My niece is getting married this weekend! I'm so excited for her. In many ways, she feels like my own child. So it also seems a bit impossible that this is happening. Recently, with my sister, I gave her a bridal tea. The morning of the tea, I woke up with words spilling out of my heart. I am not a poet, so don't expect this to rhyme. I read this to her at the tea with lots of happy tears. Here it is:

Melissa and Jon sitting in a tree
k-i-s-s-i -
Stop! Halt! Hold the phone!
I'm sorry but kissing is just not allowed.
Melissa, after all, is only a baby.
Aunt Laurel is looking at you like a creature from Mars, not exactly sure how to hold you, what to do.
Oh, no, you're two and drawing very precise lines while 'writing' in my journal.
Or are you five, and dancing in a recital?
Or is it that Christmas you decided to be baptized?
Or the summers you came and helped me with my children?
The years pile one on top of the other.
The pictures in my mind whirl past.
Watching each milestone has been such a joy.
We cheered, cried and rejoiced with you at each one.
And now, at twenty-one ? alright, twenty-two (on Monday)
You're reaching several milestones at once. Give us a few minutes to adjust, because even though now we talk about religion and politics, movies and books, sometimes we see that little girl, Cinderella, running through the house as the clock strikes twelve, running from her prince.
The clock has struck and now you're a college graduate. You're all grown up. You're?
Melissa and Jon sitting in a tree
k-i-s-s-i-n-g
we can't wait to see what all the future brings.