Saturday, November 1, 2008

Last Dance


In August my niece Haley got married at my sister's beautiful lake home. It was an outdoor wedding. They had a huge canopy white tent set up on the grass, so you had a great view of the lake, the dance floor was laid upon the grass. The flowers on the tables were done by friends of my sisters, who went through every ones flower gardens, and since the river is on the other side of the lake homes, they gathered wild flowers and grasses and these flowers were gorgeous, each tables vase of flowers was a little different and unique. It was 95 degrees, so a hot evening. My husband usually goes to bed very early so I didn't anticipate that we would stay to long into the night. There was something special about the evening. Pete seemed to have this amazing spurt of energy, he looked so good that night. We danced a slow song and we haven't danced for many years. While we were dancing and holding each other so tightly, never wanting to let go of this moment, I was thinking this could be our last dance. I think we both knew this would be our last dance, clinging to each other never wanting this moment to end! I have this photo in the bedroom so I can see him holding me ever so tightly and I can still feel him holding me! The kids were in tears much of the night as Pete danced the night away. He was a good dancer at the fast songs, much better than I. The kids said he seemed to be having the time of his life. Pete said to me that night, " I just love weddings, everyone is so happy!" Not a profound quote by any means, but from his heart. He was happy, he was enjoying life for one last time. Twenty- two days after this night he began a rapid decline in his battle with cancer and passed Sept. 10th. It's amazing how one night in your life will make such an impact and I will carry it with me forever! My sister snapped the photo! I like it because I can see his face and he is holding me so tight. I know it's a photo of a backside, and those pants made my behind look huge!

20 comments:

Janell said...

Marla, that is a beautiful picture and one of the most touching, lovely memories I've ever read. Thank you for sharing it. I'm SO glad you and Pete got to have such a fun evening together for your "last dance."
Kudos to your sister for getting the picture.

Jamie Dawn said...

How wonderful that your very special last dance with him was caught on camera.
That moment is forever imprinted in your memory and in your heart, and you've now allowed us to share in the joy.
I'm sure remembering that night makes you laugh and cry at the same time. I'm feeling both joy and sadness right now.
Your loss is big, but your love is HUGE.
God bless you with comfort and a lot of joy.
Oh, and your bohunkus looks just fine. I'm used to my own rather wide hind end, so yours didn't look big in that photo at all.
:-)

Smooth Sailing said...

Thank you for sharing such a meaningful blog. Wow, I'm in tears. I have been married for 22 years and even through our ups and downs there is still a deep love there like you have shared. That picture is wonderful...of both of you! You are a great writer.

oh, didn't know if my replies were emailed to you so I will answer your question about Martin Luther. I too did not know much about Luther or Lutherans until a few years ago. Luther truly changed the face of Christianity in the 1500's. He is worth getting to know. Funny though, he NEVER wanted anyone to call themselves Lutherans. He said "I am NOT a saint". We worship Christ NOT Luther...just admire him for his courage to stand up to the Catholic Church. (I hope you are not Catholic) :) It was a bit of a crazy church back then. Anyway, this link has some great reading if you are interested.
http://www.wsu.edu:8000/~dee/REFORM/LUTHER.HTM Blessings!

Smooth Sailing said...

Marla,

Just one more thing. I don't like the end of that article on Luther where the writer says "develop his own church". Actually he was the first to translate the bible into German (from Hebrew and Greek) so that the lay people could read God's word for themselves. That was his calling. He wasn't starting his own church. The people just listened to his arguments against the Catholics. Sorry to go on and on. :)

bobbie said...

Marla, this is a wonderful picture and such a beautiful memory. I'm so glad that you have it to hold in your heart forever. You will know he is with you every time you think of it. thank you for sharing this.

Gary ("Old Dude") said...

wow, thats one heartfelt posting---a most touching honorarium to your Husband. I wish to thank you for laying a comment on my page, and if I can be of any assistance in helping you develope your page, just give me a holler. If you got an itch to add a widget you might check out this site, http://www.widgetbox.com/?__fsk=199456932, and when ya find one ya like just copy the code, and using the add a gadget block, drop it in the widget that is for java/html code additons

Gary(old dude)
http://threescoreplusten.blogspot.com/

Winifred said...

That's a lovely photo and a wonderful memory.

Oh and your bum doesn't look big!

Paul Nichols said...

That's real nice. Real nice.

Ralph said...

What a great, great memory. Then I read "those pants made my behind look huge" and had to laugh.
Cherish the memory - forget the pants.
You are so right, some times one night, one event will be remembered forever.
Great, great post.
Ralph

carmilevy said...

Your words speak eloquently about lives well lived and why it matters so much that we take the time to reflect on the little things that matter.

I am so very sorry for your immense loss, and admire your courage in sharing yourself on your blog. May you continue to find the strength in the amazing family that you both built together.

Anonymous said...

Marla, thank you for visiting my blog and for someone who is fairly new to the blog world, your posts are very interesting and well written. keep it up.

Marla said...

Gary,Carmi and Dana:

Thanks for stopping by and visiting my blog. Come back again sometime!

Scarlet said...

A beautiful photo of a beautiful memory. You are an inspiration.

Btw, I think you look great in the photo! In my culture, your butt's not big enough!!! :)

Ramblings of a Villas Girl said...

Marla you have touched my heart with this post. I am so glad that this moment was photographed. You can see the love and tenderness in your husbands face. This is a memory to cherish forever. Lisa

Bonnie (BornInaZoo) said...

This is the 3rd time today I read this post. Each time, I keep wondering what song was playing or if it even mattered.

Brooke said...

That is an awesome picture not only does it have Pete and you but it has your parents in it also. I had tears in my eyes reading this. I can just imagine how beautiful the wedding was....it all sounds so wonderful.

Linda said...

What a sweet sister.

Janell said...

YES! Please tell us what song was playing, if you remember.

Lucy Stern said...

These are the moments in life that we treasure.....I'm glad that you have the picture to make you smile when you see it.

Jane said...

What a beautiful picture. How lovely that your sister captured that moment for you.
God Bless you, Marla.