Wedding Music

I've just left you
Sound asleep on the couch
We need stuff from Sam's
So that's where I'm headed
But first I need some traveling music
I kick out the CD that's in there
And put it in its case
Now to find something else
Searching through the CDs in the console
I come across one
Labeled 'Wedding Music'
And I wonder which one it might be
Since you made about five or six CDs
For the wedding
I pop it in the player
And back out of the driveway
I'm sitting at the stop sign
At the top of the hill waiting on traffic
When the music finally
Begins to play
And I'm taken quite by surprise
It actually is our wedding music
Still waiting on traffic
I listen to the music
It's only the first song
But I begin to feel it
It's the music that opened the ritual
The music of the first processional
It's not even our song
But still it affects me
My throat tightens
And a tear starts to rise
My mind jumps back in time
To the sunny afternoon
Of the rehearsal
When I stood on the hill
In your sister's yard
As the very same song played
Overcome with emotions
That our wedding day was almost here

Now I'm trying to drive
With tears in my eyes
And a lump in my throat
As the second song starts to play
I shake my head at the memory
Of still standing on the hill
In your sister's yard
And how I felt the moment
Our music first played
Prompted to move by the
Beckoning hand of your sister
The High Priestess
I took a few steps knowing
I'd see you in just a few seconds
And tomorrow you'd be dressed up
In your purple and black leathers
I was sobbing uncontrollably
A few more steps
And there you were
All smiles, the happiest
I think I've ever seen you
Then your eyes met mine
And I watched your face change
As you finally saw my tears
And I heard you say, “Aww, baby”
A few more steps and we finally
Reached the bottom of the hill
I felt your arms tight around me
You kissed me and asked if I was okay
And if they were happy tears
To which I could only nod
My head in the affirmative

I exit the highway as
The third song begins to play
And I'm amazed at how long
The second song actually was
I'm glad we decided
To have it repeat softly
During the ceremony
It added a comforting ambiance
At times I'd hear it
But it wasn't loud enough
To be distracting or intrusive

The intro of the third song is a bit long
I reach over and turn the volume up
A huge smile covers my face
As I recall the last words
The High Priestess spoke
“Go forth as wives”
Still sitting at the red light
I think of how the wedding ended
We were the first to leave the circle
We walked into the kitchen
You stopped and turned towards me
We wrapped our arms around each other
It was all over and I began to weep
Finally, I had you in my arms
I realized at that moment
That even though we'd held hands
For most of the ceremony
It wasn't enough of a connection for me
Holding you was what I wanted to do
From the first moment I saw you
At the beginning of the ceremony
My only regret is that I didn't stop
And take a moment for us
A moment to just hold you
But I didn't, I saw you
And we both smiled at each other
You took my hand
And we headed for the circle
You were almost pulling me
You seemed to be in a hurry
To get the show on the road
I still wish I'd stopped you though
At the time I didn't know
You'd been rushing around
Right before the ceremony
To bring everything up
From the basement where we'd
Left it the night before
But the rain just hadn't let up
And everyone had rushed
To prepare the living room
For the ceremony
I just wish we'd have taken
A moment beforehand
That would have given you a break
Because you didn't get a chance
To calm down until after
The wedding was over

As the song's tempo picks up
The music pulls my thoughts
From my one and only regret
Back to our wedding day
And to the rest of the recessional
Our Best Women followed us out
Then the Maiden and the High Priestess
Another smile comes
As I imagine the Maiden
When she left the circle
She bounced by us dancing merrily
To the happy beat of the music
Evidence of her nickname Bunny Rabbit
Once our hug finally ended
Your other sister who was
Also your Best Woman
Was standing beside us waiting
I figured she would hug you first
But to my surprise
She reached for me instead
I just fell into her open arms
Feeling her love and acceptance
When the hug broke
I got a good look at her
And asked her if she was okay
Her eyes were as red as mine
Obviously she'd been affected
By the ceremony as much as I had

There are only three songs on the CD
When I first realized what the music was
I thought after the last song was over
I'd pop it out and put in another one
But I don't, I can't
When the last song ends
I start them over again
And the first one still gets to me
I do love the songs you picked out
They weren't traditional wedding songs
But they were absolutely perfect
They were all instrumentals
No words were needed
The love, the commitment
And the happiness
Was there just the same
And just as powerful for me today
As it was on our wedding day

5.24.05