When my husband and I celebrated our twenty-fourth anniversary,
we went out to eat dinner. On the way home, my oldest daughter texted me asking
what time we would return. I gave her an estimate and asked her why. She just
sent me a smiley face so I knew she and the other two young’ns were up to
something.
I had told her that after we came home from our
date we would open up my wedding dress. The dress had been professionally
cleaned and preserved after our wedding. It had been stored in a box underneath my bed for the past twenty-four years. I thought perhaps
the smiley face text pertained to opening the dress. She and I planned
to cut a piece of satin and lace from it and use it to wrap around her bridal
bouquet. Her wedding was only two weeks away.
When we arrived home, our three children greeted us at
the door. They were all dressed up, which is no small feat for our
eight-year-old son. He considers dressy clothes scratchy and every Sunday
morning is an ordeal. However, his sisters said he got all excited about
surprising us and didn’t complain once. The girls looked beautiful as they
ushered us into the house.
Music filled the room. They had found our wedding
video and had it playing as we walked into the den. They must have rounded up
every candle in the house (including all the tea lights) and had those lit.
Pink roses from our rose bush adorned the coffee table. Chocolate muffins and
sparkling grape juice awaited us. Also, there was a unique design of dominoes
at the fireplace. Evidently, our son took great pleasure in diligently setting
up two heart shapes, each encircling a tea light candle. He couldn’t find the
tea light candle holders, but the little silver casing around the candles looked precious to me.
We all sat down and watched the wedding video. Comments
about the eighties' hairstyles came from the girls. Comments about who had hair
then, and doesn’t now, came from my hubby.
Watching the video brought back sweet memories of that
day. My favorite part was when my husband sang to me during our wedding. He
still melts my heart when he sings.
The video ended and we enjoyed our muffins and grape
juice. Then, the girls and I went to pull the box from underneath the bed.
I warned them that preserving a dress was risky.
Because it was sealed up, how did I know they did a good job preserving it? Had
it turned yellow? For that matter, how did I know they even sealed the right
dress in there? The dry cleaner that preserved it went out of business long ago.
Pulling the box out, I brushed off the dust. We pulled
the packaging tape off. Opening the box, we saw another box inside. We removed
the tape from that one and pulled out yet another box! This box was trimmed in
gold so we knew it must be the one containing the dress. We lifted the lid and
there it was—my beautiful wedding dress.
The youngest daughter begged to try it on first since
her sister would be wearing her own wedding dress in just a few weeks. It fit
her and she hurried out to show her daddy. She looked gorgeous.
I tried on the veil,
because I knew if the dress fit her, it certainly wasn’t going to fit me. Yeah!
The veil still fits! (hee…hee…)
Then, the oldest tried it on. It fit her beautifully,
too.
It was a fun and special night. We have sweet and
thoughtful kids. We're so thankful for them. It has always been our prayer that
God sends them all wonderful, Christian mates.
Surprisingly, my wedding dress stayed well preserved. Part of that big bow on the derriere will make a nice wrap for my daughter’s bridal bouquet. There’s plenty for the other kids’ weddings if they decide they want to use it in some way. I don’t know if the dress would have lasted a “lifetime” as stated but overall it was well preserved.
Each of the boxes had interesting messages on them. They
made me think of preserving a marriage for a lifetime.
The first box was labeled:
 |
| Fragile, Handle With Care- Top Freight Only |
A marriage is something to be treasured, held close, and protected.
A spouse’s heart is fragile and should be handled with the
utmost care. A marriage becomes strong by building it on the foundation of
Christ.
Top freight means the item is so delicate it is placed
on top of everything else, less it suffers damage. A marriage should take
top priority if it is to be healthy and happy and if it is to last a lifetime.
The second box was labeled:
 |
| Lifetime of Loveliness-A Thing of Beauthy is a Joy Forever |
Well, you and I know this dress is not going to last forever. No matter how beautiful a “thing” is, it isn’t going to last forever.
True beauty shines through by the Spirit within. I believe this is the kind of beauty that lasts forever.
“Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.” Proverbs 31:30
 |
| to forever cherish...your lovely wedding gown preserved for a lifetime of happy memories |
God presented me with a wonderful man, not a perfect man, but a man who
loves the Lord. Because of our growing love for Christ, I think we will forever
cherish our marriage. I look forward to a “lifetime of happiness” and “loveliness.”
“Finally, brothers and sisters,
whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right,
whatever is pure, whatever is lovely,
whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—
think about such things.”
Philippians 4:8
