So, at the end of my last article in the “Life of Love” series, I had just left the airport in Manila. Feyma, my new bride, was left behind, so that I could go home and apply for her visa to go to the United States so that we could live together. It was quite an emotional departure for both of us.
I had a long trip to think about the things that had happened over the past month while I was in the Philippines. There was a lot to think about and remember. But, in addition to thinking about the past month, I also had a whole future to consider. It would be the beginning of our life together, and I was excited about that, albeit a bit upset that we had to start off our marriage with a long separation due to a Visa requirement.
When I arrived home at Portland, Oregon, some friends picked me up at the airport. Only a few of my closest friends knew that it was possible that I would be getting married while I was in the Philippines. It was not completely certain that there would be a marriage, so I did not tell many people, only those very close to me. The people that picked me up at the airport were one of the couples who knew that I might get married.This couple was an older retired couple in their 70s, they were close family friends. Their names were Mike & Ginny. Unfortunately, Mike & Ginny are no longer with us, but they were very nice people.
Mike & Ginny took me from the airport to my house. During the time I was away, they had the keys to my house so they could look after the place for me. They dropped me off outside the front of my house and went on their way. When I entered the house they had a number of surprises and pranks waiting for me. To be honest, i don’t recall what all of the stuff was, but I do particularly remember two things.
- They “short sheeted” my bed.
- The put rice in my bed.
I thought this was quite funny coming from a couple in their 70s, but they knew how to have fun.
After I settled in to being home, I was really missing Feyma badly. One of the bad things was that communications was very difficult back then. Making a phone call to the Philippines was not an easy task, especially to a city which at that time was rather small and remote. Basically, the phone lines going there, at that time, could only accept International connections one day per wee if everything was working just right. If things were not quite up to snuff it might be a few weeks between phone calls! Also, it was very expensive to make those calls back then. As I recall, the rate was several dollars per minute to call the Philippines at that time.
After getting things settled down to a state of normalcy, it was time for me to file the application for my wife to be able to come to the United States. I will cover that in my next installment of “A Life of Love.”
