Her WEDDING.
I really couldn't resist saying something about or to both of them, which is good because Noelle said I didn't have to. I had a whole spiel, but I spared hungry guests from me sharing. Those of you reading need not feel so lucky. Here in black and white is the rest of it (or something like it):
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Thank you so much for giving me a voice on your special day to try to convey to you what you mean to every person in this room and to me. I don't know that I have the words.
As a matter of fact, you should all know, I initially refused this position. Noelle called me in the hours after Chris proposed and said, "Okay, so, I got asked a big question tonight, but now I have a question for you!" I said, "Okay..." not know what to expect. "Will you be my maid of honor?!" And I said "No!"
"Did you really just say no to me?!"
"Well. Not no, no. Just... me? really?"
I couldn't believe that she would immediately think of me to best honor her through this entire process. But the honor was all mine. And in typical Noelle fashion, she had more confidence in me than I knew to have in myself. She does that for people. And she takes that skill into a career full of treating people like they are good enough just the way they are while she equips them to be better than they knew the could be because she saw the potential in them first.
Noelle and I weren't supposed to be roommates. Statistically speaking, she had about 1,000 profiles to choose from when she decided to approach mine on facebook. So the math was against us. More importantly, we shouldn't have been roommates because we both lied on the roommate questionnaire. She said she loved movies and me? I wrote that I like to grocery shop in my free time. Still, despite the fact that Noelle falls asleep in every movie she starts ever(unless it's How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days) and I let things mold in the fridge before I head to the store, our friendship survived the lies and roommates we were.
The first time I heard of Chris was the week after Noelle's 18th birthday, our freshman year. He missed her birthday and to make up for it, he sent her internet flowers for days. Thus we at UMW dubbed him "Intro" and he remained in our minds that desperate guy madly in love with Noelle. It apparently worked for him.
The first time I met Chris was for Noelle's birthday sophomore year. He wanted to surprise her, so he flew in the day before, which happened to be my birthday. We texted back and forth to get her to the perfect spot to be surprised while I tried to act nonchalant over lunch with Noelle. Despite the absolute delight the entire weekend was, they both apologized multiple times to me for infringing on my birthday celebration (as. if.). It's that sort of consideration that makes them a couple you want to spend time with.
Probably my favorite moment of the entire relationship was the night before Chris proposed when he called to ask my opinion on this and that and to go through the plan with me one more time. Everything from which pants to wear or should he wear a jacket to where should the ring go to should there be music (I can now freely admit before friends and family that I actually thought Taylor Swift's "Love Story" was a good idea...) and was any of this a good idea at all. The one question he didn't ask was in regards to cologne, which he'd picked months in advance.
The next year presented its fair share of challenges for the happy couple. Distance gets in the way of planning a wedding and a life together. And Noelle and Chris had the tell-tale "let me call you back when I'm not so upset about this" moments any tried and true couple knows all too well. But there were also calls to say "I love you" and nighttime devotions to balance out the weight of life. Thus, it wasn't solely a year of challenge. Character marks those days, and it shows in their relationship today.
I'm not married, so my advice is scarce. But I encourage the two of you to find the older couples on the dance floor tonight and recognize that they didn't fall in love with each other's wrinkles and decrepit joints. Once upon a time they were two young people who looked at each other and believed they could do life better together than apart. My mom has a quote posted on our fridge at home referencing her very own Chris that says, "It takes a good husband to be better than none." That's what you are to Noelle, Chris. It's funny, but Noelle is an independent woman. So for her to say that she couldn't and wouldn't want to do life without you speaks directly to your character. That's what you'll be to her in 60 years, I know.
I challenge you to take the time at the weddings of friends and family in the future to dance-- at each step recommitting yourselves to the promise you made today. I know not every day you will feel like taking each other by the hand and twirling, but when there are dogs and kids to be fed, decisions to be made, bills to be paid, and career moves to be discussed, I hope you can remember tonight and the people in this room who came to dance in honor of you.
Thank you for the very distinct honor of watching your relationship happen from the front row. I feel like I speak for every person here when I say "I love and support your marriage."
________________________________________________
I never would've actually said all of that in front of everyone (and given credence to this idea that I must speak for 15 minutes every time someone gives me a platform) but all of these things came to mind when I was thinking up what to say as we fell asleep Friday night-- the last sleepover.
What a fun weekend! I couldn't believe how many times I actually stopped to remind myself to take in that very moment, and so I have so many vivid memories where I expected it all to simply be a blur.
Memories with these people,
and these
Oh! And these.
(who did this:) (with some help)
Back to the point:
More than anything I'm excited. Because now they are in an entirely new chapter. It's chapter where they belong and I can't wait to hear about and be encouraged by it. I'm already encouraged because God has shown Himself faithful through the entire process-- for the Ulmans, yes.
But also to this MOH, who was pleasantly surprised by God's ability to bless in completely new and different ways-- a new roommate, an entirely different living situation, a new job, a closer relationship with Him. God just keeps going, making the seasons of life incomparable, as all of them exist to point to Him-- the attributes that make Him God and not me. Praise the Lord.
And given what He's done so far, I can't wait. For the rest of it.
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