To his credit, Richard put on a brave face and said goodbye to Amy and Jody (poor Amy was losing everybody), John and his Healthcare Store crew, and his beloved Hulen Street shops to follow his wife to the east coast to rebuild his network. Fortunately for Richard, he’d never met a stranger, and the citizens of Winston-Salem had no idea who was about to hit town.
While Richard and Della were juggling relocating their lives, Leslie, I, and her family were busy preparing for our country wedding. It was no small undertaking. We’d lined up a fireworks display for after the reception; a massive tent to cover the tables and food; musicians to perform before, during, and after the ceremony; a delicious catered feast; an assortment of cakes from Muddy’s Bake Shop; and about a hundred guests using GPS to find the remote house in the country.
Yet it was the little details that took much of our time and made the biggest difference. This is where Leslie’s creativity really shone. She had her mother, an excellent artist, draw a picture of a tree, and then they framed it and set it out with ink pads for guests to leave their thumbprints (along with their signatures) on the branches of the tree. This was how they signed in, which I thought was clever. Her mom also wrote out the entire menu in calligraphy on a framed chalkboard.
The ceremony was in the front yard off to the side, so Leslie’s dad built a gate through which everyone could enter. On top of the gate we spelled out in sticks the Bible verse John 1:16: “From the fullness of His grace, we have all received one blessing after another.”
Under the tent, each table had milk glass and silver pitchers that Leslie had accumulated over time, along with vintage plates we’d rented. Croquet and horseshoes were set up on the lawn. All four of my groomsmen, Bryan, Todd, Tripp, and my old friend, Brian, who’d grown up with me at our church in D.C., wore matching blue-and-green striped socks and ties, while Leslie’s four bridesmaids, Elisabeth, Emily, Dorothy, and her cousin, Opal, wore matching ankle-breaker tall wedges that Elisabeth had picked for them to teeter in across the uneven yard. Emily almost nosedived wobbling her way down the aisle.
My two significant contributions to the festivities were I picked the day and the yard. I researched the previous five years of weather for that month and chose the weekend that had consistently been the nicest. Also, Leslie had considered holding the wedding in the back yard, but I insisted the front yard offered more space and far less of her dad’s scrap metal. In the end, the weather was perfect that weekend, and the front yard was a much cleaner choice. I was quite proud of myself but far more relieved. I’d been studying weather forecasts every few hours all week.
Jim, my old youth pastor who’d worked with Brian and me many years before, traveled to perform the ceremony. My parents came down from Cape Cod, as well as Gordon and Andy with their families. My other brother, David, wasn’t able to attend, along with a few other old friends who couldn’t untie themselves from previous commitments.
Unfortunately, this included Richard and Della.
They were literally right in the middle of their move that weekend and had to turn in their truck and supplies by Sunday. It was too far out of their way to make it in time. I understood, and when I talked to them on the phone, I assured them it was okay and they shouldn’t feel an ounce of guilt. But I still missed them and wished they could’ve seen me get married, as I’d watched them. Della could’ve even sung “You Are So Beautiful” while we waited patiently at the altar, for a little payback.
Leslie cried as we exchanged vows, and I managed to make it through without stumbling my lines. She looked gorgeous, and the entire affair felt surreal, like I was sitting on the front porch watching it unfold. Yet it was really happening, and nobody objected to halt the proceedings before Jim made it official. We were married.
Five years earlier, marriage had been near the bottom of my to-do list. I wasn’t ready. I had nothing to offer. What had changed in that time? Was I more successful? No. Were my prospects now limitless? Hardly.
But was I the same person who’d seen the notice in the break room for a tutor, and then met the man with cerebral palsy who would forever change my life? Not even close. My years with Richard had shifted my course and reshaped me, and as Leslie and I walked up the aisle holding hands and smiling at everyone, I wished my old boss were here to see it, without his horn. He would’ve probably tried to escort us out until Della locked his wheels. It would’ve made for a great photo.
As I looked around at my parents and family—and my new family—and all the friends gathered, I felt grateful to have made it here, past my best line of defense, all the way to the bottom where the longest safety line couldn’t stretch and I could finally see. I felt home, at last. And I couldn’t help but chuckle that all of this had started with a part-time job I didn’t even want, yet needed more than I ever could’ve imagined.
