The Day of Bliss

With a small voice from somewhere in my soul urging me, "Write it down. Write it while you still remember. Write while the smells are still vivid, the sounds are still clear and the emotions still raw. Write."

I can't imagine not remembering my special day. I can't imagine not loving every detail about that day of bliss. Some how, some way, time has a way of reaching into our memories and fading them until you can only remember certain things. Perhaps it is just the fact that we are constantly making new memories, encountering new phases in our lives that require certain memories to fade just so the new ones can glow.

But for now... my wedding day is a glowing memory, a burning brand that is marked on my heart forever even when it fades.

From the moment I woke up on December 31st, I was enthralled with the anticipation of what the day would bring. One of my best friends and roommate from college, Carolyn, stayed at my tiny apartment with me. We woke up in my bed, face to face. We smiled as I felt a giggle bubbled its way to surface. I was positively giddy even with morning breath, crusty eyes and bed hair.

We rolled out of bed since we had planned to meet up with everyone at the hotel around 8. The night before, despite my grumbling, Carolyn made me pack my bag for the day and for later that night. I am so thankful that she forced me to do it because it made my morning so carefree and fun.

(Kaiula Beach- where we tried in vain to catch some serious sun rays)

All I had to do was pull on shorts and a tank top, brush my teeth and I was out the door.

We slid into my little red car, Sally Jo. The sun was shining through palm trees and the breeze smelled of salty sunshine. We rolled down the windows and roared (Yes- roared, Sally Jo doesn't know the meaning of quiet.) out of my peaceful, calm neighborhood. I reached for the Ipod and search until I found the song I wanted.

Long, long time ago... The words floated out of the speakers. I looked at Carolyn and grinned. She smiled and started singing along. American Pie has been a favorite song of mine because of many things and because I love the fact that I can sing the whole thing by heart. It has a way of pumping me up and just for a moment, I can fit into the hearing world.

As we got nearer to the base, the song ended. I sighed with a smile and glanced at Carolyn. She smiled and reached for the Ipod and press replay and cranked up the volume. Once more, with our hands waving out the window and voices out of tune but loudly singing:

"Bye-bye, Miss American Pie."
Drove my chevy to the levee,
But the levee was dry.
Them good old boys were drinkin',
whiskey and rye.
And singin',
"This'll be the day that I die.
this'll be the day that I die."

I love that she wanted to replay it again. I loved that she sang with me. I loved that she cranked up the volume. I loved that she was with me on that morning.
I will continue with the rest of the story in another post. It will be long. It will be drawn out. I don't care how long it will take because it is my wedding story... my day of bliss.

My joy is sharing my joys with my best friend, Carolyn.