BY: PAUL REVIS

July 2, 2006

TATIANA COMES TO AMERICA

A CONTINUATION

The shining Aeroflot TU-214 Tupolev airliner sat on the tarmac, it engines
whining, idling, waiting, it seemed, for the air-traffic controller to finish his coffee break.
There had been precious little conversation between the pilot and the tower and the pilot
began to wonder if his radio was even working. It would hardly be considered unusual to
have something like that go wrong. Money for preventative maintenance was not yet
considered to be cash well spent. The occasional piece of aircraft that fell off during flight
was usually seen as an annoyance rather than a problem to be concerned with.
Fortunately, this plane was quite new, and parts weren’t in the habit of falling off of this
craft, yet.
“Aeroflot six one niner, you are cleared for takeoff...” droned the controller in the
most bored voice the pilot could ever remember hearing.
After replying, and bidding the bored controller a good day, the pilot rammed the throttles
to their stops and the huge American built Pratt and Whitney engines screamed their
delight as they sucked in the jet fuel and crisp Russian air.

Several rows behind the pilot’s cabin a beautiful platinum blond girl sat, her big
green eyes wide with trepidation as the craft rocketed down the long runway, creaking and
groaning, its airframe pounded, fighting for sky, rumbling over the unkempt concrete it
struggled to escape. The girl’s fingers gripped the thin armrests leaving pronounced dents
in the poor excuse for leather that covered them.
As suddenly as the collusion of noises started, they stopped. The plane’s nose
pointing proudly into the atmosphere as if thumbing its nose at the gravity that had held it
to earth, leaving a trail of exhaust as its revenge.

“Finally!” said the older woman next to the pretty blond. “I was beginning to think
we were going to take root. Is this your first time flying, dear? I only ask because with a
little more work on that armrest, you will be taking it with you as a souvenir. I hope you
speak English, honey, because my grasp of Ukrainian is limited to about six words, and
two of them are inappropriate for a young girl.”
Tatiana turned to her seatmate, blushing, and smiling.
“I speak English,” she said, “and yes, this is my first time in an airplane. I do not
know what will come, so I am a little afraid. Do they always shake so hard?”
“Not always, it depends on the runway. You can let go of the armrest now; we’re
in the air. My name is Dorothy, Dorothy Appleberry, Dot to my friends, from Saint
Louis.” she said, extending her hand to the girl. “Isn’t that a silly name, Appleberry? An
apple isn’t a berry it’s a fruit. Fits the fruitcakes it comes from though, and that’s the
truth. What’s your name dear, since we seem to be sort of stuck together here for a few
hours?”
“I am Tatiana. Tatiana Collier,” she said proudly, blushing again.
“Collier? That’s not a typical Russian name now is it? How did you get a name
like that?”
 “I married an American man a short time ago. I am going to America to be with
my husband.”
“Oh god, a handsome young thing I’ll wager, and I suppose he told you he was
some sort of wealthy businessman from Dallas. Owns half of the town I bet, eh?”
“Nyet! No, this is not what he is,” Tatiana replied sharply, suddenly very angry at
the woman for demeaning her husband without ever knowing him. “He is good man.”
Seeing the look of anger in the girl’s eyes, the woman knew she had gone further than she
should.
“I’m sorry, sugar. That wasn’t fair of me. I apologize. I tend to get a little catty
when I’ve had a drink or two, and I have to tell you, that Russian vodka is some wicked
stuff when you drink the homegrown variety. I’m not used to it. Not one bit. Goes down
like water and then kicks your ass. Not good for an old woman to be drinking that stuff.
Please tell me about your handsome American husband. How did you meet him? What
made you fall in love with him?”

