Ellie smoothed back Lisa's dark hair and stuck in one last pin. "That's not going anywhere," she said, leaning down to smile in the vanity mirror for Lisa to see. She picked up the small comb that the veil was fixed to and gently slid it into Lisa's hair. "You look beautiful."

Lisa stood up and turned to show off to her bridesmaids as they cooed over her dress and hair. It was one of those days where you laugh and smile for no reason at all.

"Oh, Lisa," Jessica said with a quivering voice. Ellie turned and saw Jessica's eyes glistening. "No, no, no, Jessie, you can't cry!"

Lisa grabbed some tissues and Ellie took them to carefully dab around Jessica's eyes. "We spent too long on your makeup for you to muss it up!" Hank's sister Julia took Jessica's hands. In all the fussing over poor Jessica, they didn't hear Lisa's parents enter the room. A sob made them turn around to see who it was this time.

"Oh, Mama!" Lisa went over and hugged her mom tight.

Soon the crying subsided and they were all able to fix their makeup. Before they knew it, it was time to begin.

Ellie was the last to walk down the aisle before Lisa and her father. She could see Peter sitting with her family. She was glad of it. As far as she knew, everyone else Peter knew in town was involved in the wedding, and she didn't want him to be alone. Ellie thought she saw Peter smile at her, but she tried to keep her focus on the wedding.

Lisa was truly lovely. She had decided in the end to wear her mother's dress, which had a high waist line and a long flowing skirt. It was covered in lace, and was a warm, just off-white color that felt very natural. Ellie thought Lisa would choose something more modern, or even more glitzy, but this dress was perfect.

Now Hank, of course, was crying more than any of the girls had. The large man normally looked imposing, but with his face all twisted up in tears, Lisa couldn't help but laugh as she made her way up the aisle. Lisa took his hand and kissed his cheek, then apologized, laughing, to the pastor and the crowd for kissing him too soon.

The service was brief but touching, and then everyone headed outside for the reception. In Wrenview, nearly every wedding reception was held right in the yard of the church. It was a pretty big field, and the huge tent they brought out for weddings was all set up.

Ellie felt an unexpected sense of relief as they headed out to the tent. She had been to plenty of weddings in her life, but this was the first one where she was anything other than an attendee. Lisa was the first of her friends to get married. Ellie felt suddenly that she was really an adult. Of course, at 22, Ellie had been an adult for a while, but not much had changed in her life. She had been to college for a while, but even there she didn't feel as grown-up as she did now. A new chapter in her life was beginning.

Ellie considered what it would be like to be married. In college she had dated a little, but she was only there for two years, and never once thought about marrying those guys. Lisa and Hank were so in love, and were so sure about each other. In some ways Ellie was envious, but she was also so happy with her life just how it was. She had two parents who loved her, and four little siblings that she would do anything for. Her work on the farm may not be the most exciting, but it was satisfying, honest work, and she had never thought about doing anything else.