Andi's Dream-A Wedding to Plan

While Paul whispered in Andi's ear words of encouragement, Lucy said to John and Macy "Look, she started counseling with a shrink at Colorado University Hospital within a week of him leaving her, he was a real piece of garbage."

"Any problem with us having access to your records from CUH?" Macy asked Andi, "that way, during counseling, we won't have to drag out painful memories."

"No," said Andi, "not you." She looked at Macy with a sorrowful look. "You're already in Paul's head and have been for a decade. I think adding my foibles and problems is a bit much." She turned and pointed at John. "You can have access to my records, and you may confer with Paul's counselor and discuss findings, but you can have exclusive and sole access to my records."

John took a small well-worn spiral bound notebook out of his pocket, found a blank page and started making notes. "So it shall be written, so it shall be done."

"I was thinking that it may bring us closer as sisters..." Macy started but she was interrupted...

"Wait a minute!" said Lucy a bit more forcefully than she had expected. "Andi babe think this through. Do you want your psychology notes handed over to a... a..."?

"A country bumpkin circuit preacher?" John asked. "A concerned busybody?"

"I... er... what?" Lucy didn't know why but she suddenly realized that her anger was making her irrational. She took a deep breath and blurted out "No, but they're not going to turn over her records to just anyone."

Rather than argue that point, John took a different tack. "Look, Lucy, we completely understand that you are trying to protect Andi, but so are we. We want to help, and we are going to need your help to do it."

John and Macy tried to convince Lucy not to worry for her longtime friend. "But can you protect her against that scum Frank Rosetti?" demanded Lucy angrily.

"I can," said Paul confidently, "and I will."

"And how is that?"

"Andi ruled out using a rifle, it's a shame, because I'm a really good shot..."

"He really is," added Macy.

"...so I'm changing tactics. I've been looking into this guy's goings on, digging up some pretty damning dirt on this scumbag, I've been digging since Andi slipped and mentioned his last name and I've got more than enough to work with. But give me a couple more days to investigate this guy further so I can build a better mousetrap. I'll let you know my plan by Thursday." Andi gave Paul a sideways look, she clearly did not want Paul getting involved with Frank in any fashion. Lucy was clearly not happy with Paul at all, but Paul said, "Wait until Thursday when I tell you."

"Ok, enough of this, let's take a break and talk about everyone's favorite topic," said John.

Macy nudged John and pointed to the twins who had quietly joined them and were lying next to Wonka in front of the fire, coloring their Barbie Dream Weddings. For some reason both of them were coloring Barbie's dress red. "We should talk about Christmas instead," she said.

Chuckling, John got the conversation back on track by skillfully maneuvering talk back to Christmas past. "Paul, you start."

Paul looked at his brother incredulously. "What? Christmas in Buffalo or Christmas in our house?"

"Why not both?" said Macy with a grin that showed she enjoyed stirring up trouble.

"Ok, Christmas in Buffalo; open presents as you open beers, shovel the driveway, drink some more, nod out in front of the TV. Did I about cover it?"

"Yeah, that about covers the highlights, don't forget about the bitching and whining that all the bars are closed," said John trying not to laugh.

"Yeah, I forgot that part. I think that's the Buffalo version of caroling. Ok, for those of you that don't know, Christmas in a Polish home is heavily influenced by the Greek Orthodox church. If you look in my mom's living room there is what appears to be a Russian cathedral, it's actually a szopka, a nativity scene. Poles all over Western New York make, sell, purchase, and display the szopkas, as many as possible. For us it's what we love, so it's what we do.

"Boże nar or formally Boże Narodzenie is the Polish word for Christmas, it translates to Birth of God. Lots of people have an advent calendar, the American version starts on Black Friday, the more popular one starts on December first. The Polish advent calendar actually starts on December sixth, the Feast of St. Nicholas, and for us Poles, that's when the Christmas season starts. Children get a present from St. Nicholas on that day, but he doesn't actually play a major part on Christmas day. A major part of the Polish tradition is gingerbread, not the rock-hard stuff you make cookies and houses out of either. That coffee cake you're eating is piernik, the traditional Polish gingerbread."

