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Sharada starts planning for the engagement celebration immediately. She and Vijay sit down to decide who to invite. They must make sure all their close friends will be in town to attend the party. They have to plan a menu. Since Lily enjoyed Indian food, that was easy. Sharada first considers whether it should be a potluck event, but gives up the idea. If everyone brought their own dishes, it would not be the same. It is better, she thought, to plan everything herself. Besides, she wants the party to have her imprint, as the future mother-in-law. If it comes to that, she can always cater some dishes from Bombay Foods.

Sharada spends most of the day calling all her friends. She has been proudly telling everyone what Arjun did when he was deployed, and how lucky and happy she is that he has come back alive. She is more animated when describing how brave he was and his injury. What she does not know, she invents as she thinks fit. In her talks, she also shows her admiration for Lily.

“Lily’s such a nice girl, you know,” Sharada tells her friends. “You just have to meet her. She can easily pass for an Indian girl. She likes Indian food and can cook shrimp biryani too.”

Luckily, the friends she wants to have in attendance are free to come. Bertel and Alina had called the next day to inform that they will be delighted to attend the celebration.

Vijay and Sharada discuss whether they should have the event in a ballroom in a place like the Marriott. Then they decide against it.

“Our house is big enough,” Vijay says. “Between the basement and the upstairs living room, we can easily manage. Besides, it will be cozier, and our friends are like our extended family. They will accommodate.”

So, it is decided that the party will be at the Goré residence.

Vijay has a lot of chores to do to decorate the house. Now, between Doug, Krishna, and Arjun, he has plenty of help. They decorate the deck railing and basement ceiling with string lights. Sharada wants the house to look elegant without being too flashy. She takes Lily and Lakshmi to Trader Joe’s and Wegman’s to select fresh flower bouquets. They also select the centerpiece and candles for the formal dining table.

 A table is set up for photos of Arjun in his military uniform. There are some photos of him playing guitar at the Scala bar and some with Arjun and Lily together at her brother’s engagement party.

Vijay makes a copy of the letter of commendation from the Secretary of the Army for Arjun’s bravery and meritorious service in support of the troops in Afghanistan. The letter also describes how President Obama read an excerpt about what happened during the battle at the Abdul Habib High School in Khost and expressed pleasure at the actions of a minority Platoon Leader. It also had an invitation to participate in an awards ceremony to be held in the White House. He frames the letter and places it at the center of the table for easy visibility. He wants everyone to read about the award without being pretentious about it. It was certainly going to invite many questions for Arjun to ask about his deployment.

Lily decides to wear the Indian sari for the party. Sharada asks her to look through her collection to see which one she would like. Lily selects a green sari with a matching blouse. The blouse needed some alterations, but it was not going to be a problem. There was an India Sari Palace shop next to the Bombay Foods. For an extra payment, the tailor there agrees to make the alterations on an urgent basis.

Arjun decides to wear the Indian silk kurta pajama. Being a military veteran, his stature is erect, and he displays a confident persona.

On the day of the party, Sharada is busy multitasking between arranging for the food display and the accompanying cutlery and stuff. She wants everything to be perfect. Arjun has brought Bertel and Alina from the Marriott at lunchtime so they can spend more time with everyone and take part in the activities surrounding their daughter’s engagement.

The guests start arriving at six in the evening. The first to arrive is Uncle Raj, as usual, with his wife Sonia.

“Where’s the hero? I want to shake hands with a real hero,” Uncle Raj says, walking toward Mom in the kitchen.

He does not see Arjun standing behind Krishna. Have I changed so much? Arjun wonders. Sharada points toward Arjun. Uncle Raj turns to face Arjun.

“Can I shake your hand, or am I supposed to salute?” He says, approaching Arjun.

Uncle Raj can be funny sometimes.

“Hi, Uncle Raj,” Arjun says as he approaches him with an extended hand.

“Look at him. A real soldier! I wish I could stand erect like him and hold my head high.”

“He is getting an award. We are going to the White House to see his award ceremony,” Sharada says loudly from the kitchen.

“Really? The White House? I have never been inside the White House.”

“Yes. President Obama wants to have the ceremony at the White House.”

“It is a real honor. There is a lot of security, I’ve heard.”

“Well. The Army is taking care of it. We will get the passes soon.”

“What kind of award is it?”

“The Silver Star,” Vijay says.

Vijay escorts Uncle Raj to the table with the photos and the letter.

“Look at this,” he says. “The letter says, a Silver Star is awarded to Captain Arjun Goré in recognition of his bravery, commitment, and adherence to the core values of the United States Army at a crucial time in combat.”

“And guess what?” Sharad says loudly. She is still in the kitchen.

“I can’t think,” Uncle Raj says.

