twenty-nine

{my parents on their wedding day}

i love fairytales. i love happy endings.

i love those storybook moments that make people sigh and give those little smiles and maybe, just maybe whisper into someone's ear

that'll be us one day

i grew up watching a fairytale. not a perfect one, not one without the occasional villain or rolling fog or even broken-hearted tears. 

but still a love story. a passionate beautiful thing where two people pledged their love and it remained. 

for twenty-nine years

today.

my parents are a legacy in their own right. barely into their fifties, but still a legacy. 

their love is a bonding of heart and soul and everything good and sacred.

{my parents on their wedding day}

 if you want to see a God-touched love, a soul-rippling marriage

take a look at them. 

twenty-nine years ago, my Daddy wed my Mummy. 

he still looks at her the same way as he did then. 

they still dance in the kitchen to silent music. i still hear them laughing in that secret teenage way.

and i know they are still passionate together.

not just romantic. but passionate in that way only man and wife can be. 

and it was never hidden. 

{my parents on their wedding day}

never 

stop, the children are watching. 

he kisss her lips daily. more than, even. and he has never hidden his affection and admiration for her. not to us, his children. not to anyone.

yes, they have their secret intimacies, as do all couples.

but they are newlyweds forever. holding hands, singing, dancing, raising my sister and i in full view of that love. 

she still blushes when he looks in her direction. i've seen it, i've seen the notes and the flowers and the little signs of this and that. 

and they're my parents.

{my parents on their wedding day}

i'm fortunate to have parents still this much in love, twenty-nine years since they said i do. 


perhaps my bias is higher than most, but i am confident that i have the greatest parents in this world.

their covenant connection to one another is Biblical, strong, and connected by cords of love that only the King of Kings could weave.

they cling to Him. they cling to one another.

til death do us part.

happy anniversary, Mummy and Daddy. 

i love you so much. 

wise men say, only fools rush in

but i can't help falling in love with you

abounding {129-141}

{your first sneak-peak at the wedding photos}

on this morning, my cup overflows.

i cannot even begin to express the condition of my heart as the Floridian sun caressed my cheek this morning, reminding me that my time to return has come.

i don't want to leave this place.

this place of love and connection and some of the most precious people that dwell in this world.

and even in the midst of all the stress and rushing that has flooded my path this week,

the blessings have been innumerable.

• 129. ocean breezes and the crash of waves

• 130. the sight of a fresh and pure bride stepping down the sand toward a glowing groom with handkerchief blindfolded, awaiting her touch on his shoulder, to turn and to see her for the first time.

• 131. the tears on a mother's face as her daughter steps from child to woman

• 132. laughter.

• 133. swing dancing in the ocean waves as waves soak our skirts and the sunset kisses our lips and eyes. 

• 134. secret smiles and inside jokes

• 135. the reassuring and loving caress of a woman whom i call Mama

• 136. my best friend, now a wife, as she sobs into my shoulder with so many smiles. this day was perfect for us both.

• 136. love. the love of family. of friends. of man and wife. of 35 people gathered together. it was overwhelming. 

• 137. the ordaining hand of God, bringing each moment together in the most perfect of ways.

• 138. His provision. His promises are sure. 

• 139. aching sides and streaming eyes as laughter echos from the bridal party's throats among the sandy dunes

• 140. returning home when the time is right.

• 141. knowing that i am loved, knowing that i am wanted and treasured. 

my list is endless this morning. i could write for hours. His grace is so much sufficiency for me

and so i board a plane and journey home. and i will weep as i kiss my second family goodbye. 

but for everything there is a season. a time to come, and a time to go.

and this has been my time

 of blessings never ending.

