Part 2 of Wesley’s Wedding and Other Recent Events

Wesley and Elisabeth chose Pachelbel’s “Canon in D Major” for their wedding march. Captain Marty and Wesley walked out onto the bow first, followed by Elisabeth’s mother, Wes and me. The bridesmaids came next. They were Elisabeth’s three sisters, Lydia, Esther and Rebecca, and three of her friends. Her maid of honor was Imy, but I can’t remember the names of the other two. Then the groomsmen came. Wesley’s best man was named Dave, who was running for State Representative, but I don’t know the names of the other groomsmen. Wesley or Elisabeth will have to fill you in on names. Then with all eyes on her, Elisabeth walked in on her father’s arm looking radiant and as beautiful as an angel. Her dress was indescribable, delicate and perfect. She wore her hair up in curls, adorned with a tiara, and her veil was trimmed with intricate lace. A picture would be worth a thousand words at this point, but your dad had forgotten to bring his camera. (Chelsee has posted some of the pictures from Elisabeth’s camera.) Wesley had written most of the wedding ceremony and it was very touching. Wesley and Elisabeth had also written their own vows and I can’t even tell you how beautiful their words to each other were. I have encouraged Wesley to post his vows so all of you can read what he said. After they exchanged rings and kissed, we all crowded around them and wished them all the best. They cut their unique wedding cake that had been decorated with real seashells and starfish, and served it to us, along with sparkling apple juice, while we were being taken back to the dock. After they had hugged and said good-bye to their friends and family, Wesley and Elisabeth, as well as Elisabeth’s parents, your dad and me, all rode out to yet another beautiful spot somewhere by Kodiak Island and enjoyed a lovely dinner for six, prepared by the captain’s wife. It was a very memorable day for me. I was so grateful to have been there to see Wesley marry the woman he loves.

After the wedding, Wesley and Elisabeth, instead of heading straight for their hotel room, headed straight for a walk the community was having that night to raise money and awareness for, I believe, cancer research. Elisabeth changed into running clothes, but still wore her veil while she and Wesley participated in the walk. Many people, including me, were impressed with that.

Saturday was the reception. Elisabeth’s maid of honor, Imy, insisted that she and some of Elisabeth’s other friends take over the decorating and other preparations for the reception. I think this was rather frustrating to Elisabeth and some things that she wanted done were overlooked. I thought it was a great reception anyway. The decorations were similar to those on the yacht. The tables were decorated with bowls of sand, seashells and starfish. Little sachets filled with chocolates and pretty little blue and white crystals were also set out on the tables. Elisabeth and Wesley themselves had caught all the fish that were used in the salmon and halibut dishes that were served at their reception dinner. All the food was fabulous. Music was provided by a Russian Orthodox group from a church school for at-risk kids and they did a marvelous job. It was touching to see Wesley and Elisabeth do their first dance as husband and wife, and also to see Elisabeth dance with her father. Dancing was really the main event at the reception, which was a fun and different thing to see and do. There was also another cutting of an even larger wedding cake that was decorated with seashells and starfish, like the one on the boat. During the reception, many people told me how much they admired and respected Wesley and how much he had contributed to their community. Many of the people who came to the reception knew Wesley and Elisabeth through their participation in plays and programs. Wesley’s best man, Dave, said the first time he met Wesley was at an audition where Dave had mistaken Wesley for Christian Slater.

On Sunday, Wes and I went to church with Wesley, Elisabeth and Elisabeth’s family. To counteract whatever goodness or evil came from attending church, we then went to a coffee shop (the Fly-By) for some conversation and coffee. Monty also took Wes and me to some graveyards there on the island to see headstones from World War II and from some earlier times when Kodiak was taken from the Russians. Sunday evening, Elisabeth’s parents invited us to their home for a pizza dinner. While we were there, Elisabeth showed us her drawings. She is a fantastic artist.

We had to leave on Monday afternoon, but before we did, Wesley and Elisabeth took us to a World War II museum and then for a walk around a nearby lake. It was so pleasant. The air was cool and it was just nice to walk with and talk to Wesley before we had to go. Wesley and Elisabeth took us to the airport and we said good-bye. Now I can say from experience that Kodiak is a great place to visit.

We landed in Anchorage at 5:00 p.m. in the pouring rain. Since it was light until about midnight at this time of year, Wes and I were able to grab a taxi and go headstone-hunting for the only Medal of Honor recipient in Alaska. It cost us $120 to make the round trip to the military cemetery at the army base there. Luck was with us, too, because we happened to get one of the few taxi drivers who had a license to drive onto the base. Wes got his picture of the headstone and we headed back to the airport, mission accomplished. That was the icing on the cake for Wes.

I hope Wesley or Elisabeth will correct any mistakes I made in the details I gave about their wedding. I do know, however, that my description was correct when I said that it was absolutely beautiful and memorable. I wish you all could have been there with me.

The “other recent events” part of my title refers to my new job. I was hired as an Outpatient Services Specialist at the Same Day Surgery Unit of the University Hospital. I have been working there for two weeks now and I think I am really going to love my job. There is a lot to learn and I sometimes feel overwhelmed, but I know I will get it and will be good at it in time. I am very happy to be among the ranks of the employed again, if nothing else. I am not making as much as I did at my last job, nor am I getting as many hours, but it is a good job and I am working with good people, among whom is Sonja Plumb. She is a beautiful, smiling, comforting face in the crowd of nurses on our unit. I am very happy to be seeing her every day.

So, that’s my second installment of Wesley’s wedding and other recent events. Thanks for hanging in there with me.