Chapter 4:The First Day

"Good morning," said Jim from outside Allen's door, with a cheery exuberance in his voice. "We have a breakfast date, don't forget."

"Oh yeah," Allen remembered, sitting upright in bed, and feeling ready to go. "Wow, I feel great. I'll be right there, Jim."

"You know we have no mirrors, right?"

"No, I never noticed. Wait; there was a small oval mirror on the wall of my bathroom that we could use to shave."

"I don't need it, do you?" asked Jim outside his door. "By the way, your old clothes probably won't fit you, but I'll take them in for you when I get a chance."

Allen stood to go to the bathroom and his shorts and underwear fell to around his ankles. "What's with this? I shrunk around the middle."

"I did, too, but there should be a set of khaki trousers and a cotton dress shirt in your closet," offered Jim. "My socks and shoes still fit, and you should have some new underwear in your drawer."

"I sure hope so, or I'll be going commando," replied Allen, going to the dresser. "I found the underwear. This is unbelievable."

Allen quickly dressed in the provided clothes, apparently a gift from God. Slipping on his comfortable walking shoes, he found them a bit loose, and tightened the Velcro straps. When he stepped into the hall, he found not the 70-ish, white-haired, partially bald senior citizen, but a 20-ish brown-haired young man.

"Jim," inquired Allen, "is that you?"

"I think so; how do I look?"

"Not a day over 25, for sure," Allen replied, "maybe even younger."

"Thanks, you do too. They said we would get younger bodies, and I'll take the one they gave me, but am I presentable? They evidently disapprove of vanity mirrors here."

"Probably vanity too, mostly; I have a mirror we can use to shave if need be."

"We may be expected to grow beards here, but I guess we'll find out soon enough."

"If so, why would we go to bed with stubble, and wake up smooth as silk?" replied Jim. "Is my hair okay? I can feel it up there, anyway."

"Yeah, you've got a nice, neat haircut, all you need to do is brush it off your forehead."

"You too; let's go get the ladies and have breakfast."

"Wait, don't go empty-handed."

Too late, Jim was out the front door, headed across the street to the house where Carol and Lena stayed. On the front porch were a round table and four chairs, so Allen gathered cups, juice and the fruit bowl, and set them on the table. He observed Jim waiting impatiently for the ladies, who had yet to come out.

"Did you knock?" asked Allen.

"They said they'd be right out. Do you need any help?"

"All that's left are the plates and silverware, but thanks for asking."

Allen set the table and crossed over to wait with Jim. As soon as he arrived, the door opened, and a lithe, five-foot-six, dark brown-haired woman of around 20 stepped out. She looked at Jim, and then at Allen with a big smile, but since Lena was but five-three, it had to be Caroline. Allen pointed to his friend, and mouthed his name.

"Lena, come see what The LORD has brought us this morning," Carol called out. "My but you boys look sharp. We'll be right out."

"Oh, look at you, how handsome my young man is," said Lena, thrusting a tray with a cloth covering something that smelled wonderful at Allen. "I made some bread for us. I did not find any yeast, so it is flat bread."

Allen was struck silent at the young Magdalena, and could not get over how beautiful she was, standing before him in a white muslin dress. He felt her finger push his mouth closed, and came to his senses, long enough to say, "Wow, you're gorgeous." Without any other thought, he added, "Will you marry me?"

"Si, who else would I marry?" Lena answered, patting Allen's left hand. "I believe Jim is already spoken for, but you are my first choice. I take that to mean you like the new me?"

"Yes, I do very much, are you ready?"

"Yes, let's go eat, so we are not late," replied Lena.

She took hold of his arm and they walked across the street. They noticed the commotion over at the pastor's home at the corner. Steve and Patricia were fussing about his not going out without a tie, regardless of how his suit no longer fit. Josh and Sarah were on the porch grinning, and waved to the two couples crossing the road.

"Good morning," Jim greeted them. "Tell your dad to bring me his suit later, and I'll take it in for him."

"I bet we're going to have a busy day," opined Carol. "Are you seriously considering marriage on day two, Lena?"

"If I wait, then someone could charm him away from me, and I know of one who will try to do just that," said Lena. "I think when we do will depend on the customs, and laws here."

Allen held Lena's chair, and they all sat down. Jim asked the blessing, and then Carol poured the juice. She then teased about how she had just moved in with Lena. Now, either she or Jim would have to move out when Allen and Lena married.

"Allen looks ten times better than he did yesterday," noted Jim, "but I'm not his type, so I'll move out if that's the case. Like Lena said, we need to check with the laws and traditions here."

Allen gathered the dishes and placed them in the dishwasher inside. "I'll see how it works when we get home later," he proclaimed. "It's almost time to meet in the chapel."

