Unforgettable....
That was one of the pieces the combo played after the wedding as the couples danced, and that was my thought again this morning about the whole evening. We went to the wedding of Leslie Taylor and James Vanden Bos at Leslie's grandma Jane Kendall's home. What a beautiful garden setting on the sloping lawn under huge old maples and beech trees. The guests were seated in rows of white chairs. The young women each had selected a different style of dress cut from the same burgundy cloth and were individually lovely. They had clearly gone to the same hairdresser who had done magic with their hair, each a different natural shade. Bride Leslie was especially beautiful in ivory skimming the curves of her body and her strawberry blonde hair coils piled above her beaming freckled face.

This is how I have always pictured her from the time I first met her at age five when we moved in across Lowell Street from the Taylors: an engaging smile on an adorable freckled face framed with straight cropped strawberry blond hair.  For the next 4 years, I think, Billy and Leslie were in the same grade school classes at Bridlemile. They and their brothers, Jimmy, Zachary and David, along with the close neighbor kids, Patrick, Sarah, and Tim Nicoles, Charlie and Amy Adelman, and some 'little ones' (at that time), the Bourdeaux and Fredericks, all romped in the street and across the unfenced lawns playing with dogs, shooting hoops, throwing frisbees, hitting baseballs. I guess our David is the oldest, now 31, and Tim Nicoles the youngest of this gang, in college. They developed strong bonds that continue into their busy adult lives. I knew of Ann and knew many of her extended family cousins from growing up in close proximity in the Sylvan area, attending old Sylvan Schools. So we just blended right into the neighborhood, over 20 years ago, and plan for this to be our last home. We love our neighborhood, our friends, and the bonds and memories forged over the decades. Even if I win the lottery, I'm not moving. So last night sharing more memories, adding the wedding to the mix, was very special indeed.

We also had the chance to visit with friends from Sylvan Grade school days, LHS days, and new friends made over the past couple years in the neighborhood and at the MAC. If that weren't special enough, there was an inspiring  classical combo at the wedding and a contemporary music group at the reception at the traditional Racquet Club at Sylvan, another throw back to my youth. The food, especially the exquisite assortment of melting and tangy cheeses put a smile in my tummy. I refrained from dragging my husband on to the dance floor but was pleased when Billy accepted my invitation to dance. That was an especially charming treat, including a drop at the finale. We were proud parents watching Billy and Zac mingle at ease and handsomely among their friends. What fine young men.

Did I say how beautiful Leslie was, how her emotions shown through the pores of her skin, the twwinkle of her eyes? And how pretty and elegant Ann looked, radiant really. Dave was a handsome figure, especially on the dance floor with Ann. As we say of our friends we are accustomed to seeing in workout or gardening clothes, you clean up real good Ann.

It was an unforgettable night that brought joy to my heart.