He took a breath and continued. "Polish Christmas trees are very similar to American Christmas trees, in fact glass ornaments are actually a Polish tradition. The difference is that in Polish families, the lights on the Christmas Tree are not turned on until Christmas Eve evening, just before Wigilia, the traditional Christmas Eve meal. It's a meatless meal but there is a lot of fish in the meal. After dinner the gifts are handed out, and then there is Pasterka the "shepherds' mass" at midnight."

"What do you do on Christmas Day?" asked Lucy.

"Watch football and drink beer," grinned Paul. "That's really about it, Christmas Day is pretty much a family day, punctuated by another Mass in the morning and there's the oplatek, the Christmas wafer, it's a wafer made of flour and water, unleavened bread. We break it and give pieces to our loved ones.

No big fancy meal or anything? asked Lucy.

John hopped in. "A lot of Polish celebration occurs on St. Nicholas day, December sixth, Christmas Eve, Boxing day, and the feast of the Epiphany on January sixth, which is actually the twelfth day of Christmas. Christmas day is traditionally quiet. The traditional meal is "hunter stew" which is cabbage and a variety of meat."

"The big celebration is actually Wigilia, the Christmas Eve meal, it's insane," added Paul. "Twelve courses, not vegan but no red meat or poultry, just fish and vegetables, mostly root vegetables. And the desserts! It's crazy! It takes a week to prepare!"

"Which is why we go to Mama Giardini's and let her cook for us," said Macy, which caused John and Paul to break out in raucous laughter.

"What's so funny?" asked Andi.

"Momma hasn't lifted a spoon in over 20 years," said John wiping tears of laughter from his eyes.

"And she said it with a straight face," gasped Paul as he pointed at Macy.

Macy smiled as she sipped her coffee, "I had to practice saying it without laughing." She saw the disbelieving look Andi gave her and said "I did! You saw her the other night, that's all she's done since Donnie took over the restaurant. She's now famous for not cooking."

Andi and Lucy just shook their heads as the Jarecki's laughter, not understanding a chortle of it. "Yep, our folks tried to keep all of those traditions alive with us," said John, "but the Wigilia is not one of them. Too much work! Paul did it a couple of times, but we eventually decided to do it at Giardini's."

"Paul's Wigilia was excellent however," said Macy in memory of meals past.

"I want one!" demanded Andi. "Let's make that our anniversary tradition, please?" she asked clinging on Paul's arm and giving him her heartbreaking best puppy eyes.

Paul thought for a moment and finally said "Next year. This year is far too busy, and after you taste it then you can decide if you want to do it every year. Deal?"

"Deal!" and they shook hands on it.

John leaned over and said quietly "You're going to make the pickled herring roll-ups, aren't you. That stuff is so nasty there will never be another Wigilia in southern Erie county for all of eternity."

"Oh, you know it."

"It's going to be awesome!" Andi gushed. Then she looked at Paul and with an evil grin added, "I'm going to invite Mama Giardini! I'll even make the lutefisk!"

"Busted!" said John out the side of his mouth.

"Oh, you know it."

Lutefisk is the Christmas feast of the Nordic people. It's air-dried salt cured cod that is pickled in lye until it becomes as hard and flat as plywood. To make it edible it must be soaked in water for 5 days, the water being changed out every day. Then it must be soaked in a water and lye solution for 2 days to re-hydrate, then soaked in clean water again for another five to six days to be purged of the lye. In the end it becomes a stinky, gelatinous blob, that the Norwegian and Swedish population of the Dakotas, Minnesota, and Montana love to eat. Major Paul Jarecki, Flight Surgeon of the 27th Bombardment Squadron at Minot AFB, North Dakota, once had it on a bet. He ate it, he didn't vomit, and he walked away with $500 in his pocket and a profound knowledge that there actually is something worse than his grandma's pickled herring roll-ups he suffered through every Christmas eve.

"Macy, tell us about Christmas in Quebec."

Being a Québécois Macy spoke of the Christmas traditions of French Canada, "To us the Christmas celebration starts on Christmas Eve with le Réveillon which means... ehhh... wakeup party? That is as close as it gets, I suppose. Réveillon starts with midnight mass, and traditionally the children would be asleep until about eleven at night when maman woke us to get dressed and we walked to midnight mass in the snow. At exactly midnight in every service, Catholique or Protestante we all sing Minuit, Chrétiens. After service we go home for the dinner which features a tourtière. Then there is singing and dancing and at sunrise we open some gifts, but most gifts are saved for Le jour de l'An, New Years Day."