As the two couples approached the square, they heard a fuss down the street. The women from the group home approached. Five young men, trying to figure who was who, and checking out what they could in their off-white dresses, flanked them on either side. All that showed were hands, feet up to their ankles, and above the neckline. Three looked rather upset at the limited selection.

"Surely we can't be expected to wear these things all the time," Melissa complained. "I need to see that tailor shop today to have my wardrobe redone."

"Oh, shut it Melissa," said Jennifer. "You tried to sabotage Juanita and my hair this morning, and for that, I'm reporting you, hopefully to get you reassigned."

The badly cut hair of the two ladies showed the proof of her accusations. "I never cut hair before, so don't blame me," protested the one leading the way.

Bringing up the rear, Ken took it all in, and offered, "I was a hair stylist in my other life. I will be more than happy to fix that this evening."

"That's right, you said you were going to Santiago to teach at some conference," noted Jennifer. "You didn't say what kind."

"Well, I'm not gay, but many people think that of male hair stylists," said Ken. "I suppose you've heard of Artistic Hair by Sanger; well, that was my salon."

"The one who got blacklisted for coming out against gay marriage," recalled Jennifer. "I saw that morning show where they grilled some of your clients, trying to prove you denied your gender preference. Their loss, our gain, right girls?"

A chorus of yeses rang out, and suddenly, Ken found himself much in demand. Mark chuckled, but inquired if he cut men's hair too. Laura, a redheaded lovely chided that he cut everyone's hair. Thus, Kenneth's last name became Barber.

Filing inside the chapel, Lena, Allen, Jim and Carol sat together, as did Jennifer, and Ken. The angel, whom introduced himself as Jophiel, explained that he was the angel who had expelled Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden. He was there in New Eden to enforce God's Commandments, and hopefully not expel anyone.

"Today is the first day of the week, and of your new lives," he noted. "First, it gives me great joy to announce the marriage of our first couple Allen, and Magdalena who shall be known as Clark. In our custom, when a couple pledge themselves to one another in God's presence, they are man and wife from that moment on." Jophiel motioned for them to stand up, and asked, "Is this what you both wish, to be bound in the covenant of holy matrimony?"

"That was quick," Alan whispered.

"Yes, it is," replied Jophiel, beckoning them to the altar. "Do you take this woman to be your wife from this day forward, to love, honor and cherish?"

"Yes, I do," replied Alan. "I vow to do whatever it takes to provide for her, and make this union full of love and Godliness."

He then turned to Lena. "Do you take Allen to be your husband from this day forward, to love, honor, and obey?"

"Yes, I do, and I too will do everything to make it a Godly marriage," vowed Lena.

"Very well, you may kiss your bride and return to your seats," replied Jophiel. "I am sure the rest of you have heard, 'Take care what you ask for, you just might get it.' Such is the power of prayer. Magdalena asked God for Allen to be her husband last night, and He has answered her prayer."

"One down," Mark whispered.

"Do you have something to say Mark?" Jophiel addressed him. "If you wish to make the rounds of all the ladies before choosing your life mate, it will not be possible here. I suggest you attend the class we have for the unmarried, where you may all get to know one another. Choose wisely, because here there is no divorce, and no sex allowed outside of the sanctity of marriage."

"I wondered about that," replied Mark. "So, how will this work?"

"We shall discuss that in the session," said Jophiel. "The main thing is to look beyond the potential mate's physical appearance and learn to trust God. Melissa, come here; confess before all why you cut your sisters' hair wrong to give you an advantage competing for the men."

"It was a mistake," Melissa pleaded. "I ask their forgiveness, and I will choose to live by myself, lest they take revenge on me."

"I forgive you," offered Jennifer, "as long as it never happens again."

"As do I," added Juanita. "Fortunately, there is someone here to fix it."

"That brings us to the next item, vanity," said Jophiel. "The reason we have no large mirrors is so you take care with cleanliness, and not with appearances. Thus, outside of your home, The LORD prefers that all women, single and married, keep their hair covered. Kenneth, you shall be the groomer in New Eden, and all men will wear their hair neatly cropped, as it is now. As of today, you will be known as Kenneth Barber, for that is your trade."

"What about our son and daughter," Steve inquired. "Surely you can't expect them to be a couple."

"As you learned yesterday, there will be more people coming to New Eden, just as there are more towns across the mountains," the angel explained. "When their time comes, they will find companions. If some of the adult singles fail to find a suitable mate among you, perhaps it is within yourself that you need to examine more closely."

"Don't get me wrong," said Mark. "I just want to make the best choice of someone who will tolerate me being an outdoorsman."

"What Mark means is he wishes to have someone accept who he is. That is a must for all of you; accept the other, and learn to love unconditionally, as God loves you." Jophiel revealed, "Throughout time in your old world, those who tanned the hides were shunned. Society women lusted after the fur coats, and shoes these people made possible, yet considered them the lowest of the lower classes."