And so marriage begins...

Last Friday, Sam and I went to a wedding. It was a little different than some of the other weddings I have been to in the past. At this wedding, every where I turned, I saw people I know and love. At this wedding, I was not allowed to help with the serving of the food, or stick around for the clean up. The wedding was not quite like I had imagined it would be either. Often, weddings seem to take a long time, and you might get some longwinded preacher who drags out the message into a sermon. But this wedding flew by. It seemed to be all over in a matter of minutes, and then it was on to the food, the speeches, and the cutting of the cake. Not much later, it was all over. This wedding gave me a whole new appreciation for other weddings.
From my vantage point at the wedding, I was unable to see the way the bride glowed as she walked down the aisle on her daddy's arm. But I had a perfect view of the groom and the love that shone from his eyes. He only had eyes for me as I walked down the aisle to join him. I could see the depth of the seriousness with which he took his vow to love me as Christ loved the church. I could see the joy and wonder in his eyes as I vowed to love him and submit to his leadership always. I could feel his excitement as we were announced for the first time as Mr. and Mrs. Samuel Van Dyke. What a special day it was and what a memorable wedding it will forever be in my mind.
Now the marriage has begun, and it has been wonderful. I am enjoying every moment of being married, and I have to say that it is much easier taking care of my wonderful husband when I dont have to leave and go home every night.
For those of you who were unable to be at the wedding and have been wondering where the photos are, I will have a link to the photos as soon as we recieve them.