"What is tourtière?" asked Andi, as she watched her girls gather up their crayons and lead Wonka upstairs.

"It is a very pretty pie made of beef and pork and onion and potatoes," explained Macy. "John calls it meatloaf wellington."

"And Minuit, Chrétiens?"

"You know the song," said Macy, and she began to sing:

Minuit! Chrétiens, c'est l'heure solennelle

Où l'homme Dieu descendit jusqu'à nous

Pour effacer la tache originelle

Et de son père arrêter le courroux

Of course Andi recognized the melody, in the English speaking world it's known as O Holy Night, but it was Macy's voice that transfixed Andi, it was so clear and so beautiful that Andi actually gasped. "Will you sing for our wedding?"

"Oui chère belle-soeur, but not at the ceremony, we wish to keep it short. I usually sing at the dîner de Noël, the Christmas dinner. Est-ce correct?"

Andi just nodded, and everyone started to speak of their plans for Boxing Day except Andi who never heard of Boxing Day before. As everyone spoke of the joys of Christmases past Andi fell into a funk and it became a deeper and deeper funk. Her joyful Christmases ended in a pool of blood in the Iraqi desert. She still had her real father's dog tags, Daniel Roberts, Captain, US Army. One was bent and she's told herself for over 20 years that it was bent in handling when it was sent to her, not by shrapnel from the IED that blew her father to pieces. Her mom became distant and arrogant after that, and when she married Harold - "father"- she just got worse. Heather and Harold Driscoll. She wasn't the mom Andi once had, especially when she needed her most.

Andi was ready to cry when she heard Paul saying through her misery "My all-time favorite Christmas tradition is a new one based on an incredibly old one. Baby tell them about the Missile Toast."

She started slowly, her voice unsure of herself but Paul's nods and smiles she warmed up to the story telling of hanging the bell and how she told her version of the tradition. By the time she spoke of Madeline and Sandy sagging to the floor in relief that they would be in for good luck there was laughter all around. "And the girls get mad if you say anything but "Missile Toast."

"The best part is why you did this, tell them baby," urged Paul.

"Well, Paul and I had kissed a few times and I decided that this was a pretty good thing, one that I want to keep doing forever, but I needed a way to get the twins to encourage it." That caused enough laughter to cause the twins to come down and join them, dressed in their new Christmas nightgowns they looked like Christmas pixies.

"I have an early Christmas present for you dear." Paul kissed Andi on the cheek "Excuse me while I go get it," and he got up and stepped into the kitchen with Lucy following him. He grabbed a couple of items off of a high shelf and turned to face Lucy, and she was not happy.

"What kind of a scam are you playing on Andi? I know you're up to something, are you planning to hijack her credentials?"

"Lucy, I'm not sure what you mean. Everything you've heard, everything we've said has been the truth. There's no 'scam' being run, we're not 'hijacking' anything. What Andi and the twins and I have is true, pure, and loving and we'd like you to understand this, be happy for us, and join us."

She sneered at him "You may think you're smart, but I can see right through..."

Paul held up a finger. "Doctor Kocis, please don't think you have cornered the market on intellect. My brother has a Doctor of Theology, but his major was psychology. He is the Reverend Doctor John Matthew Jarecki and an accredited psychologist. He is licensed to practice in New York and Florida. His wife Macy got her Doctor of Theology and taught at the École de théologie évangélique du Québec and got her doctorate in psychiatry at the prestigious Université du Québec en Outaouais, her title is the Reverend Doctor Marie-Claude Solange Dagenais-Jarecki, and she's licensed to practice in New York, Florida, and all Canadian provinces and territories. And me? I am a retired United States Air Force Colonel where I was flight surgeon for multiple combat units, before retirement I specialized in cardiology, after I retired, I got a fellowship in Pulmonology from the State University of New York at Buffalo. That was so much fun I got my degree in Juris Prudence from UB's law school and am licensed to practice before the bar in New York."

Lucy sputtered and fumed. "How do I know, you can be anyone, you were out there in a cabin tappin' her for four days, she's probably a zombie now..."

