United States of Matrimony

This weekend was the payoff for a couple months of happy anxiety for the wedding of two of my favorite people in the world: Sinda Nichols and Niko Tonks. I wasn't around for the big reveal of their wedding gift, but I think it's probably safe to post about it now. If they've still not opened it- tough cookies. SPOILER ALERT and all that.

The idea of the design was to take the shapes of the (most important) states that they've lived in - both as a couple and throughout their youth- and fit them together like puzzle pieces to create their own unique country. The United States of Sinda and Niko feature: Michigan, Maine, Texas, Rhode Island & Minnesota. Hopefully they won't also include a state of confusion as to where to hang their new art. I'd be happy even if it hung in the bathroom. As, in fact, that is a place where a person's attention is arrested for a considerable amount of time.

The wedding was beautiful, the couple was wonderful and gracious, as always. At one point in the ceremony the officiant said "The couple recognizes that this does not make them BETTER than anyone else." As a frequent bridesmaid and wedding attender as well as a single lady, I appreciated this sentiment. What a weekend! I spent time with old friends and spurred some new ones as well. I nearly danced all the moisture out of my body and I'm still tired from how little I slept. I also want to relive the whole shebang, right here and now.

Being among people with artistic and loving minds this weekend made me long for the city life I used to lead. Summers in the twin cities were magical: full of concerts and picnics and bike rides to the beach. A few days surrounded by my old city friends (all of whom are now relocated to new cities across the country) has left my own internal compass spinning for a new location. It is inching up on a year that I've been outside Dayton, Ohio. My plan in moving here was to be closer to family. That has been a successful venture. I've seen my sister and the kids so much more, I've gotten to chill with my 5 (I'm so blessed!) grandparents and I've become closer to the cousins on my mother's side. Not to mention I've spent 10 months re-learning my parents and the great people they are.

Still, the places in which I've lived make up a big part of my self: Ohio, Kentucky, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota (in various orders and numbers). I miss them all. I wish I could puzzle piece them all together literally, creating a nation in which the people I love can be within at least 6 hours of me. Of course, in order to do that I'd need to add a few more states. And Montana, Texas and Alaska sure add a lot of driving time to my trans-united-states-of-sarah trips. All else aside, I'm just wondering which direction the compass rose will snap to next.