Mark and Lila's wedding

J.’s brother’s wedding, scheduled for the second Saturday in August at the family farm a couple of hours north. M. and I will drive up Friday afternoon.

I keep this note partly because J. has been telling me about the planning for months and I want a place to gather what I remember of those conversations, and partly because there is a particular kind of upcoming-event that benefits from being typed: weddings, funerals, a friend’s defense, the day a child of someone you love is born. They are not yet, but they have a shape, and the shape has consequences.

The shape of this one: a small ceremony outdoors if the weather holds, indoors if it does not; J.’s parents quietly pleased; a venue with old wisteria; an open bar at five and dinner at six; J. as the maid of honor. Most of what I know about Lila I know secondhand through J., and what I know is that she is a kindergarten teacher and that she beat Mark at chess on their first date.

I will update this note after the wedding. Some of the above will turn out to be wrong.