The Day the Flowers Died (22 page)

“My mama is elated… but my papa told me you would have to
convert to Judaism for him to wholly accept you into his family.”
Eli confessed and Rebecca’s elevated spirit descended. “But he will
learn to love you all the same.” Eli brushed his fingers over her
chin. “I told him you would think about converting.” Eli answered
with a tinge of hope in his own voice.   

“I will think about it. I want to be a part of your family in
every way I can… to be close to you.” Rebecca’s soft eyes met
Eli’s. “But this will take time. The country. My family. My mama
will never approve. When she hears about this wedding… she will be
furious.”    

The next day they used the time off of work to move items from
Eli’s place into her own.  They combined both their sofas to
form an L-shape in Rebecca’s living room, put his radio beside the
television, and moved his wooden table to her porch next to the
banister.

With the table moved, Rebecca twirled on the porch floor on her
tiptoes in ballet motion, holding onto the banister.  She
emulated the ballet dancers she had observed growing up, and
remembered a few of the steps from her early ballet classes. 
Holding one leg up horizontal to her vertical body, she drew her
leg back in a circle, reconnecting her toes to the floor and beside
her other foot.  Her blue skirt whirled with her and with the
breeze.

Sunday, January 1 1933

Eli arranged the wedding to be held at the synagogue near his
parent’s home with Rabbi Yosef on a Sunday.  Neither Rebecca
nor he wanted an extravagant wedding and chose something quaint and
simple.

Saturday evening after Shabbos, prior to the wedding, Eli took
Rebecca to the synagogue to meet Rabbi Yosef and, with her
acceptance, the rabbi gave a blessing by the Torah for their
future.  Eli then performed the Mikveh, washing and preparing
his body for marriage, followed by Rebecca who became more
comfortable with his traditions.

Aaron acted as Eli’s shomer, or best man, and Rosalyn as
Rebecca’s shomeret, or maid of honor.  They assisted the bride
and groom in every way they could with arrangements, but since the
wedding was small and hurried, they only needed to arrange the
quick construction of the canopy, the simple décor and the
reception.

Sunday, Rebecca sat in front of the dresser, its round mirror
reflecting her thoughtful expression.  Deborah put the
finishing touches on her hair and Rosalyn stood beside them.

“You look beautiful,” Deborah smiled into the mirror.  “I
only wish your parents could be here.”

Rebecca flicked a sad smile at her and shrugged.  “I
know.  I’d always dreamed they’d be here for my wedding
day.  But…things change.”  In silent reflection, she
recalled those girlhood dreams of wearing an elegant long white
dress with its lace train.  The flowers would be voluminous
and abundant and the chairs would be filled with over two hundred
guests.

She turned to look directly at Deborah.  “Thank you so much
for helping me today, for making me a welcomed part of your
family.  I don’t just love your son.  I love all of
you.”

“Stop it!” Rosalyn protested.  “You’re going to make me
cry.”

Deborah leaned forward and kissed Rebecca’s cheek.  “You
are a beautiful bride and a welcomed daughter.” 
Straightening, she stepped back.  “I must take my place out
front now.”  With a wave, she left the room.

Rebecca stood and nodded to Rosalyn.  “I’m ready for my
dress.”

Rosalyn took it from the garment bag and helped her into it,
then went to tell the rabbi the bride was ready.

Eli’s parents sat in the front next to Miriam, Sarah, and Leah
in chairs on the left side.  Behind them sat many of Eli’s
friends from synagogue, including Aaron and Jacob.  Robert and
Rosalyn sat on the right side in support of the bride, along with a
friend from the hospital Rebecca knew she could trust.

The synagogue members decorated the outside with a variety of
foliage: Orchids, Roses, Marigolds, Edelweiss, and common mosses,
  since Eli had informed them of Rebecca’s adoration of
gardening and flower décor.  The stained glass of the
synagogue in the background sparkled in winter sunlight.  The
chairs were adorned with white and green plastic vines a few of the
members had in a box at home.  The chairs lined up on either
side of the center aisle covered with a long white cloth leading up
to Rabbi Yosef under a canopy.  The musicians of the synagogue
played their instruments with slow elocution.

