A Krissmas Karole

Turning to his wife and Ralph he said "See? Stupid! There's no way they can afford to live together on an Airman First Class salary!" Then he turned to Don. "If you're not married you will not get housing, you will not be given a food allowance and have to eat in the chow hall! It will be tough, there's no way you could raise our grandchildren without those benefits, and you cannot get them until you marry. Did you think of that?"

Don stood firm, his knuckles and Lanh's knuckles were white, their hands were clasped so tight. "Yes sir, we did. That's why I asked for your blessing, not permission."

Duong scowled even deeper. He pulled out a pocket calendar and rifling through it he looked up at Don and said, "And I suppose if I refuse to give you my blessing you would run off and get married in spite of my wishes."

"No sir, not to spite you, but yes, we would get married."

"Without my blessing?!?"

"Well sir, we both love you dearly, but... you're not the pope."

What a great response! Trying his hardest not to laugh Duong rumbled, "youth is wasted on the young..." he grumbled some more then stared straight into Don's eye. "This is the way it's going to be young man, if you insist on marrying my youngest daughter, the wedding will be on May 17^th.

Lanh and Don stared at her father in shock, a collective gasp rose from Lanh's sisters Tam and Kim-ly, Lan's brothers Trung, and Bao stared wide eyed in shock. Ralph was having trouble keeping a straight face as was Lanh's mother Mai. May 17^th was only three days after their May 14^th graduation, it was months sooner than they had dreamed of getting married and weeks before his enlistment date in June.

Duong continued, his voice still growling. "What, it's not good enough for you?"

Don was in shock; it was almost like a dream come true. "No sir, I mean yes sir, it's just..."

Duong's voice softened slightly. "Son, and I am going to be proud to call you my son, you made your father and I proud, you stood up for my daughter's hand like a man. BUT I am NOT going to send off my baby daughter without a proper honeymoon. You two will have weeks together before you ship off to basic training. I don't want to have a hormonal teenage daughter pacing the halls waiting all summer for her wedding. It's going to be bad enough with a hormonal teenage daughter pacing the halls waiting all summer for her husband. PLUS, I can ship her off to you as soon as you finish basic training, and you can take her with to your technical school... EXCEPT!"

His shouted "except" hung in the air like a spinning sword. Don and Lanh were clueless. Duong crossed his arms over his chest and glared at the young couple. Mai tried to send a hint by fidgeting with her wedding ring, but neither child could understand her signal. Lanh's oldest brother Huy mouthed the words "ask her" but they didn't get that either.

Duong made them sweat for a good long time until he finally opened his arms and with exaggerated graciousness said, "Ask Her!"

"Here? In front of everybody?" Don squeaked involuntarily. He had planned to ask her later, after her folks went home. He was going to ask her in the warmth of the fireplace, by the light of the Christmas tree and the candles, she looks so beautiful in candlelight.

"Don, you had the guts to dress down Mr. Nguyen in front of his entire family," said Ralph, "You could at least honor his one request." Which brought out chuckles from the family.

"Ask her!" Grandma Tri practically shouted, "before I marry you!" causing all to convulse in laughter.

"But he doesn't have a ring," said Lanh in a tiny voice.

"Actually..." Don pulled a small jewelry box out of his pocket and slowly eased to his knee. The box he scrimped and saved for; his share of the farm's profits was all in that box. Opening the box, he held it up to her and said "Lanh Nguyen, I love you more than I ever thought possible, you are my entire world, my reason for living. Would you complete me by becoming my wife?"

Inside the box was a simple gold band with a small diamond mounted on it. It was simply and exactly an engagement ring, nothing frilly or ostentatious about it. She stared at it wordlessly, how many nights had she dreamt of this exact moment, all the endless possibilities (her favorite fantasy was being proposed to naked in the pond on a hot summer afternoon), but here! In front of her entire family! It was then that she realized that this was an Americanized version of a traditional Vietnamese engagement ceremony.

Her hands started shaking so bad she almost dropped the box, she could only whimper, her ears were ringing, and her heart was pounding, she couldn't hear her brothers and sisters demanding "Say yes!" Don realized what was happening and took the box from her shaking hands and took out the ring. He poised it over the tip of her ring finger and looking up into her beautiful eyes asked softly, "Please?"

