lift your glass

Congrats to my little brother and his bride. Their wedding a few weeks ago was beautiful. She sparkled; He was enamored. Loved watching them plough down the aisle, arm-in-arm to a piano version of We Are the Champions. Gotta love it. I have never been one to skip to the last page of the book but friends who swear by the habit tell me, rather than ruining the story, it frees them up to linger over ever word, savor each character, enjoy the process without sprinting to discover the conclusion. Perhaps that is a bit of what weddings do - flip for a brief moment to the final page for a taste of where we headed, a glimpse at the end of the story. Pop the cork, pass platters of food, kick off your shoes and join the dance of the Lamb and his radiant Bride. Reunions. Familiar faces we have ached to see. In many ways, this year has been rough. I have watched friends hurt, painful things happen to people I care about. Yet always there is the cord of hope. I saw it twisting down that church-aisle. Beauty amidst the madness, the promise of sadness being undone. Green sprouts between the pavement, sun pours through cracks.