My Dear - 5

To Priest

Dear Hindu Temple Priest,

I forgot to inform you that I am a divorcee. I dont know if you believe in divorcee remarriages, but you conducted my marriage very elegantly. I adored you the entire two hours. Your enthusiasm and your high spiritedness were infectious. I dont think I really was hiding it from you. I simply forgot to think about informing you and wonder about its implications as I am doing now. It hit me only in the end of the ceremony, when you turned around to the american audience and informed them "In Hindu culture, marriage is only once." Until then I completely was in awe with your beautiful english translation of every ritual and every verse that was being used there. I was so astounded, I forgot to giggle. But the rest of the crew who knew my status (not all) were given what they were waiting for, a shock treatment or a deride of the bride. Their reception of it became so obvious when none of them mentioned the irony for the next 24 hours they spent with us. You know dear priest, none of the americans knew I was a divorcee, you werent aware that none of them were a divorcee. But the most surprising thing is that I dont seem to hate you as much as many of the other audiences did. Your sense of humour was misunderstood quite a bit. I havent yet told her that you apologized when she stepped out to pour the arathi. I dont think you really care that the persons who acted as my mother and father were known to me only through my brother in law a month ago. In the photo were I am looking at the Arundhati star, my eyes have dilated and I look like a devil reflecting the conflicting reality. But you know dear priest, I was completely charmed by your happiness and enthusiasm over my marriage. We had to do it at the temple only because my father in law who let his son marry a divorcee, thought tying a mangal-sutra inside the temple was foremost important and he wouldnt negotiate on that. Did I also mention my periods had started that day! Why bother you with such unnecessary details? I didnt plan on that either, it so happens that my chart fluctuates quite a bit. My first marriage which happened in the presence of about 1000 relatives, quite elaborately draining the entire provident fund of my father's retirement, went flawless, except for a few ego-clashes of strange relatives. In this marriage not one of the persons who attended knew me for more than a month, except the groom. I dont know what you think about the "Kushboo episode." But I would like to inform you that I and the groom were sleeping the same cheap walmart purchased queen bed, which Mrs.Josephine thinks is too small for two of us, for about 6 months before we got married! You dont know what revolution you were creating. After all I am in love with my husband. Isnt that revolutionary?

yours,

bride a year ago.