{linking as always with Ann this morning. this blessings are growing greater}

mountain petals

my best friend is now a wife.

i don't think i can fully comprehend it yet.

this entire week has past in a blur for me. a strange, complicated blur in which miracles can happen, the world stops turning for just a moment as two people become one, and small ocean beaches can turn into a fairyland.

i'm still wearing my bridesmaids dress. i can't bring myself to take it off.

this beautiful plum purple gown, barely brushing my knees, and my still-sandy bare toes are my reminders of this day. that, and a small cluster of dark purple and white flowers that lay beside my laptop as i type.

i'm a bit lost for words, i think.

this day was perfect.

a sunrise service on St. Augustine beach in Florida. a cluster of vest-clad young men and dark plum gowned girls, all barefoot and surrounding a chuppah of hewn logs and whispy white linen.

i wore the groom's ring on my thumb as i walked through the sand toward my place as the maid of honour.

and then she came. down the sand on her father's arm. her dress was perfect. her eyes were glowing.

i cried. 

the ceremony was words. close-held hands and tearful eyes.

 i do. 

i do. 

he dipped her down for a perfect kiss. they were joined together this morning on the sand.

they took hands and ran up the aisle. i thought they would never come back.

during the photographs that followed, i caught a moment with her groom. he smiled.

she's perfect. 

i hugged him and whispered, "be good to my girl."

he promised me he would. he promised us all he would.

at the reception, we laughed and ate as i sat next to my best friend and watched her blushing smiles toward the man across the table from her. this, her new husband.

i stumbled my way through my speech, voice cracking and tears spilling into broken sobs. she stood and hugged me. we cried together.

she took his hand and slipped into the silver car, with a final blown kiss at me and her weeping mother.

she is his. 

he is hers. 

this is the start of their forever.

congratulations to Mr. and Mrs. Zachary and Alexandria Hightower

i pray you know how much i love you both.

10-16-2011

{pictures from the wedding coming soon}

catch

five minute fridays. we write for five, and only five, minutes. no editing, no overthinking, no backtracking. linking up with the gypsy mama.

the word

CATCH

now GO...

there is something so amazing about spending a week with a bride in preparation. most people don't get to see this part. this is precious between just a sacred few. 

because we get to see it all. the anticipation, the waiting for her groom to arrive. ten hours away no more. he will be here, and someday is only two days away from being forever. 

but there is the other stuff too. 

the stuff scattered around the room, suitcases open and tousled, things strewn helter-skelter. because she's preparing in this week. 

it's more than just tulle and ribbon and last-minute shopping runs and hot glue and sewing kits. 

it's a change of life. 

she knows that soon, she will have a human parachute. 

it's a drop and catch type of affair. 

she's dropping one name, and catching another. 

she's dropping the old life, the old home, the old surroundings

and catching the new. 


the new existance with the man she has loved for so long without even realizing he was the one she loved. 

this is a strange kind of balance. this thing of drop and catch.

but the dropping is slowly coming to the end. 

the end is in sight. 

and the catch. 

that beautiful soft catch. 

of sand and beaches and sunrises and tearful i do's. 

of money and children and grey-haired futures.

welcome to the catch, love. 


{please forgive my lack of commenting, loves. when my dear one is married, expect a return from me
also, would you please leave Alex a word of love? two more days before she is a wife.}

final arrival

she's next to me, curled up with a phone against her ear. her man is on the other end. ten hours away for one more night, and then he's here.

the groom and his attendants arrive tomorrow night. last night with just her and i before the men descend and the madness that leads to this marriage begins.

this is the night of coconut lotion and pampering.

of The King's Speech and one liter of Dr. Pepper each.

of so much aching laughter...but then again, that's been every night.

a night of a few shed tears and memories flooding as i run my fingers through her auburn hair, giggling as the smell of the hair dye overwhelms us both.

this is best friends on their last night alone together. 

she just tossed me a sheet of directions with six different languages on it, telling me just how to fix her lowlights. last night of preparations. because Zach is coming.

the groom is coming for his bride tomorrow.

the anticipation. the beautification. the preparations that abound and pile up around us.

it's a reminder of the Groom. waiting, planning. it is sacrilegious to picture Him shifting from foot to foot with excitement, looking at His Father?

is it time? can i go and bring her home now? 

