The Special Day
The day of the special union arrived. All we were required to do was show up at a specific time. Thankfully she had arranged for someone to do my hair and makeup. It was the first time in many years that I've left the house without looking my best — I was truly blank canvas.
Upon arrival a pleasant young woman introduced herself and began working on my hair. She spent much more time on it than we would have at home. After using a lot of hairspray and doing a lot of "teasing" she managed to make it look decent. I was relieved because my chemo for MS had taken its toll and left my hair thinner.
Our daughter had arranged for someone to do my makeup as well. The first question the makeup artist asked was what kind of look did I want? I told her that I wanted to look natural — though I hoped for better than natural if the truth be told.
She opened up an amazing makeup case. It was filled with more makeup than I've ever seen in one small place. She worked on me for a while and when she got done, I almost didn't recognize myself.
I was walked down the aisle by our son. I managed to ignore the fact that I was in a wheelchair. What I couldn't ignore was the pain I was experiencing due to a recent injury. It made it very difficult to sit without being in excruciating pain.
Still, I managed to make it through the entire occasion. We did have to leave before the bride and groom left for their honeymoon, though — we will have to rely on pictures in order to experience that.
Every mother looks forward to the day when she can walk down the aisle at her child's wedding. Thanks to MS my situation was different. Most people in attendance knew of my situation. Some of them came up to me and graciously extended their congratulations. Others were obviously too uncomfortable to do so. As I've said before, I’m used to it.
The memory of that day will live in my heart forever. I have to refuse to dwell on the negative aspects. I was able to attend. I enjoyed myself as best I could. I saw many people that I hadn't seen in years or had never met before.
This is just as another occasion that was tainted by the existence of MS.
