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It was a week before your wedding and coming from a Chinese family, you would no doubt have to go through the traditional tea ceremony—a Chinese tradition wherein the bride and groom serve tea to their respective families, including parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles, and other esteemed elders.
Which was why you had asked your betrothed to come with you to your parents’ house so that they could brief him on what to expect during the ceremony and how he should conduct himself.
“Kneeling while serving the tea is part of the etiquette,” said your mother as Reiner listened intently while you were in the kitchen getting the tea ready.
“Address the family members you are serving tea to, and hand them the teacup with both hands, like this,” your father demonstrated. He held the teacup delicately in both hands, which Reiner also mimicked. You peeked into the living room and smiled—the image of your burly fiancé holding a small teacup in his large hands was something you’d want to remember for as long as you could.
“How should I address them?” Reiner asked, his brows furrowed as he put the teacup down and diligently jotted down whatever it was your parents were telling him in his phone’s note application.
“Just by their titles is good enough,” your mother smiled at him. “Like ‘Po Po’ for grandmother, ‘Kong Kong’ for grandfather, and then just aunty, uncle, and so forth.”
Reiner nodded and typed this information into his phone. You couldn’t help but smile wider as you carried a tray with the teapot back into the living room and onto the coffee table. “Tea’s ready,” you announced.
“Good,” your father smiled. “Now, let’s rehearse.”
You nodded and took two throw pillows off the couch, placing them on the floor in front of your parents who remained on the couch—one in front of your father and the other in front of your mother.
“So, we kneel on these?” Reiner asked, getting up from his seat on the couch as he watched you.
“Yes,” you said with a nod. “We kneel and bow our heads slightly as we serve the tea with both hands.”
“And this takes place right after the wedding ceremony?” he asked.
“Correct,” you answered, smiling at him. “Nice, huh? Just get it over and done with?”
“I don’t think of it as ‘getting it over and done with’,” Reiner said as he positioned himself in a kneeling position in front of your parents, then he looked up at smiled at you. “I’m honoured to take part in this tradition—to take part in something that comes from your heritage,” he said with a smile.
You could feel your heart practically melting at Reiner’s words, and your parents looked at each other and smiled; their hearts happy that you were so in love with the man you’ve chosen as your partner for life, and how his eyes were like a mirror reflecting the same emotions you felt.
So, there you and Reiner sat, listening to your parents as they instructed the two of you how to conduct yourselves during that day. When your parents (as expected) started reminiscing about their own wedding, you smiled as Reiner reached for your hand, holding it tenderly in his own.
He glanced at you with an amused smile on his lips, and you squeezed his hand gently as you leaned forward and whispered to him, “One more week.”
“One more week,” Reiner said softly, squeezing your hand back just as lovingly. “I can’t wait to marry you.”