The ocean was blue and some shoulders were holding up on Stinson’s usually closed-out sets. I felt the warm breeze that blew in from the south as it crept across the beach. Off in the distance somewhere a seagull was balancing on a sea rock looking for an afternoon snack. Children ran back and forth along the pie-crust sand chasing kites or soccer balls.

I was dressed in a light tan Calvin Klein suit with a white button down undershirt and a cornflower blue vest, tie and handkerchief.

When I turned back toward the crowd I didn’t think I would see anyone. Usually when I’m on the beach I’m alone. There in front of me were dozens of family members. My parents who flew in from New York just a few days prior. My best man Joe, who did the same. Paul, his wife Jen, James, Shannon, all our friends from the News-Sentinel all special in my heart stood with waiting smiles.

I turned to the aisle and there she was, under the arms of her brother from so far away in Ohio. To say she looked like an angel dressed in white would be too simple and easy. I can only leave her glowing beauty undescribed.

Natalie and Lenny walked up passed people from all over California and the United States. Up a white long white runner lined with a few red rose petals.

The ceremony to me was a blur. I remember distinctly the I do’s and the nervousness that flooded over me as I read over my vows that Paul had written down in his black book for me as I verbally spewed them off the days before.

I remember directly after the grey sky’s of the coast lifted away to a crisp sunshine. I remember hugging my mom and dad who never cry, as they cried on the sand. I remember Natalie’s vows and how long it took to pour our bi-colored unity sand into a tall cylindrical glass. I remember our kiss and the smiles on her brothers faces because we were all now brothers.

I gave Natalie a larger-than-life hug after we all started to disperse toward the photos and reception.

Clouds usually won’t disperse on windless days at the coast, but they did. The sun made the sea twinkle like a crowd filled with a million sparkling smiles. I turned, silently thanked the Pacific for making it to my wedding day and left with an ocean of elation in my heart.