Turning a Corner

Yesterday, Vova and I had our church wedding or crowning (венчание) as it is properly termed. You might ask why we waited until I was nearly seven months' pregnant. The reasons were not only personal, but beyond our control. We had a small (only the two of us and the civil celebrant) civil ceremony about a year and a half ago. Yesterday was a day for which we've been waiting for a very long time.

The whole thing was nothing short of a miracle and couldn't have gone better. For starters, everything went off without a hitch, (except for the required one) even though we planned and executed this operation in less than three months.

Since we've been waiting for this for so long, the idea of the wedding had been floating in my head like some sort of vague, abstract concept. But then the bells began to ring as I walked to the entrance of the church. I felt so proud when I saw Vova's back, standing ramrod straight in his dress uniform just inside the open doors of the church. As I took my place next to him, I thought, "This is really happening." From that point on, I couldn't stop smiling.

The road to this point in our lives,separately and as a couple, has been a bumpy one with a lot of twists and turns. Fortunately, we have a lot of true friends who helped us and loved us through the tough times. It was an unspeakable joy to have so many of them with us yesterday. Everywhere I looked, I saw the face of a person I was glad to see. Things went so well not because we planned everything perfectly, but because our friends smoothed out the wrinkles. Our friend, Jason, who owns and runs Orchard Market and Cafe in Baltimore, surprised us by contributing a delicious traditional Iranian wedding dish to the reception buffet.

My wonderful sister, Stacy, also helped everything go smoothly. Since we were doing this on a budget, I made and decorated the cake. I probably could've done it without her help and moral support, but I'm glad I didn't have to.

This may be the first big event in my life that I've actually been able to enjoy. With all the others, there was so much stress and anxiety leading up to them that when they finally happened, I was just glad to get them over with. That was not the case with yesterday. I'm so happy and I can't wait to see what's behind the next bend in the road.