Tuesday, November 15, 2005
Married!
It's official; I am now married to Yang Nian. Less than 24 hours after arriving in Guangzhou we are man and wife. Our wedding ceremony is still a few days away, but that is a formality. The documents that were signed in the government agency that takes care of marriage to foreigners makes our marriage official. In addition to the few papers we had to fill out there was a small ceremony that Nian did not expect, very much like a Vegas marriage, complete with canned wedding music and a photographer to take a picture as we read our vows in front of the government official. With no other witnesses other than the photographer the small hall and podium seemed overly formal. Nian couldn't help but laugh a little as she read the government prepared vows given her, the giggles starting with a sentence that concentrated on affirming that we are not blood relations by at least 3 times removed. Since these vows were especially prepared for marriage to a foreigner she couldn't imagine how someone could be marrying a cousin or closer, and therefore the humor in it.The official that guided us through the steps necessary to get our marriage recognized was a reasonably well kept and attractive Chinese woman of perhaps 35 or 40. She seemed very kind and happy to help us get our marriage officially recognized. Despite her small frequent and easy smile, her eyes held just a hint of some kind of sadness. I couldn't help but wonder what kind of life she had outside her officiating duties. Was the wedding official herself married? Was she happy in her marriage? Did she envy the mostly young pretty girls marrying foreigners, who might then be off to a life a comparative wealth and excitement? Maybe she disapproved of them leaving mother China. Not to put too fine a point on it, but I am fairly certain Nian and myself are far from the typical foreigner and Chinese couple seeking to get married. For one, while I may have been lonely, I did not come to China looking to find a pretty face (though I certainly did find one) to have has a trophy wife, but met Nian in America. Nian herself didn't come to America looking for a husband, but only to further her career in Jinan University. She had not ventured into singles meeting places hardly at all her first three months in America, but had practically been dragged dancing by Chinese friends the night I met her. All this is to say that the official expressed surprised to Nian how familiar we seemed to one another and how easily we communicated. I feel certain ours is the true tale of love that deserves to be recognized regardless of nationally boundaries. After seeing probably a majority of couples that can barely communicate with one another, I think the official saw ours as a refreshing change of pace.
Now to backtrack to the night before, at some point I will have to go back even further and tell about the grueling 4 stage marathon trip from Champaign to Guangzhou that started at 5am and ended 27 hours later the next day without any real break or rest except for perhaps a 2 hour nap on the 14 hour flight, which was really not all that restful in a cramped coach seat. But for now we will just tell about what happened when I got off the bus in Guangzhou at Jinan University, the University that Nian teaches at. Nian greeted me enthusiastically and wearing tight fitting jean shorts that I thought must be quite provocative. I had already seen thousands and thousands of Chinese in my trip from Hong Kong where my flight arrived to Guangzhou, and none of the women had been dressed showing quite so much leg, then again few would have had the legs to show off that my Nian has. After some short words of affection, a deep long kiss, and considerable fumbling with my 100lbs. of baggage we made to walk to Nian’s on campus apartment. Nian and I where both quite tired and she asked whether it would be OK if we went straight away to sleep instead of making love, much as she wanted to. I more than agreed. I was tired, though the walk from the bus to Nian's apartment in the cool night air revived me a bit. Still we didn't bother unpacking my things and instead flopped straight into bed. After a few words of endearment we turned to go to sleep, or at least so I thought. It was probably less than a minute of lying in the dark before Nian’s hands sought my body out in a provocative way, and we were soon making love. I don’t mean to be crude and I have permission from Nian to chronicle this, as I had every intention of keeping my word to Nian to have a good healthy rest instead of making love. She had asked me over and over to be sure I wouldn't be disappointed that we not make love, to which I answered an honest yes, as I was worried fatigue might impact my ability to perform. So it was with great surprise as I lay there in the dark that Nian's hands so soon sought out my penis and coaxed it to an impressive erection in no time flat. Our last night of sin as we would be wed the next day.
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1 Comments:
After all of these years....you never told me you had a blog!
Congrats on your wedding! I am so happy for you and can't wait to see the pictures!
Ironically, I am in the midst of my own battle with cervical cancer right now, but I seem to have the upperhand on it all. (For right now.) The key seems to be to rest, rest, and rest some more. And to surround yourself with love and people who love you. : )
All the best,
Kiah
By kmrhapsody, at December 04, 2005
