Made of Honor

by Marilyn Griffith

  Daddy smoothed his worn Stacey Adams shoes over the white sand. “By the time y’all get around to getting married, I might not be anymore for this world—”

  “Daddy, please.” I tried to make the words sound frivolous, but they choked in my throat. I hadn’t expected my stroke or Mama’s death. Though Daddy seemed healthy, he was getting older. And what about me? Just because I’d made a good recovery and some lifestyle changes, every day was a gift. An urgency washed through me. Adrian and I would marry as soon as the plane touched down in Illinois.

  “Seriously, moppet. All our days are numbered. Who would have ever thought that your brother and sister would be here like this? That you and Adrian would end up together after all? Just don’t be foolish and wait too long. That’s all I’m saying.”

  “We won’t, Dad. We hear you,” Adrian spoke before I could find my voice. I waited to see if he’d tell about our plans at the end of the month…well, as far as Adrian knew. I’d be marrying that brothah at the airport if I could swing it.

  I stroked Dad’s wrinkled hand, extending from the cuff of his favorite suit, one Mama had picked out for him for Jordan’s graduation. After all this time, he wore it well. “We’re getting married soon, Daddy. We hear you.”

  The minister nodded, but didn’t say a word. Maybe those “Jamaica, no problem” commercials were accurate. In the States, the preacher would have been long gone by now.

  My father nodded back at the older man, stopping short at the rose-covered arbor. “I hope God hears me, too.” He turned his face to the sky. “Lord, they’re all here. All my children. I thank you for bringing us together and for saving my baby’s life. And whenever these two get married, whether I’m there or not, I give my blessing and acknowledge Adrian as what he’s always been to me…my son.”

  Adrian released my hand, took a few steps and gathered my father’s frail body into his arms. His wet eyes were fixed on me as he spoke to my father. “Thank you, Dad, for those words. And for…” Jordan, Rochelle, Tracey and I closed a circle around them.

  “For being a father to me when my father died, and even before, for opening your house to me, for feeding me, for loving me and most of all for forgiving me.”

  The music played on softly. The minister nodded as though it was this that we’d come for and his job was only to watch.

  Tears played down my face. Forgiveness? Had Adrian gone to my father and told him about what had happened with him and Dahlia? Or worse, with him and me? I bristled at the thought of it, but knowing Adrian, that was exactly what he’d done.

  My father pulled away and straightened his tie. “You hurt me, son, I can’t lie. I promised Nella I’d take care of these girls, you know? But I can’t hold a thing against you, knowing all that God has forgiven me. Welcome to the family.”

  God? Daddy had slipped back into my life at the worst time. All my tracts had been thrown away and my witnessing tools long forgotten. I’d stopped trying to convert him and just loved him like before. Had God, in His lavish grace, seen fit to save my father while I was out to lunch? Though I prayed it was true, I knew it probably wasn’t that simple. But we had a place to start. Dad’s last statement alone was worth this trip.

  Adrian took his place at my side, making no effort to wipe his tears. Tears that I’d seldom seen. Tears I longed to kiss away. Tracey sobbed softly. Rochelle and Jordan stood shoulder-to-shoulder, both wiping their eyes.

  A stem of one of the roses from the arbor pressed into my side. I took a breath and waited for the pain, but there was none. I was dressed in satin again, but this time there were no thorns. Warmth blew in off the water, tugging the tulle off my shoulders.

  “Are we ready?” The minister finally spoke with an echo much the same as the steel drum.

  I nodded. Adrian stepped back. My heart broke. Suddenly, I wanted more than me and Jesus. I wanted Adrian by my side, too. “Stay,” I whispered to him. He pivoted quickly, retaking his spot.

  At my nod, the minister produced the anointing oil I’d prepared and broke open the seal. He smiled at the pineapple-jasmine scent that escaped the bottle. The best of me and the best of Adrian. Peace.

  He touched it to my forehead. “Do you, Dana Ann Rose—”

  A voice I later recognized as my own broke the moment. “Wait!” An awkward pause slipped between us as I gathered my resolve. I bit my lip. “Can you do it again, only for me and him?” My thumb pointed to Adrian. “Maybe we can make it legal when we get back.” Waiting weeks for a honeymoon wouldn’t be easy, but this was torture.

  Adrian closed his eyes as if saying a silent prayer. He turned to Ryan, who waved a folder—had he had that in his suit or what?—in the air. He traced my eyebrow with his finger. “I know I said I’d stay out of it, but I meddled a little, just in case.”