"Yes!" she gasped breathlessly, and the ring slid on to her finger; a perfect fit. "Yes, yes, yes!" she cried, her voice returning as she sank to her knees, "Oh God yes!" and their lips met.

"Why did you stop it here?" whined Karole.

Past Karole considered the newly engaged couple from all angles. She walked slowly around them, locked in their passionate kiss, her spectral body passing through the table and Lanh's relatives. "Remember this moment," she whispered, "remember their love, their passion..."

"Why? What happens? Do they fall out of love?"

Past Karole looked at Karole and her shoulders slumped in exasperation. "You talk to Lanh every day! Does she sound like someone who hates her husband? Whether you know it or not, you are her second-best friend, right after..." and she gestured to the frozen 18-year-old Don. "She would confide in you even before she'd talk to her sister if there were anything wrong with their relationship." Past Karole sighed, "Just remember this moment." She looked at the teens and stifled a sob, then stepped through the kitchen door outside.

Minnesota basked under a warm, sunny spring day. The sun was hot, yet the breeze was cool and refreshing. The Campbell family farm had become a wedding destination. White silk bunting draped from the blossoming apple trees and the barn doors. Rustic backdrops for the photographer were set out around the barn yard, a small gazebo on a stage was erected for the couple to be married under. The old gray and red tractor was washed and covered with tissue paper flowers, empty soup cans were tied to strings behind it. Next to it the big old green John Deere sat, its engine and transmission rebuild still in progress as far as Lanh knows, but the decades of dirt and grease scrubbed away and replaced by tissue paper flowers and soup cans. Across the front of both tractors was mounted a sign that reads "Just Married."

People swarmed the farmyard, so many of Lanh's relatives came from all over the country to celebrate the wedding of Lanh, the miracle baby. "Miracle baby? What's that all about?" asked Karole and she tried desperately to grab a drink at the open bar.

"Lanh was tiny when she was born 15 weeks premature," said Past Karole, "that's why she was a year behind at school. As for Don, he lost a year when his mom died and never tried to catch up. He didn't take school seriously until he met Lanh. She wasn't really crazy about living, suddenly becoming the only Asian in a rural school she felt like a circus sideshow freak, a leading candidate for teenage suicide until she met Don."

And now they were saying their vows in front of a Catholic Priest, a Lutheran Minister, and a field full of people. "They're beautiful!" gasped Karole, as they pledged their love to each other. Don wore the same black tux that Karole saw in the prom pictures, two and a half years on the swim team trimmed his waist and broadened his shoulders, the tuxedo fit like it was tailored for him.

Lanh wore an Áo dài, the traditional Vietnamese outfit. It featured a high collar long sleeve silk blouse that hangs down to mid-calf and is split on the sides. Underneath she wore traditional silk trousers. The áo dài that Lan wore was white, as were the trousers. Normally a Vietnamese woman would wear bright red at her wedding because white in many Asian countries is a color of mourning. Lanh wanted to wear white to advertise that she made it all the way to the wedding altar a virgin. They came close, damn close, several times but they made it, and tonight is their night. Over the silk áo dài, Lanh wore a white silk vest embroidered with dragons and flowers, all in gold. The vest served one function only, to preserve her modesty. Beneath the áo dài she was completely naked, and the light silk áo dài would become as revealing as a screen door; a surprise that she knew Don would appreciate.

Now they were in the big tent at the reception, Lanh was wearing a traditional white wedding gown that she and her sisters Tam and Kim-ly found at a thrift store. It's a beautiful gown but has a horrible stain that is completely covered by the white silk vest she wore over her áo dài. "She changed wedding dresses?" asked Karole.

"Oh yes," said Past Karole. "And she will one more time into a red áo dài that her sister Tam will wear at her wedding.

Don and Lanh were over on the temporary dance floor, their arms intertwined, their eyes locked, their bodies swaying in rhythm as they danced their first dance as husband and wife.

It's a little bit funny

This feeling inside...

Around the dance floor the guests were gathered, wearing an eclectic variety of clothing, from simple farm clothes to tuxedoes and dresses that rivaled Don and Lanh's wedding party. The crowd was a mixture of Lanh's Vietnamese relatives who journeyed up from Minneapolis, and Don's Irish and Norwegian relatives from the local area, but Don and Lanh didn't see them.

