It Will Be Me

I was browsing through facebook this afternoon and I came across the profile of a girl I went to college with.  She's getting married this weekend and - in the box underneath her profile picture - she had written on her profile:  I do not care about what kind of chairs, place cards, linens, napkins, lighting, flowers, favors, or program wording ... I just want to marry him.

I thought that was the most beautiful thing I've read in a long time.

Yesterday marked the one year anniversary of our engagement.  It's amazing how far we've come since then.  Bruce proposed to me at our church after a Taize-style worship service that was part of the 30 Hour Famine the youth were taking part in.  Last year we showed up for bits and pieces of the famine and helped where we could - it was the first time we had worked with the youth, so we were pretty much getting to know them and the program.  We weren't engaged; I was only one year into my program at Candler; much of our future was uncertain.  This year - after nine months of biweekly youth group meetings - we were there for the entire famine.  We fasted with kids we've grown close with this year.  We were much more active in the planning process, taking care to build on the lessons we had worked so hard on from Sunday School and Youth Group this year.  As I sat at the piano during the Taize service and listened to the sounds of an exhausted and hungry youth group, I looked down at my hands that were accompanying those sounds - the diamonds in my engagement ring sparkled.  I realized in that moment - I'm not the same girl I was last year at this time.

What a year this has been.  I've learned a lot - in school, at church and in life.  I've made new friends, made up with old friends and worked hard to strengthen my relationship with God.  I'm not where I want to be - but I'm getting closer.  And I've cherished every moment of the learning process.  The future is still uncertain.  But one thing is certain ... 

In less than a month, I'm marrying my best friend.  I don't think anything could make me happier.

The title of this post is "It Will Be Me" ... Kristin Chenoweth has an incredible rendition of this song, one that has helped me center myself amidst the wedding craziness.  Here's a video of her performing it on the Today Show a couple of years ago.  There's an interview first, skip to the one minute - ish mark to get to the song.

May the peace of Christ be with you,

Sarah