You May Now Kiss the Bride

“You may now kiss the bride.”

Thus ended the whirlwind romance of the past two months, and thus began my life with my new wife, Robynne. Our lives were now joined. We were partners in that legal and mystical way that only marriage can create.

Though we had met briefly at a social gathering more than a year before, we did not speak during the interim until a couple of months ago. Now, we were getting married!

Most of her family was at the wedding. There were siblings, in-laws, nieces, nephews, and other kids. Sadly, our parents have all died, so they were there only in spirit.

We had BBQ, visited, played games, and said our vows. As they say, “A good time was had by all.”

We used the traditional vows of about 100 years ago: “Do you, Robynne, take this man, Steven, to be thy lawfully wedded husband? Do you promise to love, honor, and obey him, and to keep him in sickness and in health; and, forsaking all others, keep thee only unto him, so long as ye both shall live?”

The “obey” part drew an open-mouthed gasp from her sister who was standing next to her. There was an audible surprise from the crowd, as well. Those who know Robynne said she would never agree to “obey” anyone.

At the appropriate moment, she said, “I do."

Our marriage and partnership began. I’m committed to this marriage lasting “until death do us part,” like most marriages of 100 years ago.

BTW, she is taking my name, and will now be called Mrs. Robynne Alexander. That's another tradition we're respecting and honoring. Maybe all the traditional stuff doesn't matter; maybe it does. We'll see. Either way, I enjoy the "kiss the bride" tradition.