Eli waited in a white tux with a white kippah dressed over his
dark short wavy hair, standing next to Rabbi Yosef.  His palms
grew sweaty and the words he memorized to say over and over again
had muddled in his brain and he struggled to remember each
word.

Rebecca stepped toward him over the white cloth in a simple
white gown she had worn once for a business dinner a few years ago
and the sight of her drew every memorized sentence to his
lips.  Keeping her eyes locked on the handsome man before her,
she walked to her future and everything from her past washed
away.  The soft music moved her towards him in each romantic
step of vocal silence, a sacred silence, until she found herself
face to face with Eli.

They stood in the midst of a cool breeze surrounded by winter
white and barren trees.  Rebecca’s lace veil had been
interwoven with white lilies and covered her face.  Her hair
dangled in a braid with white silk interlaced and tied at the
end.

They stood together under the assembled canopy ready to be
joined in this union.

“Now that the bride and groom are together under the huppah, I
will begin,” the rabbi intoned, then scratched his heavy beard
before taking the ketubah, marriage contract, into his hands for
Eli and Rebecca to sign.  Rosalyn and Aaron stood at their
side to sign it as witnesses.

Eli opened his palms outward and Rebecca mimicked his gesture.
The rabbi recited the kiddush, the blessing for the wine, while
holding the cup in his hand. “Baruch atah Adonai Eloheinu Melech
haolam borei p'ri hagafen' (Blessed are you Lord our God King
of the universe Creator of the fruit of the vine),” and sipped
before giving it to Eli and then to Rebecca.

Deborah aided Rebecca in holding the glass as was custom. 
Eli and Rebecca gazed into each other’s eyes, knowing every moment
which preceded them led them to this fated event.  Eli held
the silver ring up for Rebecca’s hands to grasp and they both clung
onto it as Rebecca circled around Eli three times in Hebrew
ritual.  Eli then slipped the silver band with a small diamond
over Rebecca’s index finger, tears welling up in his eyes. 
Rebecca whispered, “I love you.” After Eli said each phrase of the
vow, Rebecca repeated it.

“Behold you are made Holy to me.  Through this symbol, in
accordance with the customs of the Jewish people, I commit myself
on every level.  I commit myself to share both challenges and
resources.  I will try my best to be just.  I will flow
loving kindness your way without judgment.  I will be faithful
to you so that you will know God.”

The rabbi gave seven blessings before sipping from the wine
glass again shared by both Eli and Rebecca.  Ezekiel’s face
lit up when Eli took the glass wrapped in cloth and laid it on the
floor to be stomped with his feet.  When the glass broke,
thunder crackled and grey storm clouds rolled through the winter
sky.  Before the rain fell, Eli, Rebecca and the crowd escaped
to the inside of the synagogue where the reception waited.

When Eli pulled Rebecca to him and kissed her, neither one
expected this new emotion.  A spark ran through both their
bodies simultaneously and unapologetically, uniting them to each
other like Adam’s eyes fell on Eve.  This love, this wedded
love, would not be ripped apart, would not be threatened and would
not be told it couldn’t exist.

Eli stepped back, whispering, “I’ll only be a few moments.” Then
he departed to a private room separate from his new bride to take
time to contemplate, a time he called yikhud. Eli spent time alone
with his thoughts, in partial disbelief they had preformed the
ceremony without interruption from Nazis patrolling the area. 
Their union to the rest of the country was a secret he and his wife
would have to keep, even from her parents.

In spite of the necessary secrecy, Eli beamed for what the day
had given him.

Rebecca knew she could rely on Rosalyn like a sister. Though
Rebecca loved both her parents, she did not fully trust Deseire to
keep such news quiet.  Rosalyn sat by her side in a room
outside the reception hall.  The two hugged each other with an
embrace Rebecca once longed to receive from her mother.  Then
she sighed.

“Are we going to make it?”

Rosalyn knew what Rebecca meant, not just her and Eli, but the
entire country.

“I don’t know.” Rosalyn shook her head once and then looked into
Rebecca’s eyes with a hint of inspiration, “But we have today.”

Rebecca saw Eli from the corner of her eye walk down the stairs
to the reception.  She scurried to him, holding the white used
gown so that she didn’t trip, and fell into his outstretched
arms.

