What a day it was! It seems that everything that is well planned has to have something go wrong. The corollary is that failure to plan properly means that there will be few problems. And that is how things went.

We ran a few pre-wedding errands in the morning and stopped by the canoe meeting on our way home. We discussed moving the canoe to the site and then headed home. Wakana's stress levels were building and she kept looking at her watch and predicting where her family might be at each moment. We gathered flowers, plumeria, for her bouquet and she worked feverishly trying to corral the blossoms into something that she thought might look good. Then she gathered up her wedding things and we headed down to Tumon to meet her family.

The plan was to meet with them and drive her and her brother down to the rental agency so he could rent a van. Then I would go to Kmart for some disposable cameras and head home to change into my wedding garb (Aloha shirt and white trousers). The bus bringing the family from the airport was late and then they had to go through a dozen iterations of greetings and comparing and trying on clothes and figuring out the rented cell phone, and etc. etc. etc. We finally got them to the rental agency just before 5:00, i.e., closing time. I raced off to buy the cameras and to get home. I jumped into the wedding outfit and raced back to Paseo Park.

There I found the canoe club maneuvering the boat into the wrong position. Manny and I got them to move it into the right position and then they got the mast up. A group of local Puluwatese helped with the boat maneuvers and that was a life saver.

About then Wakana arrived and she had to greet all her old friends. Did I mention this was a sunset ceremony? Have I ever mentioned how quickly the sun seems to set here? Getting people to start the ceremony was like herding cats! However, we finally got into position and her father walked her over to me and we were able to start.

We had a flower girl and a ring bearer. Our flower girl was 5 year old Lola, the kid who decided on her own that I was Grandpa. She was so cute in her new white dress with flowers in her hair. She was excited at the job she had and very solemn about it. Our ring bearer was Wakana's 13 year old niece in her new blue dress. We had placed our rings in a small hand carved wooden box on a lace pillow. Lola steered them off course, headed for the canoe instead of the groom, but they got back on course and arrived in proper order. Wakana was wearing a simple white dress with a veil she'd made for herself. She was beautiful. She had a big smile. Her father handed her over to me and I bowed a thank you to him. Manny, our navigator was officiating at the ceremony. He started by talking about the canoes of the Caroline Islands where he is from. Here is what he said. I stole his notes.

"Brett and Wakana. In the Carolines a canoe is just like a human being. It takes you to any island you want to go to either for trade, to visit relatives, or for pleasure. You can go fishing and bring in fish for your family or clan. And if there's any disaster that needs people to evacuate the island then you will have something to leave on. Canoe and canoe houses keep family, clan, and canoe house members together. Because this canoe brought you two together I hope you will always remember it to keep you loving each other, now and forever."

I took my guitar and sang Give Yourself To Love, almost the only love song I know.

When we met with Manny to plan the ceremony we asked him about marriage customs on Puluwat. He said that the groom gives the bride's family a breadfruit tree. I knew that Wakana really wants a calamansi tree so I stopped along the way to the wedding and cut a branch from a tree. I gave it to Wakana as a symbol of the tree I will give her when we return from our Big Trip.

After that we spoke our vows:

"I, Brett/Wakana, take you, Wakana/Brett, to be my wife/husband, my constant friend, my partner and my love from this day forward. Here in the presence of our family and friends, I offer you my solemn vow to be your faithful partner in sickness and in health, in good times and in bad, and in joy as well as in sorrow. I promise to love you unconditionally, to support you in your goals, to honor and respect you, to laugh with you and cry with you, and to cherish you for as long as we both shall live. I give you my hand, my heart, and my love, from this day forward."

Then we put on our rings and we were done. The picture taking went on for quite a while. We were using Wakana's digital and the four disposables I bought. It turned out that the digital camera no longer wants to stay focused on the job so many of our pictures are blurred. But there are other photos out there that we have yet to see. I will soon post some to the web site for your entertainment.

It was a truly beautiful sunset with the sky lit up in a blaze of orange and pink, the warm breezes rattling the palm fronds, the water gently lapping at the beach. We had a marvelous setting and a wonderful crowd of friends.

After the ceremony we adjourned to the Jamaican Grill for the reception. I had rented their air conditioned room and bought a meal for 50 people. When we got there we found they had decorated the place for us with banners and balloons and put out a couple of bottles of sparkling wine on ice. The food was delicious, as it always is there, and the crowd was pleasant. The staff kept the peach iced tea flowing and the food trays piled high with BBQ ribs, jerked chicken, Jamaican rice, red rice, and the salsa and fruit salad bowls. Everyone left stuffed to the gills.

Franks was there with his son Pedro. Here on Guam the Chamorro children are taught to greet their elders by taking the elder's hand and pressing it to their own cheek. Pedro is still in diapers and still pre-language but has learned to properly greet an elder. He is so cute with his curly hair and big smile.

So there we are. Wakana has had her ceremony and now truly feels married.