First Meeting

            We all have tales about our first meeting with loved ones, friends, bosses, or someone who has impacted our lives.  I first met my wife to be at a wedding. It was my first of many firsts. The wedding was for my cousin, Alan Bottomly with his wife Gloria. Their ceremony was the first that I ever attended as an adult and I was in it. I was the best man. It was the first time that I was responsible for the wedding band and that was a cause for concern. There was a heating grate in the floor and I was worried that I’d drop it and watch it disappear into the bowels of the church or that because I stick it on a finger so that I wouldn’t lose it, the ring would get stuck. It was the first time that I was responsible for giving the speech at the reception.

            That blissful occasion was the first time that I laid eyes on my wife-to-be, Cynthia Morrison. She was short, sweet, and her pixie hair cut framed her face. Cindy was one of the attendants; greeting people and having them sign the guest book.

            I normally enjoy teasing and making people smile. As the evening progressed, she was one of the people that I teased. One time she was sitting at the table eating and I kicked her shoe away. I made jokes and most of the time we were laughing together, having a good time. Some of the people at the wedding thought that we were already dating. That came later.

            Her best friend and her friend’s husband arranged for a “blind” date for the two of us as a double date. It was the beginning of our relationship and our years of wedded bliss.