{via pinterest}

and His bride...what is she doing?

is she preparing? is she ready, waiting?

or is she still so dirty? does she still reek of world and flesh and old self?

come now, church.

our Groom awaits.

be ready. 

mix {day one}

it's finally night. we're finally in bed.

sorta.

i know we'll stay up, talking about this and that and maybe laughing and maybe crying. we've already done both, and there's time for more.

EPCOT  was today. it was hot and sweaty and full of blisters and maybe a bit too much whining from us both.

but there was also 

laughs 

and giggles 

and so much delicious foreign food 

and so many pictures taken with a camera that kept letting the batteries slip out again and again.

 and we're okay with that. 

because it was the first day. 

the first day of six. the calm before the storm of crafting programs and sharpening a hundred tiny pencils and arranging last minute bits of this and that. 

six days until my best friend becomes a Mrs. 

today we held hands and cried. i cried for one reason, and she another. it's okay though. because it's just day one. 

short and sweet in its incredible longness. 

we like this, her and i

this life of change and conundrums and wishing wells. aching feet and blisters and giggling over our traditional picture strips taken in a tiny cramped photobooth for a ridiculous $5 that was too much but just right. 

Alex is getting married. and i'm doing this with her. holding her up, like she's holding me.

it's a two-way street, this wedding. the joining of zach and alex in holy matrimony. 

and this joining of friends to sisters. maid of honour and bride into fellow pathfinders. 

this mix of short and sweet and long.

this mix of perfect. 

Valse (Waltz)

Daddy and I
Photo by DramaticElegance

The LORD your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in His love, He will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing. ~Zephaniah 3:17

I am a dancer.

I suppose that my dancing abilities come with the musical theater territory...as well as attending a high school where swing dancing was the movement of choice.

It also may have something to do with my jazz musician father and musically-inclined mother slow dancing together  in his office to Frank Sinatra records...seeing them dance together at school functions...watching them share a dance in the corner on my wedding day.

My mom is a willing follower...my dad is more than a joyous leader.

It's one of my earliest memories: standing on my daddy's toes while he taught me the simplest of waltzes next to the stereo system in his office, him counting in my ear while my tiny five-year-old fingers clutch his large paternal hands.

It's a memory that follows me to this day...and shall continue to do so all of my life.

It's a memory that came to culmination on my wedding day...holding my still tiny nineteen-year-old hands against my daddy's slightly wrinkled palms, his tux contrasting with my white dress as we cried together to the tune of Cinderella. 

Is it not so poignant then to know that our Father dances over us?

My daddy showed me how to form the steps...my Daddy forms them over me.

My daddy counted out the rhythm in my childish ear...my Daddy counts my breaths and knows them all.

My daddy taught me how to dance.

My Daddy taught my father how to dance.

You dance over me / While I am unaware / You sing all around / But I never hear the sound / Lord I'm amazed by You / Lord I'm amazed by You / Lord I'm amazed by You / How You love me / How wide / How deep / How great / Is Your love for me. ~Amazed, Jared Anderson

Step

When you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible. ~Nora Ephron, When Harry Met Sally

My best friend got engaged on Tuesday.

I still have a hard time believing it...after all, it's something we've both been dreaming of for the past two years of our best friendship.

I guess the reality of the whole thing is just a little hard for me to grasp -- I can only imagine the thoughts racing through her head and heart at this moment!

There's something about the first step a couple takes together...something so incredibly intimate about the lowering to one knee, the stifled gasp as she presses her hands to her mouth, and the stammering of that single word that will change their lives forever.

An engagement is so much more than just a sparkling diamond ring and the giddy smiles of two people in love.

It's a vow of its own.

It's the voice of a young man as he gazes into the eyes of the girl of his dreams...the whispers of his frantically beating heart, saying:

"Baby, I'm not going anywhere. And in a short time, I will give up EVERYTHING and take you as my other half. My perfect fit. My missing puzzle piece. I want to love you as Christ loved His church, how my King loves His bride. So be with me forever."

The wedding is the woman giving of herself -- the passing from girl to woman, the taking of another name, the change from "Miss" to "Mrs."