  I smiled. I knew his nerdiness would come in handy sometime. “What did you do?”

  He made a cute face. “Since you got the Wedding Moon package, I went ahead and submitted our marriage license and birth certificates to the travel agent. She set up everything for a valid wedding in case you changed your mind. You’d paid for it already, after all.”

  My father clapped his hands together and looked up at the sky. “I knew the boy had some sense.”

  “It’s all here,” Ryan said. “And I checked with the travel agency and government here. I’m a notary public and can sign the Illinois paperwork, as well. You’ll be legally married after the ceremony.”

  The minister smiled as though he dealt with such crazy people every day. “What do you say, young man? Is this what you want?”

  “I say Hallelujah. Let’s do this thing.” A beautiful, crooked smile danced across Adrian’s lips.

  I was still back on him bringing the marriage license. “How did you know?” I whispered.

  He kissed my forehead to the applause of the crowd. “I didn’t know, but I hoped.” He reached into his pocket again, this time for two rings, mine a diamond cluster with a middle stone as big as a sugar cube. He’d lost his mind, but I wasn’t complaining. The inscription drained any shred of resolve I had left. Thank God for my big fingers. I needed every word.

  For Dana, Made of Honor, Bride of Christ and Wife of Mine.

  The words blurred before me. I pressed my face into his shirt. This was my family, but he was going to make me cry like a baby in front of them. So many times, I’d passed the ball, but not today. This was my shot.

  “All right, preacher.” It was Daddy’s voice, overflowing with contentment. “Don’t pay these two any mind. Let’s get on with it.”

  Adrian nodded, taking my hand.

  My husband-to-be gave me a little wink. Ryan stood near the minister with his seal—had he hid that in his shoe? Adrian pulled a napkin from the plane out of his pocket and handed it to the pastor.

  The old man unfolded it and began to read. “Do you, Dana Ann Rose and Adrian Luke Norrell take this Jesus to be the God of your lives, the Love of your souls and the Head of your marriage, whether sick or well, poor or rich, distressed or blessed, for as long as you both shall live?”

  They were my vows, the ones for my service with God, adapted to include both of us.

  Adrian tucked my arm under his and stared into my eyes. Our voices flowed together like a melody. “We do.”

  The preacher took hold his makeshift pulpit. “Do all those here pledge as witnesses, commit to pray for Dana and Adrian, to encourage them in times of despair, to correct them in love when needed and to forgive them when they fail?”

  “We do.” The voices rang out stronger than the numbers. Daddy’s and Jordan’s deep voices formed the foundation. Shemika took the high top note, with my aunt and cousins mixing in. How beautiful their voices sounded.

  “I now pronounce you man, maidservant and maker. Married to each other and to an Almighty Husband who’ll return soon for a church without wrinkle—and has His own iron to get things straight. Delight in Him always. You may kiss the bride.” The old man smiled in satisfaction.


  The reggae band struck an upbeat rendition of “Holy, Holy, Holy” as Adrian took my face in his hands and kissed me until my toes curled in my sandals. Austin and Tracey’s laughter and Josh and Trevor’s whistles melted into the background as I accepted my husband’s loving kiss. I smoothed his bald head, returning his kiss. The truth of the moment crashed against my mind. Adrian was my husband.

  As we broke our lip-lock, a white bird settled on the top of the arbor. The dove I’d paid an extra fifty dollars to have released during the ceremony and forgotten about. My eyes again blurred with tears. The waters of my heart had finally receded. It was time to emerge from where I’d hidden for so long. It was time for peace. For love.

  I released my husband’s hand and sank to the sand, arms outstretched to heaven. “Thank you. For everything.” When I gathered my hands into my lap, unable to rise, just as he had that day at Tracey’s wedding, Adrian gathered me into his arms, stopping only to pluck a rose from the arch. He slipped the stem into my hair then bent down for my bouquet, a circular braid of pink roses and baby’s breath—I didn’t want to injure anyone. He hurled it over his shoulder.

  I struggled to look around his muscular arms. He turned in time for me to see Dahlia miss the catch and the ring of flowers hit Rochelle square in the forehead. I laughed through my tears.

  Ryan ran behind us with his notary stamp and a pen. Adrian hurriedly signed his name. I scribbled mine just as quickly.

  Adrian handed the paper back. “Is that it? Are we legal? I almost forgot that part.”

