My Sister, a COVID-19 Bride (I)
It was about two weeks into the work-from-home protocol, sometime near the end of March, that the my mom called and casually mentioned that my sister was probably going to postpone her May wedding.
To this day I’m not sure if it was casual because my mom is a seasoned stress veteran having raised five children, or if it’s because I have a proclivity for drama (who, me?) and she was trying to help me keep calm and carry on. Maybe it’s both. I’ll spare you the full meltdown details. As I was running the scenarios in my head of new plans for nuptials, an update came through – they’re going to elope. In two weeks. Immediate family only. We’ve got some high riskers in our crew as well as a newborn nephew, so this elopement would be strictly business. It was even decreed that there would be no hugging.
No hugging? At my sister’s wedding? Please excuse me while I light myself on fire.
The elopement was hosted at our church. My dad officiated. My other sister and I opened our childhood dream of Frenchie’s Salon and executed the duties of bridal glam squad. My husband offered the processional ambiance via acoustic guitar. I covered photography + videography. The groom’s mother made the bouquet. Amazon provided the wedding gown and Facebook provided the live stream.
But, there was no hugging. My mom had to FaceTime in to bridal beautification, a memory of togetherness from her other daughters’ weddings that is precious to us all. My dad didn’t walk his girl down the aisle, I still cry about that when it comes to mind. And after the couple said I do and kissed, we packed them up in their car and sent them on their way, not even a meal to be shared in celebration.
But you know what? It turned out pretty perfect. Of the three sisters, Abbey is definitely the “right” one for this to happen to. She’s tougher than hell and more graceful than swan lake – you would have thought this was their plan all along. The whole thing feels like a fever dream, but I know it’s really a coronavirus nightmare.
May we never forget the drive-by birthday parades, FaceTime family reunions, early morning zoom meetings, and live-streamed elopements that proved to us all, the juice of these lemons life handed us is worth the squeeze after all. It’s a lemonade life.
