Since the book was dormant for the rest of the wedding mass, Carlos convinced me to leave it in the conference room to enjoy the reception. The parish hall was sparkling with well-dressed guests. The couples color coordinated, including us. Carlos settled with a rich purple button down and gray slacks to match my glittering halter gown.
The parish staff and some of the more active parishioners ran the reception with fluidity. The spirits were always well stocked, and there was a steady stream of hors d'oeuvres to offer guests. If there was any drama, it was taken away from the hall to be addressed.
The excitement escalated as each bridal party was welcomed into the hall, leading to an explosion of applause, gritos, and banging kitchenware as Gael & Celia Ruiz entered the room. It was as if everyone was privy to the curse undone because of their marriage.
Celia & Gael danced to a lovely ballad from an artist I did not recognize. For their dance with their parents, they happened to choose songs from the same artist, Luis Miguel. Celia and her father danced to his rendition of “El Reloj,” while Gael and his mother danced to “Suena.”
Surprisingly, I was still emotional even after moving onto a light dinner of arroz con pollo with Mexican tortas. But the energy picked up again when Elvis Crespo opened the dance floor with “Suavemente.” At one point, Gael and his bandmates took over and played a few salsa covers.
During their performance, Fr. Agustin interrupted his dancing to find me. He thanked me for everything with a hug.
“We’d like you to keep our genealogy book. It’s a historical text anyways, and knowing my family one of us will ruin it. Consider it our donation to IUM’s historical records.”
I nodded.
“I’ll be sure it's taken care of.”
Carlos led me back to the dance floor, where the band began to play “Solamente Una Vez.” Gael left the band to dance with his bride in the middle of the floor.
Two Years Later
I poured a pitcher of warm water to mix with the water in the baptismal font. A private baptism was scheduled in an hour, and I was alone to prepare the church. I walked down the center aisle towards the sanctuary, reminding myself where to find the baptism towels, purifiers, and the missal for the Baptism Rite.
As I approached the tabernacle, I spotted something at its feet. I genuflected in front of the tabernacle and recognized the item as a rosary. I picked it up to study it. It was a black rosary with a silver crucifix.
Above the three Hail Mary beads was a round metal, imprinted with the St. Benedict symbol.
I gasped, nearly dropping the rosary. Was this a sign? For years, I included Josue in my prayers for the souls in Purgatory. I had no sense of knowing the state of his soul. Regardless, I kept the rosary in my pocket. My family would arrive soon.
Every now and then, I would take out the Echevarria book to check for updates on the family tree. After six months of inactivity, I stored it away. But out of the blue, I got curious and brought the book into my office while working on my latest research on medieval Spain. I left it open on the family tree. Por si acaso.
After an hour of non-stop typing, a warm glow crept into my peripheral. The family tree was glimmering, just like on that wedding day. I held my breath as a concentrated light inscribed new names below Celia and Gael.
After the longest minute passed, the glow dimmed to reveal new branches in the family tree:
Martin Gael Ruiz-Echevarria
Catalina Celia Ruiz-Echevarria
Yayyy 🥰 happy endings all around! What a sweet conclusion. Wonderful. Thank you for this story!
TWINS 😭 thats a really cool and unexpected closing to the series. Great work and well done!!!