Mine at Last: In the Afternoon

I prayed the entire elevator ride down 17 stories that I wouldn't pee my dress with excitement.  God is good and answered my prayer.

I turned the corner and saw my groom.  No butterflies.  No nerves.  No gasp.  Just a sigh of relief and a warm calm.

What do you say when you see your groom for the first time?  I said, "Hi."

He replied, "Hi."

Then he asked, "What's all this?" as if he'd never before seen a veil.  Performing a modified Jewish tradition, he lifted the my veil and was quite relieved when he learned he wouldn't have to get lost in the layer of tulle again at the ceremony.

He was being the exact person I knew him to be - nervous from being kept waiting to see me, clueless to bride's accessories, and a curmudgeon about having to make a fool of himself figuring out the veil.

I think I said, "Hi" again.

I honestly have no idea what we said the rest of the time that we were together.  In this photograph, I look like I'm chiding which would be characteristic of me.  Or maybe I was eying up his earlobes.  I'm obsessed with his soft earlobes, kissing them and just holding them between my my thumb and forefinger. 

In the absence of words, we held each other. 

And I gave him Eskimo kisses.

And I relished the thought of being his wife.

Then Sam spoke.  Oh yeah, there were people other than ourselves in the room.  He had gotten word that the limo was waiting for us.  It was go time.  I was ready to do this thing.

Down the elevator, through the lobby

and around the revolving door, I was a giant smile dragging a white dress behind me.

Similar to the parlor trick of wearing a bee beard, I was told that I was the queen bee and that the wedding party would follow me where I went.  I decided to lead everyone to the limo.  I popped through the revolving door and didn't see anyone by the limo driver.

I peered into the limo: "Hello? Anyone in here?"

Turns out that between the lobby and the front door, a side door exists . . . leading to the hotel bar. 

In the only few seconds of aggravation that day (my Lambaids can attest to this fact), I lost my cool.  I love that this photograph captured the moment.  I'm telling the limo driver how we managed to lose the male half of the wedding party within 25 feet of the front door.  A Lambaid searches the vehicle again for the missing groom.  Another Lambaid balances pomanders and a box of emergency extras while looking worried that she sees smoke from my ears.  Yet another Lambaid carries my reception head piece.  All the while I shivered as another Lambaid searched for my coat.

An instant later, the guys joined us in jovial oblivion that I was less than pleased with their disappearing act, we all piled into the warm limo, and I was in my red coat getting a back rub from my maid of honor.  Everything was right with the world again.  In a little over an hour, I was going to be married.

*All photographs by Sam Hughes.