"Tapping? Wait, what? There's been no sex between Andi and I, we have taken a vow of chastity until our wedding. We got close, but Andi set limits and I respect them. Here at home, we do sleep under the same roof, but she's upstairs in the master bedroom and I'm in the basement on a couch."

Lucy was silent for a long time. "I don't know what to say. I love her so much; I want to protect her and the babies."

"I know the feeling. We almost died out there in that blizzard, she didn't trust me and wouldn't let me help her. I was prepared to let her see me die to prove I was trying to help and not to harm her. I'm not sure what that would actually have accomplished, but love is blind, deaf, dumb, and stupid. In fact, she didn't like me for a time even after I got her warmed up and fed."

"What changed her mind?"

Paul thought and finally shrugged. "I think it was the dog."

Lucy followed Paul into the dining room asking "Wait, what dog?"

"Wonka stop!" cried the twins and knowing exactly what that cry means, Paul ran into the parlor to rescue the Christmas tree at the front window from Wonka's thirst. He never understood why dogs prefer Christmas tree water.

Emergency taken care of, Paul returned to the dining room sat down next to Andi and handed her an envelope. "Merry Christmas early and Happy Wedding early."

"What is this?" she said as she opened the envelope and extracted an official looking document. "I don't understand, what is... why are you giving me this?"

"It goes with this," he said and handed her an automobile's ignition fob.

Her gasp nearly sucked all the air out of the room, with a shaking finger she pushed the remote start button and outside an engine sprung to life. "No!" she cried, her eyes shooting wide open. She planted a kiss on Paul that caused Macy to mutter to her husband "I don't think we are meant to see that." John wordlessly agreed. Then Andi dashed outside as fast as possible followed by Macy and the twins who were just trying to see what the excitement was all about.

"I'll get her coat" said John and he joined Paul and Lucy on the front step and watched Andi investigate the car in the driveway from the inside. A brand-new Ford Explorer Platinum, with every bell and whistle Ford could put on a car before calling it a Lincoln. It even had custom child seats already installed in the back.

Lucy was looking at the document that Andi had dropped, it was a title showing her as the sole owner of that brand-new Explorer. Paul's name was nowhere on the title, the car was all Andi's.

As they watched Andi explore every switch and button inside the car John whispered to Paul, "You haven't told her yet?"

"No, not yet, she'll find out on Christmas morning," and then he went down the steps to watch Andi discover all the features of her new car.

When Paul was out of earshot Lucy asked John directly "Just what is she going to find out Christmas morning?"

"The exact extent of Paul's financial state. Dad had bought several Ford dealerships, and when he died, they toddled along without him until they were all on the brink of collapse. Paul was made CEO of Jarecki Motors and he was able to keep those dealerships solvent. He did not want to do it, he wanted to be a country doctor at the Springville Hospital, but 300 people were counting on him for their jobs. He actually became a lawyer just so he could navigate the legal jungle behind a business. He now has over thirty five hundred employees and dealerships from here to Albany. That's what he's retiring from." John tapped her on the arm with the folded automobile title. "And don't worry about Frank, that jamoke isn't going to know what hit him."

John went inside and Lucy stayed on the front stoop a little bit longer. Snow started to fall gently, slowly spiraling down from the heavens. Lucy looked up and down the street, every house had Christmas lights glowing, which were reflected in the custom metal flake paintjob of Andi's new car. She didn't want to believe that someone that nice was still walking the earth but living proof that nice guys still exist was being hugged by her best friend right now.

<><><><><>֎<><><><><>

After a test ride in Andi's new Explorer it was decided to head over to the Crikit House, a local country bar that has a dance floor, and teach Andi to waltz. Paul slipped on a pair of cowboy boots and grabbed a beat-up old Stetson hat, but Andi didn't have any western garb. She slipped on a pair of Sketchers then kissed the twins goodbye before demanding that they behave for Aunt Lucy while she and Paul, John, and Macy go out for a little while.

At the Crikit House Andi recognized a few people from church, particularly Ernie and Mary Kraft who sat in a corner nursing their drinks and watching the basketball game on the TV behind the bar and the couples on the dance floor during commercial breaks. As they sat down a waitress came up and took orders.

"I'll have the usual," said Macy.

"Same here, make mine a double. Get one for my lady, she may like it" said Paul.

"Same here," said John and soon the waitress returned with a dish of "bar kibble" and four cloudy yellow drinks.