“Arjun will be receiving the award from Vice President Joe Biden.”

“You don’t say.”

“Yes. We are so proud.” Sharada wipes her eyes with a napkin, her voice choking.

“Congratulations, my boy,” Uncle Raj says, turning towards Arjun, but soon realizes that he has done something wrong and adds, “I’m sorry. I should have said Congratulations, Captain. You are a hero.”

“Thanks, Uncle Raj. I am not a hero. I just did what I was supposed to do.”

“You may think so, but you are a hero to us anyway.”

“Thank you very much.”

Vijay introduces Uncle Raj to Bertel. Uncle Raj welcomes Bertel to America and expresses his joy at having him as a member of the family of his longtime friend Vijay. They continue their talk. Having been to India many times, Bertel is at ease telling his stories about his travels.

Sonia cannot wait to meet Lily, who is helping Sharada in the kitchen.

Sonia approaches Lily.

“My, my! Look at you. You look so pretty in that sari.”

She hugs Lily and admires the thin necklace Lily is wearing. She is interested in knowing all about how she met Arjun.

Sharada walks over and brings Alina to meet Sonia. Alina has also opted to wear a sari.

“We are so glad you could make it. You have a gorgeous daughter,” Sonia says to Alina, extending her hand. “Sharada is so fortunate to have a daughter-in-law like Lily. We love her already.”

Alina hugs her instead and thanks her, and they continue their small talk.

A stream of guests arrives soon. Arjun welcomes them at the door. Krishna and Doug are helping Vijay offer drinks to the men. Some women declined to take anything, but not Sonia. She wants to celebrate with her favorite cabernet.

The guests greet Lakshmi with a smile and start making small talk with her as if everything is normal. Maybe they already know and do not want to embarrass the hosts, or maybe they accept her life as it has turned out. It was not her fault. Things happen, and life must go on. It is how one reacts to life that matters.

By eight, the party is in full swing. Many guests walk by the table to admire the photos and the letter from the Army. They come towards Arjun and batter him with questions about army life. Arjun does his best to be honest and matter-of-fact.

Ladies gather around Lily. For many, it is a novelty to be in proximity with a foreign lady. They complement her good looks and admire her taste for everything Indian.

Sharada had ordered a sumptuous dinner of favorite Maharashtrian recipes. The Bombay Foods had provided a person to help serve the food, which was a big help. In addition to the Gulam Jam and Rasa Malai, Sharada has ordered a cake customized with the initials A and L in cursive on the top.

Before serving dinner, Mom makes an announcement.

“Hello,” she says, drawing everyone’s attention. She has walked to the family room. Everyone turns towards her.

“Can everyone be quiet for a minute, please.” She starts. “We have some great news. More than one really. First, Arjun is getting the Silver Star Medal in a White House ceremony from the hands of Vice President Biden.”

Some say, “Wow!” loudly and start clapping. Sonia raises her hands and shouts “Yahoo.”

“Besides,” Mom continues, “we are planning a ceremony soon to announce his engagement to Lily officially. We’ll be inviting guests from India and Germany. We’ll notify you as soon as we fix a date. And Krishna…” Mom looks around the room until she finds him and continues “his major acting debut will be this fall at the Arena Stage.”

Another round of claps from the guests.

“At the Arena Stage?” Uncle Avi says to express his surprise and appreciation.

“Yes. He’s an understudy for a part in the re-enactment of Oklahoma, the Musical.”

There is wild applause again with many yelling, “Yeah.” Some walk to where Arjun is sitting with Lily to shake hands and offer their congratulations. They also shake hands with Krishna and ask him what part he will be playing. He replies simply that he may be subbing for several minor parts.

“It’s a great start.” Uncle Avi says. “Maybe in a few years, we will travel to New York City to see you in a Broadway show.”

Everyone laughs. Mom announces that dinner is ready. The guests line up to walk over to the table with the food.

At eleven, the party moves to the basement.

Dr. Soman, the dentist, has brought his tape of bhangra music as requested by Sharada. She had heard it before and wanted to add pizzazz to the party.

With Arjun and Lily in the center, Sharada, Vijay, Bertel, Alina, and the rest make a circle around them and dance with abandon to the rhythmic music, expressing joy and happiness.

It is well past midnight. Happy and exhausted, the guests start leaving one by one.

“Sharada, you are always amazing. Look at this arrangement. Perfect. From the decorations to the food and the entertainment. You think of all the details.” Uncle Soman compliments Sharada.

“Oh, you are too much, Soman,” She responds. “Besides, I was lucky to have a lot of help, including from you. It made a lot of difference having that music.”

Arjun and Lily stand by the entrance door to thank everyone for coming. The guests offer their congratulations to the couple again with a wish for all the happiness in the future.