Tatiana explained the gathering, and how she saw him from across the room.
“So, this is a mail-order bride thing, like in the old west?” the older woman asked,
her eyes drooping a little as the effects of the strong Russian vodka began to wear off.
“Was this a common thing in America, to go to another country for wife?”
“Well, not to other countries, at least not too often. But men would order a wife
from the eastern cities to come west and live on homestead ranches on the prairie. It was
a hard life for all of them, but it beat starving in the cities if a woman had no education and
couldn’t find work in some sweatshop. It sounds to me like a modern adaptation of the
same thing. Just without the hard life part. Still, what drove you to this young man? Is
he handsome?”
“He is handsome to me,” replied Tatiana, her face softer as she remembered the
look in her beloved’s eyes.
“Young and strong?”
“Not so young. Older, like him,” she said, pointing to a middle-aged man in his
early fifties across the aisle.
“My god, child!” exclaimed Dorothy, “He must be old enough to be your father!
What would possess you to hook up with an old coot like that, a beautiful young woman
like you? ”
“Yes, maybe old enough to be my father, but the look in his eyes drew me to him,
as did his voice when we spoke together, but it was his kiss that told me I must be with
him.”
“It doesn’t take much effort to be a good kisser, dearie. That’s hardly what I’d go
and base a life altering decision on. There had to be something more to it than that. He is
wealthy then, I suspect.”
“No, he lives in a modest home, or so he says, but I have seen photographs of it
which he sent me by computer. It is a lovely house, very tidy, with vast field, and woods
behind which can be easily seen.”
“Are there children that you will have to look after?” Dorothy could see the poor
girl becoming an unpaid nanny for half dozen unruly urchins, begging, disillusioned, to
return home to Mother Russia within the year. It was something she had heard of, maybe
on some television report during Sweeps Week, but she couldn’t quite remember.
 “He, that is we, have a son. He is older than I. A very handsome man, and on his
way to becoming quite successful in his work.”
“Hmmm,” said Dorothy, pensively. There had to be something else, there just had
to be. Why would such a stunning young woman hook up with some old codger? The
older men she knew were positive bores. Hardly the thing to stimulate the mind, or body,
for that matter, of an obviously intelligent, vibrant young girl.
“I beg you not to become angry,” began Tatiana, her hand touching the woman’s
arm, “but I must ask why you find it so difficult to understand that I am in love with my
husband? Have you not been in love yourself, and not been able to explain why such a
thing was possible? What is it that makes a woman say to herself; this is the one I wish to
be with and make happy? What causes a man to feel the same? I ask you as a woman of
the world, as I can see you are, for I am not able to make my own mind understand it. All
I can know is that when he kisses me, and we are close together, there is a love between
us that I have never known before, a love that I wish never to be apart from. This I know
in my heart.”
“Well, Mrs. Collier,” said Dorothy, quietly, “It seems as though you have it bad for
this man of yours, yes, a bad case of love. Since Mr. Appleberry died ten years ago, it
seems as though I had forgotten what a bad case of love can do to a woman. Makes your
head all gushy inside. I miss that feeling, Tatiana, and I hope it stays with you for as long
as you both live. I however am going to take this opportunity to fall into a slightly tipsy
sleep for a while. Be a dear and give an old lady a nudge before we land if I don’t wake
up in time.”
Tatiana promised to do just that, and within seconds, Dorothy was quietly asleep, her head
on the young bride’s shoulder. With little else to do, Tatiana drifted off as well, the two
women dreaming of loves known and past, and loves to come. An hour before the plane
landed, Dotty awoke, refreshed and mostly sober, stroked the young girl’s hair until she
awoke, slightly embarrassed.
Just before the plane landed Dorothy handed Tatiana a business card with her
home phone number and address on it.
“If you should ever run into any problems, my dear, feel free to call me. Any time.
You’re a sweet girl, and I don’t want you to have to go through troubles without someone
to help. I have a little influence, and I won’t hesitate to use it in your behalf if it becomes
necessary.
Tatiana read the card to herself: State Representative Dorothy Appleberry, it said,
and gave the state the lady represented.
“Thank you, Dot,” Tatiana said, gratefully. “I will talk to my husband, we will
invite you to dinner. Make for you traditional Ukrainian dinner.”
“I think I could make time for that without ever missing a beat. Call me soon,
Tatiana Collier.”
After they landed in England, the first leg of her journey to America, Tatiana
hugged the older woman, promising to call on her when she got settled in to her new
home.

