A Love Story

On this day 21 years ago, I took his name and I gave him my heart. Sometimes it seems like only yesterday that I walked down the aisle, took his hand and said "I do." And sometimes it seems like it's been forever!

It is a small, simple ceremony held in the chapel. 

Music from the piano is softly drifting through the

sanctuary, marking the time. She stands at the entrance,
poised on the threshold between two worlds.

"My Endless Love" fills the room. It's her favorite song
that the pianist plays today. Her uncle smiles down
at her as he loops her arm through his. It should be her father,
smiling down at her. But their relationship is strained. And so it is

not to be. As the strains of that melody drift away, and
the processional begins, her uncle says,
 "It's time," startling her from her silent reverie. And so they
begin the journey down the aisle, toward her new life.

She is nervous. Too many eyes are looking at her. What if

she makes a mistake? What if she forgets what to say?

What if?... And then she looks at him. Her groom. The
young man with whom she has pledged to spend her life.
Her best friend this side of heaven. He

smiles at her and takes her hand in his own clammy one.

He is nervous, too. She smiles at him. They hold hands.
In front of God and the witness of family and friends,

they speak vows and pledge their love eternally.

They exchange rings. And she does make a mistake. She tries

to put the ring on the wrong finger. She cries softly and he smiles 

tenderly as he places it on the right one.

They are pronounced man and wife and he kisses his bride before

turning to lead her up the aisle, out into their new life as husband

and wife. To her, it seems a fairy tale. Her knight in

shining armour, charging in on a white steed,
 come to rescue her from the tower of loneliness.

That place in which she has been trapped since her mother's
death. But no, it is no fairy tale. It is a love story. A love story

written by God a long time ago. A love story

that He is still writing.

Yes, that is my wedding story. My love story. And tonight we celebrated with Wednesday night supper at church, followed by working with the children in our Awana program (lol). Well, we couldn't skip church! And anyway, we went on a weekend trip to celebrate our anniversary a bit early, at the end of July, because we knew we wouldn't be able to get away at all this month. Going away or going out to celebrate is not what's really important. What's really important is being together, and realizing just how blessed we are to have each other.