Don looked at his bride of fifteen years and saw the nervous, smiling high school sophomore that stole his heart a year earlier and he was too terrified to speak to. To Don, his bully's prank was the nicest thing anyone had ever done for him. Lanh looked up Finally, when their song ended, and they kissed long and passionately on the dancefloor as the cameras flashed and the crowd applauded. When their lips parted the huge smiles returned and their eyes never parted.

And now the father/daughter dance. Lanh waited for Duong in the center of the dance floor, and they danced to an equally beautiful country waltz.

OOh I never saw that look in your eyes

And I never had you hold me that tight

And I never saw

You dance with your feet off the ground

Oh but I see it now

When Lanh cleared the tears from her eyes and whispered, "Thank you daddy," she looked to her left and saw that her mom was daubing the tears from Don's eyes. They hadn't planned on a mother/son dance, but Mai could not let Don's mom be forgotten. She had stepped up to Don and whispered, "Dance with me son," and they danced to honor Emily Odegaard Campbell

"Come on you two!" called Lanh's sister Tam, "the photographer wants more pictures, whole wedding party!"

"Ugh, more pictures," groaned Lanh as they walked to the blossoming apple tree where the photographer wanted the pictures staged.

"You're the one who wants more pictures in eight more months," responded Don remembering their vow to pose for wedding pictures in his dress blues.

"I wonder if this áo dài will fit in eight months," said Lanh patting her belly.

"I hope not," grinned Don, he was as eager as Lanh to start a family.

Karole and Past Karole watched in amusement as the wedding party lined up for their photos. "Wait a minute, I recognize that guy! The best man, he's..." Just then the photographer's camera flashed, and the scene became a painting on the wall of an art museum. Karole and Past Karole considered the painting as Karole said, "He's the bully that promised Don a spot on the swim team."

Past Karole smiled, "Yes, he did, that's Craig Lewicki and he came through with his promise. He honestly thought that they were doing Don a favor setting him up with a shy girl, he didn't realize it was a prank. They became friends on the swimming team. And they did pose for more wedding photos after Don's basic training was over." Past Karole led Karole into a photograph of a pond and Karole found herself on a small rise overlooking a lake with a dock. a rowboat was pulled up on shore next to a dock. "This is Lanh's favorite place, in the winter they ice fish and ice skate, in summer they swim and have parties back here. Right where you are standing is where she wants to be buried."

"Here? Why here?" Karole looked around. It was a nice place at the edge of a small pine forest.

Past Karole smiled, "this is where she and her sisters found their peace with each other, they would come here and go swimming after they cut and baled hay for Don's father."

"Lanh and Kim-ly and Tam baled hay?" Karole was shocked, she only knew Lanh and Tam as doctors, professionals in teaching and practicing Lanh a speech therapist and Tam a psychologist while Kim-ly was an accountant who lived here in an apartment.

Past Karole nodded, "oh yes, they first did it as an exercise to work out resentment between them, then Ralph paid them, and they found the money irresistible. On the other side of these woods is a few acres that they use to raise vegetables for their parents' restaurant. This is where sisters became friends."

Just then the unmistakable putt-putt-putt of a tractor reached their ears and turning they saw Don's green John Deere tractor approaching, Lanh was driving wearing a western style wedding dress and Don in his wedding tuxedo. They stopped at the edge of the forest and Don stepped down then he lifted Lanh off the tractor and carried her a few steps into the woods where he set her on the edge of a picnic table of a campsite. He reached under her skirt, and she made some high pitched whines then said, "Stop that and help me with your belt."

"I want to make sure you're ready," Don insisted.

"I've been ready for two years... please!" she cried as she fought with his belt. Giving up on that, she hopped off the table and dropped the skirt of her wedding dress, she was not wearing panties.

"Damn!" gasped Karole as Don picked Lanh up and sat her on the table again. "That girl is ready!"

"They were virgins," said Past Karole, "but they weren't innocent. They had become quite good at oral sex in the past year and have been getting ready for this moment." Karole and Past Karole watched as Don dropped his pants and his erection sprang up and Lanh propped herself up on her elbows to watch her deflowering.

"Damn!" gasped Karole, "that kid is all dick!"

"Some girls have all the luck," Past Karole agreed.