-2-
 The direct flight to her new home sate proved uneventful for the increasingly
nervous young bride. The flight was not full, and she was able to sit by herself and
observe the other passengers. It gave her time to think as well, not that she hadn’t spent
almost every waking hour doing just that from the time the government official showed up
at her door one afternoon. He informed her that she must pack what she needed quickly
for her trip to America, jammed tickets into her hand and left as though she had a bad case
of leprosy. Daniel’s e-mail only a few hours earlier had given her the news that she had
been allowed to emigrate. She just didn’t know how fast the process could be when the
right people became involved, and now, here she was about to land in a new country with
her new husband, new son, new home... It was all so quick. Finally, the fear had begun to
set in. Maybe not so much fear, as apprehension. Would her new “son” accept her, or
hate her? How about her neighbors? Americans were supposed to hate the old Soviet
Bloc people. That’s what she had always been told by the old ones of her city. There
seemed to be no end to the reasons why she should have stayed where she was, and only
one that kept her going.
The captain came over the intercom informing the passengers that they were now
crossing the shoreline of New York and would be reaching their destination in less than
three hours. Tatiana reached into the overhead storage compartment and removed a
small, elegant bag, and with it tucked tightly under her arm, made her way to the lavatory.
Cramped though it was, she changed clothes, repaired the slight damage to her face
brought on by the many hours of flight and transformed herself from the comfortable, but
weary, traveler into the sensuous woman that had enthralled her husband Daniel, so many
months ago. Returning to her assigned seat near the center of the plane, Tatiana could feel
the eyes of the other passengers follow her. The handsome young man across the aisle,
who had slept steadily for the entire flight, suddenly awoke as the stunning blond took her
seat. He chided himself for not noticing her before, wasting the time sleeping that he
could have spent coaxing her into a date, or ... He flashed his brightest “little boy grin” at
her and was rewarded with the kind of withering smile usually reserved for doormen, and
busboys. The man nodded and leaned back in his seat, the look had been unmistakable.

By now, Tatiana was as weary as she had ever felt in her life. The final three hours of
flight seemed to have taken the last of her reserve. Maybe it was the anticipation of finally
seeing her Daniel again, or maybe it was the far too many hours in flight, breathing the
recycled, refined, re-filtered and reconstituted air. She didn’t know, and didn’t care. All
she knew was that she was bone tired, and that she couldn’t sleep on an airplane no matter
how hard she tried. This is not the way she wanted to greet her new country or her new
husband, and she fought hard to regain some semblance of her normal self.
For only the second time on her long journey, she felt the huge aircraft gently kiss
the face of the earth, and roll to an agonizingly slow stop at the terminal. Tatiana had
craned her neck to look out the tiny window at the bit of landscape she could see as the jet
taxied in. Several brief patches of snow that had managed to elude the rays of the sun
were visible in the distance, a far cry from the mounds of whiteness that had all but
covered the trees close to her home in the Ukraine. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after
all, she thought. The land was flat and rapidly turning green, the sky bright with the
afternoon sun. She could hear the huge Rolls Royce turbofan engines wind down,
producing an eerie quiet that Tatiana hadn’t heard for what seemed like days. Wearily, she
climbed out of her seat and grabbed her small carry-on case from the overhead bin as the
plane’s door opened, and smiled grimly at the perpetually pleasant flight attendant who
thanked each passenger for flying with BOAC. She was mildly surprised at the customs
people and their level of helpful understanding, one lady in particular welcoming the
traveler to the United States, wishing her a happy life, when Tatiana explained her
situation in an almost monotone voice.
“Are all of these people happy here? Where is the brusqueness of the officials, the
expression of suspicion I have seen all my life? Are these people actually happy?”
Now, she was alone, as far away from everything she had ever known as one could
get, and she was tired. She blindly followed the throng of people, dragging luggage,
pushing tattered boxes in front of them, a few sputtering words into cell phones as they
made their way toward the open area where friends and family would be waiting...
“Tatiana! Tatiana Selikovitch Collier!”
Her exhausted mind barely caught the name being called over the volume of voices
around her, but the voice...the voice she remembered. The same voice she had fallen in
love with, from the lips of the man she yearned for.
Daniel stood with his arms open, a huge smile that seemed to spread over his
entire his face beamed at her. He was dressed in his finest casual clothes. Beside him
stood a young man, perhaps the most handsome young man she had ever seen, one hand
on his father’s shoulder, and a smile on his face as well. The son was taller than his father
by several inches, his hair a shock of black curls, piercing blue eyes, strong, wide
shoulders. Her son now. Beside the younger man, a tall, well dressed, stunning blond,
obviously the girlfriend. Tatiana slowed her approach ever so slightly, taking in the
welcoming party, suddenly very proud of her new family. There wasn’t the slightest hint
of the animosity she had expected to see in the boy’s eyes. He seemed truly pleased with
his father’s new bride.
Daniel lurched toward his bride, grasping her in his arms, picking her off of the
floor in an embrace fueled by the love they shared
“I’ve missed you so very much,” he whispered into her ear.
“And I you,” she replied as their lips met again after so long.
“You’re home now, you’re finally home my love.”
“Yes, my beloved one, I am home,” she breathed, the tears welling in her eyes.
She covered his face in kisses, reveling in the feel of his warmth.