Monday, January 2, 1933

Eli whisked Rebecca away for a romantic honeymoon outside of
Munich, passing through Nuremburg in its elegant Bavarian
architecture and then to Frankfurt.  They caught a boat
traveling on the Rhine River through Germany’s Reign Castle
District.

The medieval designs once owned by feudal landlords in the
nineteenth century left them both nostalgic of German
history.  The variety of castles adorning the mountain tops
clouded the landscape with mystery and splendor, forgetting the
strategic war-bent functions of the castles along ago.  They
circled around the Schloss Stolsenfel castle which stood
magnificent with a terrace bordering the outside mountain, offering
a view of the Rhine River.  Holding hands, fingers
interlocked, they gazed over the terrace and watched the white blue
waves crashing onto the shoreline.

They sojourned on the boat to another castle called the
Marksburg.  Its structure, thick and rounded, provided a solid
military defense.  Light grey fog swirled in an eerie
formation as they peeked at the castle from the boat.  Rebecca
leaned forward on the boat’s railing for a better view while Eli
held her sturdy with his hands snug around her waist.

Continuing onward to the Burg Katz castle which sat like a crown
of jewels for a queen and provided one of the best views of the
Rhine, they exited the boat. They sauntered up the steps to the
castle and stared at the Rhine River for twenty minutes before for
Eli and Rebecca departed to find a nearby lodge to stay the night.
Despite various inauspicious glares upon their jubilant faces from
hotel guests and passersby, they forgot for a blissful moment they
lived in a country divided.

They headed out of Kohn the morning of January second to catch
the boat back to Frankfurt. Rebecca snapped photos with the camera
Eli taught her to use.  She didn’t want to forget anything
about their honeymoon, however brief. In Frankfurt, Eli drove to
where the countryside stretched to the horizon and the sky bled
into yellow-green grass.

The tall trees hung high in the blue sky, dropping their
branches and leaves to the earth as a blanket. Light and dark hues
filled the countryside as Eli swooshed down the winding street in
his car.  He drove off the road to an isolated location which
provided transcendence to another time, another place far from
where they had been.

Eli laid a wide chocolate brown blanket over a plot of grass
underneath elongated trees of evergreen fanning above them. This
peaceful place reminded them that the nature of Germany was still
alive and untainted by the terrible violence of the Nazis. 
They’d found an oasis.  Hidden.  Secluded. 
Private.

Rebecca in curtsey-like fashion dropped to the center of the
blanket with her legs underneath her puffed up skirt and awaited
the surprise behind Eli’s jaunty smile.  He lifted a basket
from the backseat, carried it to the blanket and plopped next to
Rebecca with his legs crossed.

Rebecca smiled out of the right corner of her mouth, lifting the
basket open and finding a variety of cheeses, meats, breads and a
bottle of red wine.  Eli ran his fingers through the
grass.

“Eli, this is perfect,” Rebecca gushed.  This location
provided them the unadulterated time they longed for since the
wedding.

Rebecca broke the rye bread and filled it with goat cheese and
salami.  Eli broke the wheat bread and stuffed in chicken,
goat cheese and rolled it.

The delectable sandwiches were only surpassed by the hidden box
of strawberries Eli had at the bottom, which he revealed after they
both finished eating. Rebecca wiped Eli’s face of crumbs at the
corners of his mouth and he pulled out a strawberry for her. 
She opened her lips and let him place it between her teeth. 
He watched her savor the flavor before she bit down and pulled it
into her mouth.

The next strawberry Rebecca placed into her mouth herself, but
not without temptation from Eli. He pressed his lips on the other
end of the strawberry and they bit the fruit at each end until
their lips touched.  They could feel the strawberry seeds
brush up against their lips as they kissed. Eli poured the red wine
into one tall glass while his eyes caressed her skin.  He
balanced the glass next to her mouth while she sipped and then he
sipped himself, reminding her of their wedding.

Eli declared in whisper, “I’ve loved falling in love with you,
every morning, every hour.  Every day you become more of my
life and I can’t wait for our life together to begin.” Eli had a
way with words, perhaps from the years of training in law school
and debating in court, but next to Rebecca, they became passionate
and full of emotion.