Jane Orcutt - All the Tea in China

“This is a wedding dress,” Precious Spring said. “Red is the color we wear for good luck.”

“Why dragons and phoenixes?” I said, pointing to a wingless dragon and a flaming, crested phoenix.

“We believe they are also good luck and symbolize the emperor and empress, the balance of male and female power.” She smiled shyly. “The Bible speaks of the submission of a wife to her husband, but Glory and I see the dragon and phoenix as symbolizing the balance of that submission to a husband’s charge to care for and treasure his wife.”

She looked at me anxiously. “Do you like it? Phineas asked me to find you a dress.”

I could only imagine how Catherine Ransom would scoff at the color and style. Red, I understood without having to be told, was a symbol of joy, an emotion one should experience on her wedding day. I thought of Julia Whipple and her white dress, and I suddenly felt exceedingly sorry for her.

“It is beautiful, Precious Spring,” I said. “Was this your dress?”

She nodded. “I hope you do not mind that I have offered you a borrowed dress, but there was no time to make one of your own.”

“It is a great kindness, and I would be honored to wear it,” I said. “Will you help me put it on?”

She smiled, and I knew then how much she had wanted to please Phineas. Precious Spring and Glory were obviously old and dear friends of his. That made me want to please him too, and I sensed that my wearing a traditional Chinese wedding dress would do so.

“No matter how fine the material or exquisite the design, the dress would only be secondary to your beautiful face.”

His words returned to me as Precious Spring helped me dress. Was it possible Phineas not only thought me beautiful but more importantly loved me?

The silk brocade felt cool and soft against my skin, the heavier gold images chasing one another in a pleasing pattern. It had long, loose sleeves, and the tunic itself flowed past my hips, the skirt falling close at my ankles. I touched the cloth with wonder that I could wear something so fine. I confess that the color was foreign to me as I was accustomed to light shades, certainly nothing so bold and bright. Oddly, however, it made me feel daring and… dare I say happy?

Precious Spring stepped back to study me. Her frown alarmed me. “Is something wrong?” I said, anxious to look beautiful, indeed. Did I look ridiculous? Did the color not suit my complexion? Did I look too… British?

“I have forgotten the head covering. Will you allow me to style your hair? I cannot fix it properly as we should, but I’ll try my best.”

“Yes, of course.” Vanity claimed me, and I added, “Do I do justice to your clothes?”

I had my answer in her smile.

Precious Spring fashioned my hair into a bun. “It is the style of married women,” she said, standing back to admire her work. “Now we will add the head covering, and you will be ready.”

A knock sounded at the door, then I heard Phineas speaking Chinese. “Is my bride not ready?”

Precious Spring’s face beamed. “It is time for the door games, a wedding custom.”

“What?”

“Ordinarily the groom would come to the bride’s home, and her friends would play games to keep him from taking her. That means she is much loved and her family and friends do not want her to leave.” She winked at me. “Watch. I must make him prove that he cares for you.”

She opened the door, and Phineas stood there in full Chinese dress, an oddly shaped cap on his head. He blinked at my appearance, then smiled. He tried to enter, but Precious Spring blocked his way. “Who is your bride?” she said, her voice teasing.

“I am not certain now,” he said. “Her name is Isabella Goodrich, but the woman in there looks more Chinese than her British name would allow.”

“Why would you marry a British woman?”

“Because of who she is inside, not because she is British, of course.”

“And who is she inside?”

Phineas dropped all teasing pretense in his voice. “She is a believer, foremost. She cares about others.” His gaze found and held mine. “She is a strong woman.”

I blushed and glanced away.

Precious Spring laughed, continuing the game. “Why would you want a strong woman? Do you want a boss?”

I waited for his answer. “I want an equal,” he finally said, so quietly it was as though he were speaking only to me.

My heart soared. He smiled and handed a red envelope to Precious Spring. “If my answers will not convince you, I have money to buy my way in.”

Precious Spring accepted it, pretending to consider for a moment. At last she stepped aside. She smiled at me. “Your groom seems to want you, Isabella.” Phineas started to enter, but she shrieked and blocked his way again. “Wait! I forgot the head covering. Turn around, Isabella, quickly!”

She ran for a bureau and fished a red silk square from the bottom drawer. She arranged it over my head, with the unfortunate result that it blocked my vision abominably. Phineas took my arm and led me through the door back to the main room. I squinted through the silk and saw that the wall now held a large red banner with the symbol for happiness-no, it was the single symbol, doubled. Extra happiness.

Precious Spring saw that I recognized its meaning. “May you both be happy,” she said softly.

Phineas led me to a low table beneath the banner. Glory stood opposite us, and a teapot with cups sat between us and him. “You will kneel three times,” Glory said. “In a traditional wedding, it is to the heaven and earth, your ancestors, and your parents. For you, let it be to God, your ancestors, and your living parents. Then you will kneel to each other.”

We did so, solemnly. Glory poured tea in the cups. “Normally, the bride would offer the tea to parents and other relatives,” he said. “In return, they would give you gifts like jewelry or money in a red envelope. Since you have no family present, drink to them, to God, and to each other.”

I thought about Uncle Toby as I sipped the tea. Had he received the letter I had written in Cape Town? Did he know I was safe? He could not possibly dream that I was about to marry.

After we finished the tea, Glory stood. Phineas and I did as well. “Traditionally, you would now be considered married,” Glory said. “But as we are believers, the rest of the ceremony will be from the Book of Common Prayer.” He cleared his throat. “Dearly beloved, we are gathered together here in the sight of God to join together this man and this woman in holy matrimony, which is an honorable estate, instituted of God…”

I had been in attendance at many weddings, all of which I had found to be quite lengthy. Glory read the entire ritual as written in the Book of Common Prayer, yet before I knew it, he said, “Phineas, wilt thou have this woman to thy wedded wife, to live together after God’s ordinance in the holy estate of matrimony? Wilt thou love her, comfort her, honor, and keep her in sickness and in health; and, forsaking all other, keep thee only unto her, so long as ye both shall live?”

I thought Phineas smiled at me, but because of the head covering, I could not be certain. “I will,” he answered solemnly.

Then Glory said to me, “Isabella, wilt thou have this man to thy wedded husband, to live together after God’s ordinance in the holy estate of matrimony? Wilt thou obey him, and serve him, love, honor, and keep him in sickness and in health; and, forsaking all other, keep thee only unto him, so long as ye both shall live?”

“I will.” Oh yes. Yes. I am not certain when it happened, but I love this man.

There was no one to give me away, so Glory himself clasped Phineas’s right hand to my own. Then Phineas repeated after Glory. “I, Phineas, take thee, Isabella, to my wedded wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death us do part, according to God’s holy ordinance; and thereto I plight thee my troth.”