“I’m Glen, and this is Melissa,” said the young man when his father finally released
his death-grip on his new mom. “We just got engaged two days ago. I told dad I wasn’t
going to say anything until later, but I just can’t help it. Welcome home, mom.” He threw
his arms around Tatiana and gave her a very son-like kiss on the cheek, passed her to
Melissa, who did the same. Whether from the fatigue, the relief of arriving, the pure joy,
or maybe a combination of all of it, she couldn’t know, but Tatiana began to sob in her
future daughter-in -law’s arms. The young girl, looking stunned, her expression begging
for help, gave her over to Daniel who took her in his arms again with pleasure.
Tatiana apologized for the tears. Not a proper thing to show such emotion in a
public place unless one was mourning the death of a loved, one or a political figure.
“It must be from the tiredness that I weep like an old woman,” she said. “When I
have rested, I shall be happy with you. Of that I am sure.”
Everyone agreed that the exhausting trip would make anyone emotional beyond
normal. She had a lot to learn about life in America, and they would be there to teach her.
 The group retrieved her luggage, and made their way to the family car. Glen and
Melissa rode in front, while Daniel and his new bride snuggled in the back like two high
school kids on a prom night date.
“Would you like to make a quick trip through the big city, or would you rather just
go straight home?” asked Glen as they left the airports parking garage.
Tatiana’s pleading eyes told Daniel that striking for home would be preferable to
yet another round of traveling.
“Home, James,” he said with a smile.
“Right ho, sir!” replied his son, and the big Buick made a hard right onto the
freeway, heading toward the tiny suburban town that was their home. In less than three
minutes the world around Tatiana closed in on her, and she slept, her head held tightly to
his chest while he stroked her hair and face. The hour-long drive would do her good.
“I hate to wake her,” said Daniel, when the car came to a stop in the driveway of
the neat suburban ranch house. “The poor thing is really exhausted, and I wish I could just
let her sleep.”
“How about if I go and unlock the door and you just carry her in?” suggested Glen
with a wry grin. “She can’t weigh more than a hundred pounds. Besides, aren’t you
supposed to carry the new bride over the threshold?”
“I might have gotten away with that when I was your age, boy, but now I’m not so
sure. It certainly is worth a try though. Very romantic, assuming she wakes up at the
right time,” Daniel replied with a wink.
His future daughter-in-law opened the rear door to the big car as Glen unlocked
the house. Daniel extricated his arm from around Tatiana. That, and the cold wind hitting
her face once more, was enough to awaken her, breaking up the romantic threshold-
carrying option. Tatiana stared at the house, and the large, well-manicured lawn.
“Your house is so beautiful, Daniel! The photographs did not do it justice. So
neat and tidy, and so large!”
“Our house, Tatiana. Your house my love. Welcome home.”
She stepped from the car and Daniel immediately scooped her into his arms,
carrying her into the house while she giggled like a schoolgirl, her arms wrapped tightly
around his neck, kissing his cheek. Entering the house he eased her to her feet, kissed her
one more time and bid her search to her heart’s content. With Melissa in tow, she ran
from room to room inspecting her new home. Daniel and Glen remained in the living
room, smiling at each other while the women could be heard commenting on the decor of
the house. Both seemed to have plans for change that didn’t seem to include more
masculine items of decoration. Daniel merely shook his head. He knew changes would
come but he knew it would be worth it to keep her happy.
“Tomorrow we should go shopping together,” said Melissa as the two returned to
the living room. “There is so much we could at least look at. That way we can get an idea
of what it is you want to do. It’ll be so much fun!”
“I think this is going to be expensive, dad!” said Glen. “I know Melissa’s taste in
home furnishings, especially with other peoples money. This is going to cost you big-
time.”
“You never know, I may have to go along in order to protect my interests.”
“Oh! And clothes too!” Melissa shot back.
“Now I’m definitely going. I’m not going to have Melissa dressing my wife unless
I approve!”
 “Victoria’s Secret good enough, dad?” asked Melissa, with a sly grin.
“Yup, definitely going.”
“Who is this Victoria, and what is her secret?” asked Tatiana, innocently.
“You’ll see when we get there, Tatiana. It’s a store for women’s clothes designed
to make their men very happy,” replied Melissa.
“Then we must go there as soon as possible, for I wish to make my Daniel happy.”
“You did that when your plane landed, sweetie. If I get too much happier my heart
might stop. Anyway, I think it’s time for dinner. I’m sure Tatiana hasn’t had a decent
meal in at least two days. How about ‘le Grande’?”
‘le Grande’ was the local pseudo-French restaurant a few short miles away, the
place where one dined on a grander scale than the local high-end chain eatery. Daniel did
a quick mental check of his finances and decided it didn’t matter that he may have to put
this one on his credit card for now. A celebration of this magnitude required a little
sacrifice. The amount would be covered by the time the credit card bill arrived, as was his
habit.
Some minor unpacking needed to be done so that she could get to her toilet
articles, and a decent outfit to wear for this auspicious occasion. Glen and Melissa
suddenly remembered some important business that required immediate attention,
mentioning that they should be back in about two hours, maybe a little more. Glen gave
his father a sly wink as they slipped out the front door, both of them giggling like little
kids.
“For a short time, my husband, we are alone,” cooed Tatiana, wrapping her arms
provocatively around his neck.
“That was the idea. Shall we shower?”

