Reflections on one day

Congrats, Stephanie & Estefan!

Meadowlark Botanical Gardens

Something clicked for me at Stephanie's wedding. When I say clicked, it's not that I came to know any new profound articulable insight about the importance of weddings — as a marker of a momentous occasion, a celebration of a loved one, a union of families. The clicking was simply a matter of feeling.

Perhaps it was seeing Daddy solemnly walk Stephanie down the path, from shore to the lake-surrounded gazebo. Perhaps it was seeing the adoration in flowergirl Leni's eyes as she looked up at Stephanie and followed her around all day. Perhaps it was seeing all of Estefan's brothers and sisters cheering for their youngest brother. Perhaps it was seeing Mommy overcome her reticence to speak English to hold an hours-long conversation with Estefan's mom. Perhaps it was basking in the intimate glow of the summer afternoon sun.

My sister, all grown up now. What a moment!

In some sense, that statement is absurd. Stephanie growing up did not happen in a day — she has been a years-long journey growing into the woman she is today. I imagine the afterparty at Bjorn's house to not be unlike the many family summer bbq's they have hosted there over the years. Stephanie and Estefan had already committed their hearts to one another long ago. They've been walking this path for years, and will continue for years to come. The wedding was but one expression in one moment of the unfolding continuum they have been embedded in.

Nothing happened on the day of the wedding. But it still felt like everything. Like the end of an era, and the start of a new. To focus on one day in their story feels arbitrary, because it is. To focus on just one day in their story feels important, because it is.

Congratulations, Stephanie and Estefan! We love you very much.