Our Wedding Song

In 1996 I did something that many people thought would never happen to me:  I got married.

Mike and I had met three years before via a personal ad.  As corny as it may sound to meet through a personal ad, it suited us just fine.  We weren't big bar people so how else would we possibly meet?

At this time in my life I was going through what I now refer to as the "country music phase".  I was heavily into artists such as Tracy Lawrence, Clay Walker and my favorite was John Michael Montgomery.  I even belong to his fan club.  I wasn't so sure Mike was a fan.  One time I entered a contest that Montgomery's fan club was sponsoring.  I had to use the title of every one of his songs in a letter.  I wond fourth prize which was an autographed,  life-size cardboard stand-up of Montgomery.

"What the hell is this?"  Mike asked when he saw the stand-up in my room.

"My prize," I told him and explained how I had won it.

"You know, once we're married, that's not moving in with you."

That's what he thought...

It really didn't come as a shock to Mike when I suggested JMM's hit song "I Swear" as our wedding song.  After some mulling over and a voided suggestion of "Always and Forever" instead, Mike agreed.

I moved into Mike's apartment after returning from our honeymoon.  And the cardboard stand-up came with me. 

Twelve years later and a move to a new house left little room for the JMM stand-up.  After it spent a year in a bedroom closet, I sadly had to lay it to rest among the other pieces of cardboard in our basement for recycling.