"No shit!" said Karole as Don's cock eased into Lanh's pussy. Lanh suddenly tensed up and Don stopped.

"Are you ok?" Don's voice was almost shaking with concern.

Instead, Lanh nodded her head and smiled, "More."

"Let's go," said Past Karole as she pulled Karole's arm and led her to a doorway. "Let's give these two some privacy," and stepping through the doorway Karole found herself back indoors in the museum. Past Karole showed Karole a beautifully painted portrait of the couple, Don's hair much shorter, yet he looked snappy in his dress blues. Sadly, Lanh's wedding Áo dài fit perfectly.

There were so many more pictures as they wandered through the museum, Don's first assignment was in Germany, they spent three years in the country that originated many of America's Christmas traditions. This is where Don and Lan got those hand carved Christmas picture frames and where they ensured that the houses of all their relatives were adorned with hand carved Black Forest cuckoo clocks. Karole saw Lanh's happy fascination with German culture and architecture, and when Don went on a Temporary Duty assignment to Aviano Italy, Lanh was lonely and bored, sitting in a foreign country all alone. Ahn Lieu Brown, the wife of Don's Maintenance Supervisor, another Vietnamese Air Force wife, convinced Lanh to take a trip with her. The two women grabbed their passports, packed a bag, and took Annie's car to Italy.

They got rooms at a quaint little hotel right off the main town square in Aviano. The hotel was a favorite place to dine for American Airmen, so when Don and his maintenance team came trooping in after a long day on the flight line, expecting a plate of the best lasagna on earth for dinner, each got a surprise. Don's waitress was a slender Vietnamese woman in a French maid's uniform who said, "Is there anything I can get you?" Another honeymoon has started.

His next assignment was at Grand Forks Air Force Base, in Grand Forks North Dakota. Not the most glamorous assignment ever, but it was only a two-hour drive from Grant Valley, so they could travel home and visit family as often as they wanted. Karole saw pictures of Don and Lanh fishing in the summer, ice skating on the frozen Red River in the winter wearing huge, heavy parkas, and ice skating on the hockey rink at the college, it was like being teens again! They skated every chance they could, hand in hand, and on occasion they were able to get the DJ to play "their song" but now they could kiss all they wanted when the music played.

The work was hard, the Inspector General was unforgiving, it was incredibly cold there, but the summers were warm and sunny, and they wouldn't trade that experience for the world. What they would have traded was the news that they received from the base hospital. Years of blissful, joyful, unprotected sex, and yet only one miscarriage in the second month of pregnancy. Test after test followed and the answer was unanimous, Lanh was infertile, and the doctor gave them that news on Christmas Eve.

"That's what Kim-ly meant," gasped Karole. Kim-ly had told her that with Don and Lanh Christmas was either fantastic or a horror story.

The couple was inconsolable for a week; Don's work suffered, Lanh's studies at the University stopped, and they spent the week on the couch holding each other close and crying. Their weeping was joined by Karole and Past Karole who stepped into the living room where the couple mourned the babies they would never have. Karole tried to console them and was frustrated when her hands when right through the lovers. She looked over at Past Karole, the purple tipped party girl stood far on the other side of the small base housing living room, a room covered in Christmas decorations, her face buried in her hands, her shoulders shuddering as she cried.

Finally, Past Karole looked up, her face streaked with noncorporeal tears, and hissed "You bitch. You FUCKING BITCH! you made me go through this twelve times... TWELVE FUCKING TIMES! If you blow it this time, I will hunt you down, I will fuck you up, you're going to wish you were never born." Past Karole turned and passed through the wall leaving Karole alone with the couple, and she couldn't get out. She couldn't pass through a wall or even a door or window without Past Karole leading the way.

Eventually she stopped trying and drifted over to the couch and listened to Don murmur encouragement to Lanh. The room grew dark and cold, the only light was from the Christmas tree. It was a cold and dark Christmas. In the morning Lanh and Don awoke, unwrapped from the quilt they had cocooned in, feeling a little better. During the night they decided that if they can't have a baby, they will adopt one. Although neither realized just how long it takes and how hard it is to adopt a baby, their sorrow was minimized and their love for each other strengthened. Karole was proud of the two and joined them as they went into the bedroom to make sweet, gentile love to seal their decision.