  Already walking away, Ryan laughed. “Yes, that’s it. I’ll fax it now and file the original at the courthouse. I’ve got to get back, the next ceremony is starting.”

  I poked my head up from the crook of Adrian’s arm. “The next ceremony?”

  Ryan nodded. “Yeah. Dahlia’s going to do that commitment to Jesus thing since you didn’t. She wanted to, evidently, but didn’t want you to think she was trying to push in on your thing. The minister is down with it, so…” His voice faded into the wind.

  Funny, when we planned all this, I had it backward. This was supposed to be Dahlia’s honeymoon and it turned out to be mine. It was going to be the memorial of my commitment to Christ and it ended up being Dahlia’s fresh start with God instead. When God says that His thoughts are not our thoughts, believe it. This is how it should be.

  “Thanks, man!” Adrian shouted, then waved to Ryan as he rejoined the others. As much as Adrian loved my family, he didn’t even discuss the option of sticking around. In fact, he broke into a jog towards the vans we’d rode over in. He kissed me again before depositing me into the passenger’s seat of the first one we came to and bent over, feeling for the key under the mat.

  I swallowed. “Now what?”

  He looked up with an intensity that made me shiver. “Now, dear wife, I take you home. And this time, I’m coming in to stay.”

  DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

  As the book opens, Dana has mixed feelings about her best friend’s wedding. When her instincts turn out to be correct, she prays for Tracey and tries to help her sort out her feelings but realizes she wants her own marriage to be different. Have you ever known ahead of time that a relationship might not be the best idea for you or for a friend? Did you go through with it anyway? What happened?

  Dana, Tracey and Rochelle are some of the last members of the Sassy Sistahood e-mail list. If you had a chance to join a group like this, would you? If so, which of the three friends would you probably be closest to? Whom did you identity with most?

  Dana’s sister has done some hurtful things to her, but now Dahlia’s trying to live for Christ. Would you struggle with having someone like her back in your life or would you freely forgive Dahlia, knowing that God will transform her as she grows as a Christian? Did Dana do well in how she handled this situation? If not, what could she have done better?

  Austin, the local news reporter who visits Dana’s shop, becomes a new and unexpected friend. Though the two women seem to have little in common at first, as they spend more time together, they realize they have much to share. Have you ever made an “instant friend” like Austin? Are you still friends with that person today?

  Dana spends a lot of time thinking about the past with Adrian and struggles at first to consider a future with him. Though her memory of him stealing her business idea turns out to be false, something much worse turns out to be true. Have you ever reached a turning point when you had to let go of the past to grab on to the future? What did you decide? Do you think that Dana made the right decision with Adrian?

  Dana’s relationships with her father and brother start out rocky at best. Yet, in the end, Jordan and her dad are there for her and support her. Have you ever had to rethink your feelings on someone in our family? Has someone you know made a great turn around in their life? Did you find their new life hard to accept?

  Though Dana’s goal is to make products to help women relax, she stresses herself out to do it, to the point of endangering her own health. Have you ever been so concerned for others that you couldn’t find time to take care of yourself? Do you struggle to balance work, family and faith? If so, what is one thing you can do this week to relieve some stress?

  Throughout the story, Dana struggles with her weight, although she ends the story at the same weight she started at. At the end of the tale, however, she is healthier and feels better about herself. What do you think made the difference in her attitude?

  Dana’s business started out as a hobby. Is there something you’ve always wanted to try or learn about, but you’ve never had the time? If your resources were unlimited, what kind of craft or hobby wold you try? If the funds for a business startup were at your disposal, what kind of business would you be interested in?

  The verse at the front of this book is Psalms 139:14 “I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made…” The return of her brother and old boyfriend, starting a new business and almost losing her life certainly showed Dana what she was made of. In the end, she was both stronger and weaker than she’d thought. Have circumstances in your life revealed what’s in your heart? Were you surprised by what you saw? If not, what do you think made the difference?

  STEEPLE HILL BOOKS

  ISBN: 978-1-4268-5426-2

  MADE OF HONOR

  Copyright © 2006 by Marilynn Griffith

  All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the editorial office, Steeple Hill Books, 233 Broadway, New York, NY 10279 U.S.A.

  This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, incidents and places are the products of the author’s imagination, and are not to be construed as real. While the author was inspired in part by actual events, none of the characters in the book is based on an actual person. Any resemblance to persons living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional.

  This edition published by arrangement with Steeple Hill Books.

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