"See You at the Wedding!"

Joe and I went to a party last night.  It was a Meet and Greet for the families of two terrific people.  My dear niece, after more than a dozen years of single parenthood, has met a wonderful man and became engaged a month ago.

We were eager to meet my niece's fiance.  And to determine whether he is worthy of her.  Suffice it to say that he passed our judgment with flying colors!  A military man, soon to retire from active duty, he is articulate, warm, engaging (pun intended), and obviously in love.  I don't know how long he has been a single parent, but he has two sweet children, younger than my niece's teenage daughters.

My sister held the party at her home -- the wedding is to be early in the spring, and she wanted the two families to meet.  It was the finest event I've attended in years.  Much of our family was present (alas, our sons and their families were unable to come up) and even more of his was able to come.  They are a gregarious lot, conversational, funny, and interesting.  We all marveled at the peculiar connections that the two families had -- it turned out that one of his aunts is someone we've met at our neighbors' New Year parties -- and as we moved in and out of conversations, relationships and names became blurred.  But nobody cared.  By the end of the evening, everyone was saying, "I'm still not sure who you are but I'm so happy to have met you!" and with great joy and enthusiasm, "See you soon!  At the wedding!"