Greetings Readers & Friends,
This week I did some reflecting over my friends (the very few that I have) and the types of relationships that we have managed to employ amongst each other through life's roller coaster of change and unknowns. Within my thoughts I immediately recalled a very special occasion that I was invited to be apart of; my best friend's wedding. Due to being married, I served as her Matron of Honor. For those that have taken part in weddings, you know that there are certain roles that entail a lot of trust and responsibility, and the Matron of Honor is at the top of the list. I had my work cut out for me and I was determined to do my very best for my friend of 30 plus years.
My friend and I are two girls who met in preschool and haven't left each other's side since. We went through it all together....from the crazy teenager stage, to the broke stage of college life, and on to the mind-blowing stage of balance between the professional and personal worlds. Thus, our journey exposed us to the true make up of one another with solid affirmation of our mutual admiration for each other.
At the time of my friend's wedding, I had been married 11 years, so the pressure to perform with accuracy was heavy on my shoulders....but I was up for the task. Bridal shower, check! Bachelorette party, check! However, it was the Reception Toast that the Matron of Honor is expected to make that I had my full attention and focus on. What do I say? How do I say it? How do I make what I say relatable to the audience? These were all questions that were racing through my head as I nervously held a pen in my hand looking down towards a pad of clean crisp blank paper. I was nervous but not afraid because I knew that the innate skill that I have to authentically write from the heart was present at that moment. Thus, I registered the above noted questions within my brain with overarching questions of "What does Ebony need to hear?" "What would be meaningful for a new bride to know and carry with her to give her marriage a fighting chance?" From the short ponder of those questions came the creation of a poem entitled "Hold On." This poem is my best and greatest work of the truth and realness of relationships between two different individuals. I placed the poem below for your engagement. I hope you love it as much as my friend did. It's a symbol of me in my most rarest form.
Light & Prosperity,
VirginiaSlim
Hold On
As a new bride and a new groom...... a new wife.... a new husband.....you are on the eve of starting a new journey....writing a new chapter in your book of life with a new love...a new person....who's ideologies and perspectives are of their own. Hold On !
Never let your difference get in the way of telling each other how much you mean to one another and how honored and how humble you are that you each chose one another to be your life partner....to be your best friend.....to be your person. Hold On!
With these new roles, you have a responsibility to fight for your love and never consider being apart as an answer to a problem. Hold On!
I won't lie and say that this journey will always be easy or that it will be perfect, because it will not. A marriage is one of the most challenging but fulfilling things that you will ever do in your life. Just promise to love each other and to never give up on one another no matter how tough the circumstances become. Hold On!
When the hurricane comes with hurricane force winds to knock down your positions, Hold on!
When the tornado comes to blow away your foundation, Hold On!
When the rain comes to wash out your connection, Hold On!
Hold on because one day the sun will come out and the birds will sing and your feelings from this very moment will reappear because you HELD ON!
Toast to the new Bride & Groom and Congratulations!!!!