Girlfriends = Bridesmaids

Even before I got engaged I thought a great deal about who I would choose to be my bridesmaids.... Easy! They are the girls who love me, support me, and who will stand by me on one of the greatest days of my life. These are my girlfriends....the ones who tell me like it is (even when it's terribly ridiculous), the ones who let me be happy and sad (even when I can't make up my mind which I want to be), the ones that I can count on (each in their own unique ways).

My thoughts to you, my bridesmaids.....
(I considered saving this for my wedding speach but what better time than the present. Besides, who wants to sit through my emotional babbling at such a joyous event).

First, my maid of honour, my sister, Tracey...first on my list now just as you were my first girlfriend. Believe it or not, the fact that you were my first girlfriend is a recent revelation for me. You were just 4 when I was born and now as I now watch Erykah with her baby sister, I am often taken aback by the great propensity of love, nurturing, and friendship that young sisters have for each other. We are lucky, you see, for sisters have a friendship that is unlike any other. It is the kind of bond that simply understands where you came from and why you are exactly the way you are. With you, there are so many things that do not require an extensive explanation - our nutty family (you've met them all), my frustration with weight gain (you've seen the skinny me), my addiction to chocolate (you and I are one and the same) :) and the list continues on and on....Even when we disagree as we often do, it doesn't matter because we are sisters. You are mine and I am yours - first girlfriends!

Vicki...in my kindergarten book of memories there is a question "Who is your best friend?" and with the shakiness that comes with first learning to print, I have scrawled "Vicki". Our friendship has always been there - sometimes strong, sometimes not so strong, but always there. You are like my security blanket. When we are both happy and comfortable with life we drift slightly, talk every couple of days, do our annual Christmas dinner at Jack Astors. But when life gets tough we find security in knowing that the other is there - to talk for hours, shop for hours, complain about guys for hours, or just sit in heart-broken silence for hours. You are so spunky! - far more than your stature would ever suggest and I just love that about you - I swear you could battle your way through absolutely anything! We are both in a happy place right now. I am so happy for you and I know you are happy for me. I know that life will bring hardships but I take comfort in the fact that I have you, my trusty security blanket to fall back on.

Joann....yet another old friend, we have known each other for so long! And boy have we been on one emotional roller-coaster ride....we have cuddled and cried, yelled and screamed, laughed and hee-hawed. We have kicked each others butts - Basketball practice has left me two scars, both of which I can attribute to your nails. Literature has left me stumped for words which you certainly have never had a problem with. I call you "Miss Meloncholy" for you are the only person I know who might use that word so casually in a sentence when everyone else would have simply stated "sad". You are truly wonderful....genuine, loving, considerate. You are amazing - so fragile yet so strong and so full of faith (even tho' you can't stop cursing!). I am so proud of you - for who you are! and for all that you have been to me, I sincerely say "thank you!".

Jenny....of all my bridesmaids, I have known you for the least amount of time. But you are far from "least" in my books. It seems to me that we have known each other forever. I see you every single day but yet I never tire of you. I think it's the way you light up a room, the way that you are able to bring joy and laughter to the most mundane day, the way that my life is better because you are a part of it. You are God's definition of love: patient, kind, forgiving, never selfish, slow to anger. You are so many things that I am not. You make me strive to be better for myself and for my marriage. You are a tongue-tied drama-queen, a silly trickster, a gorgeous flirt. You have had your share of ups and downs from this world, yet you are so full of vibrance for life. By definition, you are not perfect, but I think you are as perfect as anyone could ever be. Oh, to be like you....

Christa....My "kooky" friend, even though you are unable to attend the wedding, I still consider you to be one of my bridesmaids. You, like the others, were automatically on my list of who I wanted to share my wedding day with. Since you are so softhearted and quick to tears I must immediately apologize....I'm sorry if I make you cry. You see, I am very disappointed that you cannot make it to the wedding. I often say that you are like my little sister. Usually I say it light-heartedly, in a joking manner, but it is so seriously true. To not have you with me at my wedding feels like I am missing an important family member. Don't worry, I do understand! This is not a guilt-trip in any way (though God knows If guilt would work I would use it to get you to PEI this summer!...lol). But it helps to know that your thoughts will be with me on my "big day" because that is the kind of person you are - thoughtful, caring, selfless. Be good to yourself lil' sis...you so deserve it!

Okay, I pointed the "emotional" finger at Christa but I must admit that I've shed a couple of tears while writing this blog. It has taken me a while...coming back to edit a gazillion times. I'm certainly not one for "mushy" - great expressions of love don't come easy to me, but I wanted to try and express how I truly feel about each of you.

A poet once said something like this:

"True friends are those who know all your faults and love you just the same."

Thank God! for my faults are many...but you, my friends, are true!