When I arrived at the church, there was a lone elder gentleman who seemed to be waiting patiently. He would walk and pace and then go back to his seat. The other parts of the entourage started trickling in only much later.
I learned from a mother butler that the gentleman is a an American and was one of the primary sponsors. "No wonder", I said to myself that he was on time (actually earlier than me - and I'm usually early).
The mother-butler also said that the groom's relatives were coming from Los Banos. On a Friday afternoon, that would mean heavy traffic in that area.
Incomplete Entourage in Wedding March
It was a good 15 minutes before the wedding march would proceed. When it did, I noticed the entourage in the procession wasn't even complete.
As they seated themselves, I saw that there was only one pair of secondary sponsors.
This raised a red flag.
Where are the wedding items like the veil and cord? I approached one mother-butler and she assured me that they (the wedding entourage) have everything ready.
It turned out that "everything ready" meant that whoever was seated played it by ear. Whoever was available and ready simply stood up and performed the role. The assignment of roles was informal.
Finger-Pointing at Maid-of-Honor Roles
During the entire wedding mass, the Maid-of-Honor would simply slip in and out from her assigned seat. She had a kid in tow, who I assume was her daughter. She would go to the back pews occasionally to attend to her.
So when the time came for me to call her out to assist the bride, she wasn't there. I had no recourse but to call one of the bridesmaids, whoever they were. It was a bit difficult to know who was who. When the maid-of-honor came forward, she and the bridesmaids were telling each other to do the task.
One of the primary female sponsors noticed this. As she was seated at the front pews, she just rose and and did the task herself.
Absent Parents of the Groom
The groom was visibly annoyed before and during the wedding rites. And why not? His parents weren't there.
I could see him constantly turn his head towards the side and the back, trying to see if his parents had arrived. He'd bow his head and then shake his head in frustration.
Just before the wedding rites, I saw Fr. Marty initially talking to the wedding couple. Ordinarily, he would dive right in on the ceremony. Maybe he was reassuring them that the parents are on the their way.
The parents did arrive but it was already on the second half of the mass. By that time the marriage rites was finished.
Flower Girl of the Wedding Couple
I learned much later from the mother-butler, right after the wedding mass, that the flower girl was actually the daughter of the groom and bride. The girl was in an all-white dress. I don't know what else there was to today's wedding. I'm sure the mother-butler knew a lot more. I had to leave though because my work there was done.
