Wedding Dress Shopping

One year ago this month, I came home from Texas and jumped into a flurry of wedding-related activities with my sister and my mother. At the top of the list was shopping for a dress. One afternoon the three of us went out for lunch and headed to a bridal shop, me with my old Minolta in tow.  This is my first and only dress-shopping experience thus far and it was not at all like they picture it on the shows.  I half-expected to be there for hours while Eva tried on dress after dress, with harried shop assistants running around with armfuls of tulle and lace.  Perhaps there would be an endless back-and-forth, maybe a minor fit thrown and ultimately my mother and I wailing in each other’s arms: “SHE’S TRANSFORMED INTO A BEAUTIFUL BUTTERFLY WAAAH.” 

It’s not to say that the whole dress-shopping experience wasn’t fun and a little emotional, because it was both of those things. Eva looked beautiful in everything she tried on and the saleswoman was almost personally offended when she turned down the offer of buying a veil.

Like, calm down, woman. The sanctity of marriage is not ruined because my sister won't be wearing some extra tulle on her head.

Two Hearts Under A Burlap Banner

 Bradly + Eva = Saturday, July 7, 2012

My sister and the love of her life tied the knot on a bright July morning in Spicewood, Texas in a grove of twisting madrone trees.  The sun was high and hot and the air was already swimming with humidity.  Bright sunshine glinted off the lake behind them as they took each other’s hands and promised their whole hearts for their whole lives.   Overhead, a jaunty burlap banner that spelled ‘Forever’ in red fluttered in the breeze.  The two families were clustered around them, some standing, others sitting on wooden benches and chairs. There were just twenty of us and we sang ‘O Teach Me How to Love’, our voices and faces mixed with tears.

I stood next to my brothers and we cried as we watched our sister step into a new chapter. We were happy and sad and overwhelmed at the change before us. Happy to see her smiling her heart out, sad that it would never quite be the same again and overwhelmed (in a good way) that our family circle just opened up and a whole new collection of sisters, brothers, cousins, aunts, and uncles piled in. I was even a little bit scared, because she was crossing a line that couldn’t be uncrossed, entering in to an experience all by herself.  She’s my oldest and best friend; as different from me as the night from day but part of the gravitational force that keeps me tethered.  She will always be my younger sister but it feels as though she passed me that day, suddenly more grown-up with a new last name and a new role to play.

As the heat increased, we were driven indoors to sit at a long wooden table and eat lunch together under the ceiling fans running on high.  We laughed and talked and it struck me how seamlessly the day was progressing. I was glad that our two families got on so well but I realized it’s because we share the thing that’s most important.  I look forward to spending more time getting to know them in the future.

And then as quickly as the day began, it was over.  In flurry of well wishes and car doors, the bride and groom were off to their Jamaican honeymoon. We washed the dishes and took down the decorations and ate the leftover cupcakes. When the work was done, we sat on the cliff overlooking the lake and watched the evening sun dissolve into the horizon.  It was perfect and beautiful and I feel so lucky to have been a part of it all.

I love you, dear Eva and I'm so excited and happy for you.

For those of you who haven't already seen all my photos, they are posted here .  They are my own snapshots from the day.  The first and last photos in this post are two of the professional shots that I snagged from the photographer's website; the rest are currently only available to people who are Facebook friends with my sister.