Legally married

我和Steve在Penang举行华人风俗结婚，算一算也有五个月了，昨天起才终于算是合法的夫妻，佛光山temple的师父为我们的结婚证书人。

在Missouri申请结婚证书是双方必须到有关marriage license的部门向执行者填写个人身份资料，双方向执行者签名及宣誓资料正确﹔付费约49美元。三天之后，任何一人再去该部门领取结婚签证书。结婚签证书必须在marriage license申请日的30天内由牧师或法师或公庭法官签证，及两位见证人签名，然后邮寄此结婚签证书寄去有关执行部。

Steve己于今年初改信仰，皈依佛教，所以我们没有去church举行 I DO…的仪式… Steve原本欲在佛光山temple举行结婚签证仪式，邀请亲友参加。这么巧佛光山temple将搬换会所，旧的会所某处天花垮塌，而新会所在装修。师父在近期又会出外。我们知道这样的情况之后，只好先给师父签证及找temple内两位见证人签名。啊..好笑的是..其中一位见证人是我们不认识的！我们急于想得到合法结婚是因为Steve很担心我在这里居留还没有医药保险，而且我一进美国，我的Fiancee visa只有90天而己。有结婚证书，接下来我才能加入Steve的health insurance及申请其它的证件，如PR card, Social security card, bank account, driving license等。

噢…我的证件上的名字将是Lee Kean Ellebracht吗？Steve的姓是Ellebracht，家族姓是德国人。

It has been five months since Steve and I had our Chinese wedding ceremony in Penang, but we just got legally married yesterday in the US. The person who certified our marriage was a nun at the Fo Guang Shan temple.

To apply for a marriage license in Missouri, both of you need to go to the department of marriage licenses, then fill in the forms, sign, swear and pay the fee around US$49. One of you goes to this department to collect the marriage license after 3 days. The marriage license needs to be signed by an official (priest, monk/nun, judge, etc.), and two witnesses within 30 days. After that, this marriage certificate is returned to the authority.

Steve already converted to Buddhist since the early January, so we didn’t have an “I DO…” ceremony in a church… Steve thought to invite relatives and friends to attend our marriage ceremony in the Fo Guang Shan temple, but Fo Guang Shan temple will be moving to a new location for the time being. The ceiling at the old location broke and the new location hasn’t completed renovation. The nun will be out of town soon. So, we had no choice but to invite the nun to certify and two volunteers in the temple were witnesses. Ah...it was too funny…we didn’t recognize one of the witnesses! Steve needs the marriage certificate urgently because he is worrying about me without health insurance here, and my Fiancee visa is only valid for 90 days after I entered the US. We needed to have the marriage certificate so that I could join in his health insurance plan and other stuff, like getting my PR card, social security card, bank account, etc.

Oh…will my name on the card is Lee Kean Ellebracht? Steve’s family name is Ellebracht, which is a German name.

20.6.07 2.10pm云热