Excelente

Two nights in a row of no writing! That's never happened yet these last 10+ months! But here I am, back on track...

I think my best friend's wedding weekend can be summed up in one word: Excelente!

The groom's family and friends are from Argentina (as is he), with many non-English speakers among them, so the weekend was like one big Spanish lesson. 

I had a lot of fun being part of the festivities, but most of all, I had fun watching my best friend's face as she married the man she loves and enjoyed herself.

Back in September, I went to my first wedding alone since Rick died. It was difficult, but I had friends by my side and luckily, it wasn't a traditional wedding with dancing into the night or assigned seating. 

This time around, it was my second wedding alone. Again, I had friends by my side and I was the Matron of Honor, so I had much more important things to keep my mind busy. I had a really good time.

I have to admit, it's difficult not to focus on the fact that you are alone when you're sitting in a sea of almost 200 people, sipping a glass of wine, and the DJ plays a slow song out on the dance floor. 

Luckily, the Best Man took pity on this Matron of Honor and viuda so I could dance like everyone else without feeling sorry for myself. 

Many successes really. I gave a speech without breaking into sobs the way I did each time in my living room while practicing! I didn't lose the bag of stuff I thought I lost (including the bride's cell phone)! And I drank several glasses of wine without feeling sick the next morning! 

I also heard something profound from a friend of the bride's mother that I wasn't really able to put into words before. Timetables for love after death can seem long or too short, depending upon who is commenting on your life. But when you're one of the few who had something really good with someone else and you lose that person, it actually makes a lot of sense to feel emotionally ready to really love someone else again without a huge span of time elapsing in between...since it's because you actually know what you're missing and you want something that great or better in your life again...and you know it will be worth it. (Thanks, Lisa!)