“Do you drive, Tatiana?” asked Glen, after they had all piled back into the big
Buick, almost three hours later.
“Oh yes, but never a car so big!”
“I guess I’ll have to consider another car for you,” said Daniel. “We’ll go looking
next week. When we find what you want, we’ll get it and get you a license.”
“You should not have to change your car for me. I will learn to drive this one.”
“I’m not changing anything. The other car will be yours.”
“My own car? Such a thing is for the rich in my country. I know of no one who
has two cars.”
“I’ve had as many as four at one time. It’s not unusual in America.”
Tatiana shook her head in wonder. The stories she had heard were true, though
she had not dared to believe them as a young girl. Having slept almost from the time she
had left the airport, Tatiana had no chance to see the traffic jams that they had encountered
on their trip home. Later, of course, they would amaze her.

The dinner at ‘le Grande’ was as they expected, fine food and wine, with the level
of excellent service the family had come to expect. Tatiana was duly impressed. Then
came a quick trip to the giant mall, “just to look around for a minute.”
“There is so much of everything, how does one choose what to buy?” she asked.
“Who knows?” laughed Melissa. “You choose what you like by price or by
designer, or by style, or by quality. Take your pick! Crazy, isn’t it?”
“I shall never learn this!” Tatiana exclaimed.
 “Nonsense, you’ll be shopping like a pro in two weeks. I think its part of the
female genetic makeup,” sighed Daniel.
Glen nodded his agreement to that statement; while Melissa shot him a look that
left no doubt in his mind that she did not.
By the time they returned home, Tatiana was once again asleep on Daniel’s
shoulder.
“The poor thing is totally exhausted,” he whispered. “I wouldn’t be surprised if it
took her a week to recover. Would you be offended if I don’t invite you in for a
nightcap?”
“Of course not, dad. Get her to bed and don’t disturb her!”
“Thanks for the advice, son,” Daniel replied, sarcastically. “Now, go away.” He
hugged his son and future daughter-in-law, once again carried his bride into the house and
helped her to bed.

