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| Nope, this is NOT "THE" dress |
Seems almost unfathomable that a year ago, I stood inside the Bridal Shop in the dress that I planned to one day wear & now as things seem to continue going smooth with the visa process; that day may be coming soon. The day that I've dreamt of since long ago appears to be drawing ever closer. When we received word last week that the Petition for Fiance Visa had been approved & is now being sent to the National Visa Center, that was great news. If you know me well, you know I do not like spontaneity, don't like surprises, I like order, I like a schedule, I like to know what I am going to do & when I am going to do it. There is not, in my mind, an adventurous spirit to me. Seems fitting that I would begin conversing with a man with whom I had never met on the other side of the world, fall in love with him, decide I want to spend the rest of my life with him before I'd even met him & furthermore; agree to move to HIS country far away from everything I've ever known or everyone I've ever loved. Sounds like the norm for someone of my type, doesn't it? Yes, crazy to think that such would happen to a girl like me. Of course, I was making plans to move to Nepal before N.P. ever came into the picture but it still gives me a chuckle. For someone that likes to plan & know what I'm going to do every step of the way, my time in Nepal in January was a bit of adjustment & gave me insight to the life ahead of me. Thankfully, I'd already been a bit acclimated to the fact that most (don't want to put everyone in the same category) Nepalese don't run their lives off of a schedule. While there, I realized that as I would ask N.P., "Honey, don't we need to decide what we're going to do tomorrow" or "Shouldn't we call that person first?", those are not common occurrences there. If you want to visit, you plan last minute & you may even make an appearance without having sought approval first. There's no need to figure out what you are going to do hours in advance; much less days before. I've come to learn with my Nepalese Friends here in St. Louis that if I'm going to be invited to do something with them, it is likely I will not be notified about the gathering until the day of the meeting. Like most young girls, I would drift away into dreamland picturing myself marrying years down the road. I think most girls would state that they thought long & hard about everything they want - what kind of dress, flowers, colors, bridal party, venue, food, etc. I'm no different. When I thought of all these things, I assumed I'd have a long time to plan everything out once the guy came along. Nope. Provided N.P. is granted the visa, we will have 90 legal days from the visa grant date to marry. So, if he was granted the visa Nov. 15 for example, we would have until Feb. 15, 2014 to marry. For me, my initial reaction is to panic - so little time. Step #1. Call the church to reserve it (yes, I'll be marrying within my church). While calling, pray that the church will be available & hope that though they want 8 weeks notice, they will understand our circumstances & work with us on it. Step #2. Work on N.P.'s flight & getting him here. Step #3. Contact all of the bridal party to notify them of the wedding date & hold out hope that even with such little notice, they'll be able to take part. Step #4. Understand that with so little time, I will not have the luxury of checking with everyone to see what date works best for them. The list goes on & on. At the end of the day, as much as I want things a certain way (which, not really. No one fears my being a Bridezilla as I've pretty much given my sister & cousin full permission to do whatever they would like in the way of decorating, etc. I've given them my colors & a theme & told them they could run with it!), time is limited & some things just are not important. What matters & what I'm most excited about is the thought that this incredible man that I've been praying for all of these years will finally be here in my presence (God-willing) & our lives will be joined as one. These are the things on my mind. Yes, I want the wedding preparations & wedding itself to go well but that is not nearly as important as the marriage itself. I'll be marrying my very best friend...how could that be anything less than beautiful? God certainly has a sense of humor - never would have thought all of this. I'm glad. Thankful that He knows best & for me, N.P. is best.
