My Godparents didn’t get married until their late 30’s.  They said they never needed it until they decided to buy land and build a house.  In early 1983 they headed to Vegas and got it done.  Rael was the only one who went.  He was “The Best Man of Honor,” having lived with them primarily for the previous two years (unknown to me at the time, he was a “companion” to them both).

“We’ll have a normal wedding when the house is done.”  They said.  “We just need to make sure we’re married on paper for the house stuff.”

They got lucky and were able to buy the land and build a house in a year.  So the “ceremonial stuff” could be planned.  Mom was Best Woman and Dad was Man of Honor, the same pairing they had when my parents got married.  I was the only bridesmaid/flower girl and Rael was the only groomsman.  It was a little funny walking up the aisle with him, as I was 9 and he was 22.  It was also odd that he was introduced to me as Uncle Rael, because neither of my godparents had siblings.  I was told that this young man had become family when he rented a room from them a couple years ago in the house they were renting.  I’d heard about him a little, but this was the first time I met him.

As they built the house with the intention of getting married on the land, they had the perfect  setup for the wedding.  I ended up sitting next to Rael for dinner.

“So, what do you do?”  I asked him.

“I program computers at banks.”

“That sounds so cool!  What do you think of Nina Anne’s computer?”

“I helped her build it.”

“You did!”  I was amazed.

“Yes, we both love computers.”

“Is that how you know her?”

“Yes.  I also like History like Harold.”

“That’s neat!  I love his stories about Ancient Rome.”

“We usually talk about the Civil War.”

“Yeah, that’s really his favorite.”

“So what grade are you going to be in?”

“Fifth.  The teacher’s cool so it should be fun.”

“You go to private school, right?”

“Yeah, Catholic School.  But my parents said it’s ok if I don’t get a good grade in Religion because it’s more of a cultural thing and only God can judge if you’re good enough for Heaven.”

Rael chuckled, but I wasn’t sure why.  “You’re every bit as bright as they said you were.”

“Oh, thank you!”

“So where do you live?”

“Here.”

“You live here?”  I was amazed.

“No, I work up North.”

“Are you happy that Anne and Harold got married?”

“Yes.  I’m their friend.  They’re great people and built this wonderful house to live in.”

“I agree.”