I sang at a wedding this past weekend.
The only thing was... the bride had no idea. Neither did most of the family and friends who came. So it was a big surprise for just about everyone there.
Except me.
When you want to do something special for someone special in your life, you'll do just about anything to bring them joy. And knowing how much this weekend and the beginning of our new life together meant to Rebecca, and to me, I wanted to find a way to use the gifts God has given me to be a gift to her, and to all those who love us but couldn't join us for our wedding. And so I made something for her to remember our special day. A wedding album of sorts; video set to music. And though it's only three minutes long, it is the culmination and celebration of a much, much longer journey for her, and for me, and for Indiana.
It is the moment when a beautiful past meets an even more beautiful present. And together we begin walking into a future filled with more faith, more hope, and even more love.
My gift for Rebecca began as a song. An idea actually. The seed of a thought that God sowed into my heart and mind in April as I sat with my guitar, and began singing.
But our wedding actually began with Indy. It was her idea.
It had to be.
As I had written in my Love Comes Softly blog post in the Spring, Rebecca and I had committed to be together. To choose each other and see where it might lead. And although we knew marriage was a possibility, it wasn't something that either of us felt like we could seriously talk about. Mostly because up until that time Indiana only saw Rebecca as "Miss Rebecca" her schoolteacher and our friend. And although she had become much more than that to me, I was very careful to let Indy 'figure it out' on her own. And honestly, I wasn't really sure if she ever could, or would, at all.
Her love for her Mama is so great and so big in her life. Neither Rebecca or I wanted to hurt that in any way. And so we just waited and watched to see if it might ever occur to Indiana that Rebecca could be more than just a friend to her Papa, and to her.
And then one morning in late March when Rebecca came to the farmhouse to take Indy to school we all said a little prayer together to start the day, and then they headed out the door as they usually do. But a few moments later, they came back in the kitchen and Rebecca said, "Rory, Indiana just asked me something that I think you need to hear.”
I asked Indy, and she told me that she said, "Ms Rebecca, I think you should marry Papa…”.
Of course, I was happy, but caught off guard and told her that that was something we'd all have to start praying about.
And then Indy looked at me and said “and I told Miss Rebecca that my Mama’s been gone a long time. And if she marries you, maybe she could be my new mother...”.
Needless to say, as I wiped away some tears, I told her I thought that was a wonderful idea. And after more prayer and conversation. We settled on a plan and a date…
And so as Indy counted down the days, and Rebecca sent out invitations and we began preparing, I found myself thinking about how blessed I was to be given the opportunity to love again. To not only feel loved, but to get the chance to give love again. To be the one who gets to spend my life making Rebecca happy.
And from that thought, came the idea to write her a song. And over the past few weeks with the help of my friend Matt, to turn it in to a recording. And in the past couple of days with the help of my nephew Mikel, into a video that puts all those things together in one beautiful memory.
Now I'm not the greatest secret keeper, especially when it’s something I’m really excited about. And though I was trying my best to keep it from Rebecca… if you were at one my concerts at the farm in May, you may have heard that we were getting married. I may have even mentioned that it's going to be in July, and in Montana. And later in the shows when Rebecca left the concert hall to put Indy to bed, I may have put my fingers over my lips and asked everyone to promise not to tell... and then sang them the new song. Excited to share it, but still hoping it wouldn’t find it's way back to my bride, before she became my bride.
This past Sunday afternoon, our wedding took place under a beautiful timber-frame pavilion here in Greycliff, Montana and though there were a lot of folks that couldn’t make it because it was too far and honestly, we didn’t give them a whole lot of time to rearrange their schedules, we had lots of friends and family come join us in the celebration.
And although surprising Rebecca by singing a song I wrote for her at the wedding was a wonderful, I think by-far my and her favorite moment of the wedding was this one.
When Indiana was given the gift of having a Mama in her life again.
And Rebecca was given the gift of being a mother.
And we became a family.
PS: I'd like to send a special thanks to Matthew Craig Johnson for creating and producing the beautiful recording of the song, and to Mikel Hunt for filming capturing these beautiful moments on video.
I don't know how... but we somehow pulled it off! Thank you guys. I love you both.
