July 16, 2002

Part One - The Wedding (Page 3)

Thump thump thump goes the heart. Dry dry dry goes the mouth.

We stood at the end of the bridge, Marie in front.

All the attendees sat, and Rev. Murphy motioned Marie to begin walking. She paused, as instructed by the photographer, on the bridge for yet another photo, and made her careful way across the lawn, turned, walked down the isle between the chairs, and went to stand beside Rev. Murphy.

Then he motioned everyone to stand, and Calvin and I moved forward.

We paused for our picture, and, hysterically, Calvin whispered instructions to me that he would initiate the turn down the isle, so we wouldn't fumble all over ourselves, I guess.

We walked across the lawn, then turned, and walked down the isle. Rev. Murphy smiled broadly at us as we stopped in front of him, and began speaking.

The ceremony was the most lyrical and beautiful service I've ever heard. And I'm not being prejudiced just because it was our ceremony - you can read the whole thing here and judge for yourself. Rev. Murphy put so much thought into what he would say, drawing from what we all spoke about a month ago when we met over coffee. I'd asked him to mention my grandmother, and he offered this:

"And we remember your grandmother, Laura, the potter in your life who lovingly shaped and formed you into the woman that you are today… "Grandmother, although death has separated us physically, faith and love have bound us eternally. Though I cannot see you, I know you are here. Though I cannot touch you, I feel the warmth of your smile, as Calvin and I begin this new chapter in our lives."

My eyes welled up, and I thought I would break down sobbing right there. Preventing myself from crying right then was the hardest thing I've had to do in a long time. Calvin kept squeezing my fingers and saying "Don't cry, don't cry", and it was when Rev. Murphy said, "So take a deep breath or two, exhale slowly, and relax in the love that has brought you here today, that love which has enriched your spirits and lives so completely," that I was able to get myself under control. But I sniffled a lot, and had to reach back to Calvin's sister for a tissue.

Marie gave her reading, "A Perfect Love, a Perfect Friend", in a sweet, clear voice. She didn't falter once, and as I watched her Calvin whispered, "Look at me," so we could look into each other's eyes as she read.

We exchanged vows, and they were beautiful and perfectly expressed everything we felt toward one another. As Calvin finished repeating his vows, he whispered to me "I promise." It made me want to cry all over again. And when I finished repeating my vows, I whispered back to him, "I promise, too," and he smiled at me.

Further along in the ceremony, our brother-in-law read "The Art of Marriage".

Later over the blessing of the rings, when Rev. Murphy got to "They are symbols of... laughter," Calvin uttered under his breath "Uh-huh". And when he got to "...tears," Calvin murmured "Uh-uh". It made me smile during such a solemn moment, and I was so tickled that Calvin was adding these cherished little memories to our ceremony.

Lordamercy, I'm getting myself choked up here. I do love that man so!!!

Calvin struggled a bit to get my ring on - it fits perfectly, but hey, I was hot. Calvin's slipped on just fine.

We had the Final Prayer...

Every kiss from Calvin is just about perfect, but I do love it so that he reached out and cupped my face in his hands. Actually, funnily enough, we'd practiced how we were going to kiss. I'd asked him, oh, weeks back, as just an impulsive thought, how he thought we should kiss. The result was soft, gentle, and very, very sweet.

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©Laura Charon 2000 - 2002.