The beginning of everything else

Caught in the Act

By the time I reach him, the tear that he'd been fighting to hold back had started to make its way down his cheek. Reaching up, I hold his face in my hand to dry his eye with my thumb, which he holds in place before turning his head and kissing my palm.

"So beautiful" he smiles as his eyes take me in, bringing both of my hands now to his lips, kissing my fingers before lowering them, still intertwined between us so that the ceremony can begin.

"You too" I whisper then biting my lip, Noah looks good in anything he's wearing, but this new open shirt look takes it up a notch, even for him.

The officiator starts talking, welcomes everyone who has traveled from far and wide, and then starts off the ceremony with a passage about our journey.

"The most remarkable moment in life is when you meet the person who makes you feel like the best possible version of yourself. The person who makes the world a beautiful and wondrous place. The person with whom you share a bond so special that it stays with you no matter where you are, or what life has in store, and becomes something so pure and so wonderful, that you can't imagine spending another day of your life without them. For Elle and Noah, that happened about 25 years ago when their families, already joined by a friendship, welcomed Noah's younger brother, and his lifelong friend Elle. I know how deeply these Elle and Noah care for and love one another, and I feel privileged to be here today among all of you as a witness of their commitment to a lifetime of love"

I can hear her as she is talking, her words even make sense, but it's like she's far off in the distance, or maybe talking to me through a pane of glass. In comparison, Noah has captured all of my senses, well all except one. I can feel his fingers squeezing mine, smell the scent of that familiar cologne, hear his breath as it catches when I smile at him, and see the love pouring from his eyes. Taste will have to wait until after we've said our vows when I'll finally be able to kiss those lips as Husband and Wife.

We had prepared our own vows, but promised each other to keep them clean and beautiful as opposed to wacky or a little rude. Before his proposal, I wouldn't have thought this wasn't Noah's thing, but he's full of surprises and when I asked him a few days ago how he was getting on with them, he was nothing but confident. When it was his turn to speak, he fixes me with his gaze, lifting my hand and kissing it once more, he begins.

"Shelly" he smiles as a ripple of laughter echos across the beach, "I promise to love you for who you are, and for who you are yet to become. I promise to be patient, and to remember that all things between us are rooted in love. I promise to nurture your dreams and share mine with you. I promise to love you fiercely with my whole heart and to remember to show you how deeply I care for you. You have taught me that two people joined together with respect, trust, and open communication can be far stronger and happier than each could ever be alone. You are the strength I didn't know I needed and the joy that I didn't know I lacked. Today, I choose to spend the rest of my life with you"

I can hear a collective sigh from our guests, with June quietly sniffling, and just over Noah's shoulder, I see Lee's look of surprised admiration. I've given up on trying to stop the tears that are now streaming down my cheeks, and now it's Noah's turn to reach over and brush them from my face. It takes me a moment to steady myself, he's just so freaking perfect, then I mouth "I love you", take a deep breath, and hope I don't mess this up.

"I want so badly to be able to explain all the love I have for you. Not the anticipation of love such as butterflies and stomach knots—but more the entanglement of my heart with yours. You are all of my dreams come true. You are so kind and funny. You love my strengths and my weaknesses. You make me want to be a better person just for you. I take you as you are now, tomorrow and for eternity to come, to be my husband. Even when the day comes that we're old and gray, I promise to always see you with the same eyes and the same heart that I see you with at this exact moment. So today, I vow to cherish you, support you and encourage you. I promise to dream with you, celebrate with you, and walk beside you through whatever life brings. I vow to laugh with you and comfort you during times of joy and times of sorrow. I promise to always pursue you, to fight for you, and love you unconditionally and wholeheartedly for the rest of my life. You are the other part of my soul and I'm the luckiest person on earth to call you mine."