my place next to him.
“Thank you,” I smiled.
Reverend Piccard started the ceremony when our guests took their seats. Nat stood next to me as my maid of honor, smiling the whole time. When it came time to do our vows, Jeff surprised me when he’d announced he’d written his own.
“Judy, from the day I met you, I knew you were different. As I came to know you and Natalie better, I realized that I wanted you in my life, permanently. You two are the best thing that’s ever happened to me, and I promise to love, cherish and protect you until the day I die.”
“Do you, Judy, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?” Reverend Piccard asked.
“I do.”
“And do you have vows that you’d like to recite?”
Oh, dear God, help me find the right words. I hadn’t prepared any vows; it wasn’t something we had planned nor talked about.
“Yes, I do,” I turned to Jeff. “Jeff, you are the kindest, warmest man I could’ve ever hoped to meet. You’ve shown me that I can trust, depend on and confide in you; I couldn’t ask for more. I promise to love, honor and devote myself to you.”
“And do you, Jeffrey, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife?”
“I do.”
As Reverend Piccard concluded the ceremony, everyone stood to cheer us on and clap as we sealed the wedding with a kiss. All of our guests lined up outside to blow bubbles and release balloons in honor of our marriage. A white limo awaited us at the bottom of the church steps. We climbed inside before the driver took us to the reception. Our reception was held at the country club where Jeff was co-owner. It was beautifully decorated with pink, blue and purple flowers everywhere. All of the tables had light yellow tablecloths with imitation diamonds loosely placed around each centerpiece. The bride and groom table was decked out in a crisp, white linen tablecloth with a beautiful centerpiece, candles, and C
hampaign glasses. Our four-tier wedding cake sat to the right of the table on a stand acting as the cake’s pedestal.
The band played the best music all night as our guests enjoyed the dance floor. When they played our song, Jeff grabbed my hand and led me out to the center of the floor. I felt like a princess on my wedding night. Ann took Nat home with her when she left the reception so Jeff and I could start our honeymoon. We were spending two weeks traveling various islands while enjoying the finest foods and wines you could ask for. Right before the last of our guests had left, we cut out of the reception to catch our plane. We had a 2 AM flight to catch to take us to our first destination: Bali.
