Sometimes Dreams Really Do Come True

The wedding was beautiful. The bride was gorgeous, an absolute vision who just kept getting prettier as the day went on (I know that's the mother of the bride speaking, but it's really true!). The groom was handsome and clearly besotted with her. The ceremony was just right. Father La Valley's homily was as incredible as I expected. The Mass was beautiful celebrated. The father of the bride was handsome in his tux and the mother of the bride didn't look too bad either (one friend of Abby's who hadn't seen me in years actually didn't recognize me when I came in, he thought I was Abby's aunt because I looked something like Abby's mom, but clearly wasn't her !). The reception went fantastically well and everyone had a good time. The brother of the bride and one groomsman managed to decorate the car and throw a little rice on the couple (very illicit of course). Now they are off on what will hopefully be a lovely honeymoon.

During Mass I realized that at this wedding Jesus was there, not only in spirit, but there Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity. I'd never been to a wedding before where that was the case. To have this wedding celebrated in the midst of the Eucharist was just so just plain RIGHT! I've been praying for them after communion for a very long time, they've been among the requests I offered up at the Consecration for a very long time. It just was so incredibly wonderful to be celebrating Communion in the midst of answered prayers. I feel like I'm not beginning to express the incredible joy of the moment.

Oh, and God cooperated very nicely in his distribution of weather. There was nary a drop of rain until the middle of the reception and it had stopped again when everyone was leaving. After everything was all over and we had the wedding gown safely back in the house (from where I have to take it to the cleaners), it started to pour. However, by that time the young couple were safely at their evening destination. So the day was truly perfect, perfect setting for pictures, perfect weather for in and out of the church.

Of course their were minor glitches, the flowers got deposited in a place in the church where the groomsmen didn't know they were, so they didn't get their flowers on until the last minute, ring bearer was temporarily AWOL right before the procession headed down the aisle (the flower girl found him), the organist goofed on part of the responsorial psalm, but these were very minor, minor glitches. All of the major stuff went incredibly well and it truly was the wedding of my daughter's dreams. Now we need to continue to support them with our prayers.

I walked around all day with an "stupid" smile on my face. The father of the bride was clearly pleased as well (he even danced 3 times, which was totally unprecedented).I don't think I've had any day in my life that was any happier. My own wedding day and the days my children were born are the only ones in same category. I guess that's appropriately so because after all yesterday I became mom to a new son.

So Cinderella has taken off the beautiful gown, I'm sure the just married sign is washed off the car. I've shampooed the hairspray out of my hair and am back to looking just normal again. The ball is over and we're back to normal life. There's wedding debris all around the house and still one set of guests to entertain, but clearly it's a new phase in life. Now if I can just get my daughter's cell phone to her (it got left in my jeans pocket after the hair salon yesterday)...I guess there's at least one more mommy errand on the list, so maybe the new phase won't be all that incredibly different (from some perspectives anyway).