The following week was a whirlwind of introductions to the rest of his family, and
the neighborhood, at least the ones he knew. The rest could wonder. He found that she
liked taking long walks, observing closely whatever there was to see. That week they
discovered a lot about each other. True to her word, Tatiana was an excellent cook, a
meticulous housekeeper, and an attentive wife.
“I don’t know what I did to deserve this woman, but, thank you God!” he said one
evening, after an especially good meal. She smiled happily to herself, and kissed the top
of his head as she passed behind him, her soft hand stroking his cheek.
Daniel’s two-week vacation from work was over, and he had to return to work.
She cried as she watched him leave. The loneliness returned to haunt her, though she
pushed it aside knowing he would return soon to her arms. She tidied, and dusted, and
cleaned, and still she felt that empty pit in her soul that could only be filled by his return.
At work, Daniel was distracted, going about his duties rather like an automaton. There
was no joy in his job. To be fair, there was little joy before, but now, there was only the
anxious watching of the clock. Only seven hours to be back with her. Only five hours.
Only one hour. Four o’clock! Daniel raced to the Buick, started it and put it in gear
immediately, something he never, ever did. The Buick was his baby, and he always let the
oil flow through the engine before putting it in gear. Today, there was something even
more important to him than the Buick. Tatiana was waiting. Waiting for him. He felt his
face flush at the thought of rushing home to her warm embrace.
Tatiana too, knew when he stopped his work. It was four o’clock he had told her.
A half hour before, she had already gotten cleaned up, her face glowing with the slightest
amount of makeup, his favorite little black dress and the new high heels she had purchased
with Melissa to guide her. The day had turned warm enough for her, so she left the new
jacket hanging in the closet and walked outside to wait.
“Good afternoon, Tatiana,” called her new neighbor, Brenda. “Are you locked
out, dear?”
“Oh, hello Brenda!” she called back, surprised that anyone would actually
remember her name, or that she remembered anyone else’s. “No, I wait for Daniel to
return home from his work.”
“Are you going out to dinner? Not that it’s any of my business of course, but you
look fabulous. I’m so jealous!” Brenda strolled over to her new neighbor, admiring her
beautiful designer dress.
 “No, we will be dining here, I have made a traditional meal from Russia for him.”
“Dressed like that?”
“Is it not good that I greet my beloved one and look as pretty as I can for him? He
has worked this whole day to provide for us. He has the right to expect for me to make
him happy, do you not think so?”
Her neighbor looked a bit nervous, knowing that she rarely dressed up for the
husband that had provided so well for her and their family, suddenly ashamed of the
frumpy clothes she was wearing. The man worked hard, she thought, and deserved
something nice to look at when he got home. Maybe that wasn’t entirely true, but at the
moment, it sounded good.
“Of course he should expect you to,” she said weakly. “I love your dress, by the
way.”
“Thank you, Brenda. Glen’s future wife, Melissa helped me pick it out, but Daniel
had the final say about it.”
“He has approval over what you wear? How old world.”
“I dress for him. Why should he not be pleased with what I wear?”
“Hmmm,” said Brenda, “I think I see your point. Most women in America dress
for each other. We seem to care more how we look to other women than we do our
husbands, and you’re right, I suppose, we should be dressing for them.”
“That’s just the way I was raised, for a woman to dress and live for her husband. I
don’t mean that you should follow what I say or do.”
“Sometimes we American women need a good kick in the butt to remind us where
our loyalties should lie,” said Brenda with a shake of her head.
“Ah! Here comes Daniel now,” exclaimed Tatiana with a happy smile.
Brenda looked at her watch and decided she had enough time to change into
something nicer before picking her husband up from the train station. Maybe that pink
dress with the lace trim he liked seeing her in would do. Yes, she thought, that would do
just fine.
Lost in thought, she suddenly looked up to see Tatiana and Daniel locked in a lover’s
embrace.
“I’ll see you two later,” she said weakly, and ducked back into her house without
waiting for any kind of answer.

“I have waited for the day to go by, waited for you to return to me.”
“I could hardly get anything done at work. My only thought was to get home to
you, my beautiful one.”
“Will it always be this way for us, Daniel?”
“Of course it will, my love. It has to be.”

XXXX

As usual, the meal was well prepared, tasty and frugal, the newlyweds giggling like
children as they enjoyed each other’s company. The evenings television watching came
next, Tatiana and Daniel cuddling close to each other as the flickering light danced over
their happy faces.