Brooke Ferguson had the perfect life. Perfect grades in college, perfect friends in her perfect sorority, and a perfect boyfriend with whom she planned a perfect future. It all came crumbling down when she found out she was pregnant. But the thin...
Brooke's gaze drifted out the window towards the ornamental garden of the beautiful French chateau. In only minutes she would become Mrs. Jacob Reeves. There he stood on the lawn, more handsome than ever in his tux, with Noah happily playing with a toy at his feet. The minister was chatting with Brandon, the best man, and their friends from Madness and Nine Days In filled the chairs. The scene took her breath away, and she never wanted to forget this feeling.
The past four months had flown by since they had been together. She never dreamed they would get married so quickly, but Jacob made a strong argument. They knew each other so well and had shared so much with each other in the time they had known one another, that there would be no surprises, and with him going on the road in a few weeks it would be hard on not only the two of them, but also Noah. This way she and Noah could travel with him and they would get their own family tour bus. She had jumped at the chance to give up working and have more time with Noah. Seeing the country would be a fun bonus. The thought of being with Jacob every day made her heart race with happiness. Even with the bother of paparazzi following them around, as well as fans, he was worth it.
Her mind went to the day he proposed. She never would have guessed, since they had only officially been dating for a month. He had set up a weekend at the same house in Anna Maria beach, where they stayed before. This time Nan and Grams went with them. He asked her for a walk on the beach at sunset and their grandmothers insisted on putting Noah to bed while they were gone.
The sun was just dipping down in the sky, creating a hazy pink glow. Jacob carried a beach blanket and set it out for them, then turned some music on from his iPhone. It was him singing a song she had never heard. It was beautiful, melodic, and told a story — their story. A story of a love that bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things. A love that never ends. One with God at the center. He took her in his arms and they danced, then he spun her around. By the time she turned back to him he was down on one knee. It was so early in their relationship, but it was perfect and she knew it was right. She knew he was the one God had for her.
"Brooke, Grams and Nan are about to walk out. It's time to head down," Elise called as she walked into the room.
Brooke smiled at her maid of honor. This was it, the beginning of forever with the man she loved.
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A/N: The End! The Epilogue is short, but I hope you will use your imagination to fill in more details! I've spent a lot of time over the last year checking out instagram wedding related accounts in preparation for my daughter's wedding (though we wanted to have hers in the town we live in). I fell in love with many of the destination wedding venues in France and Italy. The one in the pictures above is Chateau La Durantie in France. As a designer, I am drawn to the architecture and interiors of so many of these European venues!
I hope you enjoyed the story. One of my goals was to highlight how we often make judgements about how we think someone is, based on their appearance, what we have heard, or particular run-ins with them. It's human nature. Without knowing them, their backstory, or what is happening in their lives at the moment to make them act a particular way, it is easy to make wrong assumptions about who they are. Certainly there are times that we need to heed our intuition, or the warnings of others in order to protect ourselves. But there are many missed opportunities when we might find a good friend, or be the person someone needs in their life to help them through a difficult time. Sometimes we just need to look beyond ourselves and see...really see others. I'm talking to myself too. Sometimes I just want to put up walls, be in my own world, and not get involved, but I have to remind myself to see others through God's eyes and I remember all that he willingly did for me. Surely, I can share some of that love with others.
Along the lines of making judgments, many people make judgments about who God is, and what Christianity is, without getting to know the truth. It's easy to look at churches, denominations, people who call themselves Christians, pastors, televangelists, and what the media says about Christianity, and think we know the truth. But the truth is in the Bible. It's important to compare everything you think you know or have heard with what the Bible actually says. People will try to find errors and inaccuracies in it, or try to say parts of it that really happened are just allegories, but it is truth! There are parts of it written as poetry and parables, as well as dreams and visions, but much of it is history. Even when I listen to internationally acclaimed bible scholars, or people that I feel confident have in depth knowledge of the scripture, I compare what they say to the word of God. Don't let the mistakes, hypocrisy, and sins of people who claim to be Christians keep you from Christ! Maybe some of those people truly are Christians, but know that until our bodies are regenerated after Jesus returns, Christians will continue to sin. There is hope in this world, and it is in Christ. If you have any questions, please feel free to private message me.
