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So before I begin, I would just like to take a moment to thank everyone here for coming
out today to celebrate the union of Diana and Josh, but especially to the parents of
the bride and groom, Jon and Charlene Proulx, as well as Dan and Jane Kline. We are all
so honored and grateful to be here today, so thank you for having us.
I would love to stand here today and tell you all about how Diana and I first met. Sadly,
I cannot do this... mostly because I can't remember. Diana and I were both babies when
we were introduced to one another over twenty years ago. From my earliest memories, Diana
was always there.
Now because of this, I know some of you are probably expecting me to tell you all kinds
of embarrassing stories about her from when we were kids, and in all honestly, I could.
It would be so much fun to stand here and tell you all about the time she saw a bird
in my tree, picked it up, and got bitten on her nose. Or maybe about the time she was
visiting me at my cottage, and got the flu so badly with me, that we had to be quarantined.
Or, one of my personal favourites, the time she jumped off the wooden raft at my cottage,
got her swimsuit stuck on the ladder, dangled, then dropped into the water.
But today, I've decided to share a different story, one that I believe shows exactly who
Diana is, and why Josh is so lucky for marrying such an amazing woman.
Almost four years ago, Diana and I decided to go hiking in the Gatineau Hills. Now according
to Google, it should have taken us fifty-three minutes to get there. It ended up only taking
us two-and-a-half... hours. I would love to blame this on a GPS, but we didn't have one.
It was my job to navigate, and as Diana herself would tell you, navigation is not a skill
that I have. Now Diana had the chance to criticize me here.
She could have easily pointed out that I, perhaps, should have brought a map more recent
than 1997, but she didn't. Every wrong turn, every startled pedestrian, was just the punchline
of a joke to her. Not only did she not make feel self-conscious, but she turned the entire
trip into a comedy-fest. Even though we arrived at the parking lot after having taken multiple
wrong turns, I wasn't lamenting my inabilities but laughing at them. It was Diana's amazing
quality to not just get me to forget about what I did wrong, but to turn it into a joke,
that allowed us to continue on our journey.
Going up the mountain went very well, and we reached the peak with minimal bruising
and a strong sense of accomplishment. Coming down, we hit a problem: after encountering
multiple injuries including falling out of trees and off a nine-foot-cliff, Diana and
I made it out not into the parking lot, but a large field with grass that came up to our
elbows. I took a step forward, only to feel cold, marshy water rise to my calf, soaking
through my socks and shoes. I was pretty close to just throwing my hands in the air and giving
up at this point. But not Diana. Maybe it was the complete absurdity
of our day, or maybe we'd just been bitten by mosquitos too many times, but she took
one look at me, and burst out laughing. But she wasn't laughing at me; she was laughing
at our day, how everything that could go wrong did, and how now we were going to have to
trudge through a snake-infested marsh. Diana stepped ahead of me and with a roar of laughter,
began to run her way through the marsh. And you know what? I laughed too. I laughed, because
Diana had shown me that journeys, whether in life or on a mountain, are only as fun
as the people you're with. And when we finally made it back to the car, Diana⎯in her traditional,
considerate way that so many of us are aware of⎯pulled out for me an extra sweater and
pair of socks she had brought for me from home, because she knew I wouldn't have the
forethought to bring them for myself.
Diana, I always felt that God gave me a sister, just from another family. I feel so honored
and so blessed to have had you in my life all these years, and know that I don't need
to tell Josh just how lucky he is to be marrying such a beautiful woman who only sees efforts,
never failures.
So if we could all just raise our glasses to Diana and Josh: I love you, and can't wait
to see what your new adventure will bring. Just remember to pack extra socks.