It was my brother’s graduation. Rett became an adult, so his mother couldn’t say no to him going to UofL. He still frequently visits her, but now he lives here with us. Since my brother and sister lived so far, basically my entire family came along to celebrate three hours away, so we had to stay the night at a hotel. Even though my sister’s wedding was the next day, my dad wanted to just head back home. He knew he wasn’t on very good terms with my brother and sister’s side of the family. My brother Rett and I practically begged him to stay.

We went to a hotel and slept. Soon enough, I had to go to the wedding early since I was a bridesmaid. My sister, Ali, was going to have her wedding in a church which was connected to a cafeteria. The cafeteria is where the reception would be held. The main color for the wedding was a baby blue, almost like the sky. I walked in and greeted my sister and her family and helped them decorate the cafeteria. We decorated the tables with white tablecloths, put a vase in the middle with blue flowers, and around this vase we added some little plastic candles. The small plastic flame danced around in circles repeatedly, lighting up the room.

In the front of the cafeteria, there was a rectangular table for pictures of family who had passed away. I saw quite a few of my other sister, Jami.  The table was covered with a purple tablecloth and many pictures of people and small stones. I picked up some pictures of my sister, Jami, and looked at them. I noticed that they were pictures of her when she was little. I wish she was here. To the far right of this was a spot for taking pictures. It wasn’t anything big, just a small area decorated with fairy lights.

After some time, we had to get ready. We walked through a connector and went up some stairs which brought us to a room. The room had blue dresses hanging around everywhere, bags full of makeup, hair products, and who knows what. All I had in my bag were my blue dress, white tights, and white tennis shoes. They’re tennis shoes, but they were appropriate enough for a wedding. So, we all got ready.

“Hey Bailey,” one of the girls said. It was Samantha, who at the time was dating my oldest brother. “Can I style your hair?”

“Oh yeah, sure!” I smiled. My hair was a swirl of brown and blonde. She straightened it and put it half up half down. We were all ready.

Then, we prepared for the wedding. We took lots of pictures, and then everyone went to their spots. I had to walk down the aisle with my oldest brother, Alec, who is currently 23. He was wearing a suit and tie, something simple for a man to wear at a wedding. He was a groomsman, and I was a bridesmaid. When it was time for us to walk down, I was honestly nervous. I wonder if he’s nervous too. We had to lock arms and eventually we walked out. I could hear people clapping, music from the piano playing. I could see pews filled with people, stained glass windows tinted with countless colors, ribbons of blue, and flowers everywhere. The sea of colors calmed me down a bit. We walked through the aisle up to my sister, and the wedding continued. Everything was perfect. My whole family was there, and that fact comforted me.