But the engagement is the man's surrender.

The lowering of himself. The ultimate humility.

And so, I have words for two of the greatest blessings in my life:

Firstly to my beautiful Alex:

Babe, you are the most incredibly strong, beautiful and passionate young woman of God I have EVER had the honor of knowing.

You blow my mind every day with your drive and your willingness to do anything for the Kingdom of God. You are the most wonderful best friend I could have ever asked for, and you bless me more than I could ever begin to say.

Also, you are insane. You are my Heathcliff, my mad little gal-pal. You make me laugh. You listen. You have this amazing ability to laugh with me and then cry with me, all in the same conversation. You write songs with me, and you manage to keep my head on straight.

And I love you.

You truly are the Jane to my Lizzie; you better know this by now. I could not be more honored to have you as my best friend...and I look SO much forward to undertaking this journey with you. I love so much, dear one.

And to Zach:

I have been praying that God would bring someone like you into Alex's life ever since she and I met. She deserves an amazing man of God who loves her with everything that he is, and is willing to give his life for her, if the need arises. Someone who will treat her with tenderness and adoration, and still manage to bear with her complete and utter insanity.

And I believe more than anything that you are indeed that man. Thank you for bringing a smile to her face and love to her life again. Thank you for loving my best friend with such a pure and selfless love. You are indeed her Mr. Darcy. You have wooed and romanced her in ways that continue to blow my mind. Your selfless and strong care for her touches my heart daily. I love you, and I cannot wait to get to know you better and better in the many insanity-packed years to come.

God bless you both.

Stay strong in love, and stay true to one another.

Alexandria and Zachary -- March 8th, 2011 -- Just the Beginning

Nanook and Superman

"If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day, so I never have to live without you." ~A. A. Milne

Weddings are amazing.

Maybe it's the massive overdose of "romantic" in me, but there is something so captivating about two people gazing deeply into one another's eyes and promising to be together forever...

...it's amazing.

Yesterday (7-24-10), I attended the wedding of two very amazing friends of mine. I've known the bride (Rachel/Nanook) since Sophomore year of high school, and the groom (Joshua) since Junior year.

As I sat in that church, watching Rachel and Josh hold hands as the minister joined them together as husband and wife, I couldn't help but smile. Their love is truly so very sweet and precious. I have never seen a more excited bride in my entire life.

And, I have to say, their wedding was indeed a reflection of them and their love.

The ceremony was simply precious. The decorations for the sanctuary were simple and breathtaking in their elegance. The bridal party was small and intimate, and the amount of love felt in the room was overwhelming. It truly was enough to bring tears to my eyes.

Rachel's uncle (who is also a minister) gave a short, meaningful address to the young lovers. However, my eyes were continually drawn to Josh and Rachel. Even as they looked and listened to the words of wisdom being shared with them, their attention never left one another. It was truly one of the most intimate and romantic moments I have ever seen.

So now, I raise my glass to the newlyweds....

Rachel: You are a beloved and beautiful friend to me. You have been there for me in ways you will never fully realize. I treasure every memory that we have shared together over the past four years of our friendship, and I pray that we make many more in the years to come.

You have truly found a prize in Josh -- your Superman-- and I know that he loves you more than life itself. Keep Christ at the center of your marriage, and remember to lift up your new husband in prayer on a regular basis. Blessings and love to you, my sweet Nanook. (Love, Puppet)

Josh: In the past two and a half years, I have had the privilege of getting to know you and become your friend. Since September of last year, I have watched you romance and tenderly love my dear friend. Yesterday, I watched you make her your bride forever. It is truly incredible to see how much you adore her and how much she means to you.

You are Rachel's "Mr. Darcy" and her Superman. Your relationship is one of the most tender and beautiful things I have ever had the pleasure of witnessing. Lead Rachel with tenderness and love, pray for her constantly, and never forgot just how precious she truly is.

I wish you both the very best, a life fixated on God, and overflowing with happiness and love.

I love you guys with all my heart.

Congratulations!