MR. PERSISTENT
MR. PERSISTENT
MR. PERSISTENT
MR. PERSISTENT
THE OUTSIDER
THE OUTSIDER
THE OUTSIDER
THE OUTSIDER
THE OUTSIDER
THE ELEPHANT AWAKENS
THE ELEPHANT AWAKENS
THE ELEPHANT AWAKENS
THE ELEPHANT AWAKENS
THE ELEPHANT AWAKENS
PROTECTOR OF THE DISHEARTENED
PROTECTOR OF THE DISHEARTENED
PROTECTOR OF THE DISHEARTENED
PROTECTOR OF THE DISHEARTENED
GO
GO
GO
A SECOND CHANCE FOR THREE
A SECOND CHANCE FOR THREE
A SECOND CHANCE FOR THREE
A SECOND CHANCE FOR THREE
DOWN FROM THE LEDGE
DOWN FROM THE LEDGE
DOWN FROM THE LEDGE
DOWN FROM THE LEDGE
DOWN FROM THE LEDGE
THE QUEST CONTINUES
THE QUEST CONTINUES
THE QUEST CONTINUES
THE QUEST CONTINUES
THE QUEST CONTINUES
ABANDONING THE UNSINKABLE BROKEN BOAT
ABANDONING THE UNSINKABLE BROKEN BOAT
ABANDONING THE UNSINKABLE BROKEN BOAT
ABANDONING THE UNSINKABLE BROKEN BOAT
ABANDONING THE UNSINKABLE BROKEN BOAT
ABANDONING THE UNSINKABLE BROKEN BOAT
ADVENTURES IN KNITTING
ADVENTURES IN KNITTING
ADVENTURES IN KNITTING
ADVENTURES IN KNITTING
ADVENTURES IN KNITTING
ADVENTURES IN KNITTING
Richard, full speed ahead as always.
Richard with his bride, Della, and honored guest Troy.
Michael standing alongside his dad at the wedding.
Me, lost in my musical moment as Della walked down the aisle.
A SAFE HAVEN
A SAFE HAVEN
A SAFE HAVEN
A SAFE HAVEN
A SAFE HAVEN
A SAFE HAVEN
THE BOTTOM OF THE UNKNOWN
THE BOTTOM OF THE UNKNOWN
THE BOTTOM OF THE UNKNOWN
THE BOTTOM OF THE UNKNOWN
THE BOTTOM OF THE UNKNOWN
HOW TO HOLD A FORK
HOW TO HOLD A FORK
HOW TO HOLD A FORK
HOW TO HOLD A FORK
HOW TO HOLD A FORK
HOW TO HOLD A FORK
HOW TO HOLD A FORK
UNDER THE DOG PILE
UNDER THE DOG PILE
UNDER THE DOG PILE
UNDER THE DOG PILE
UNDER THE DOG PILE
> UNDER THE DOG PILE
UNDER THE DOG PILE
SOMETHING IMPORTANT
SOMETHING IMPORTANT
SOMETHING IMPORTANT
SOMETHING IMPORTANT
SOMETHING IMPORTANT
THE SOUTH SHALL RISE AND HUG
THE SOUTH SHALL RISE AND HUG
THE SOUTH SHALL RISE AND HUG
THE SOUTH SHALL RISE AND HUG
A PART TO PLAY
A PART TO PLAY
A PART TO PLAY
A PART TO PLAY
THE GREATNESS OF JUNK
THE GREATNESS OF JUNK
THE GREATNESS OF JUNK
THE GREATNESS OF JUNK
FINDING THE FISHING PIER
FINDING THE FISHING PIER
FINDING THE FISHING PIER
FINDING THE FISHING PIER
FINDING THE FISHING PIER
A PART-TIME JOB
A PART-TIME JOB
Above: With Bryan at my wedding.
Right: Michael, Richard, and Della enjoying a dip in the pool.
Leslie and I, now happily married parents of two.
Life at 8 mph Page 20
