First Impressions | Our Story, Part I

"I remember what you wore on that first day

You came into my life and I thought 

   Hey, you know this could be something"      

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Ashley: 

          The name Joshua Grimm was new to me. The most I knew about this young man was that he was a good friend of Daniel Wells, and that he was going to be in Ashlee and Daniel's wedding. I remember the first time Ashlee told me about him- how Daniel had tried to match him up with a few different girls at various times and had failed miserably, how he was single, and how she thought he'd be a good match for one of my dear, deep-thinking friends. But never did I dream he'd be the perfect match for me.


        I woke up on the morning of June 4th- the day I first laid eyes on that wonderful young man- excited because it was the day of Ashlee and Daniel's wedding rehearsal, and the next day one of my dearest friends would be getting married!  If I'd known how significant this day would be for me I would have been ecstatic. But never would I have guessed that this day was a day that would change my life forever.
        The day was beautiful, just as a day like that one should have been. The sun was shining, the birds were chirping, and it was just so perfect! Ruby, Chloe, and Rachel came over, and we drove to the Willeke's house together. Upon arrival we promptly joined Ashlee, Angela, and the other bridesmaids in constructing bouquets, boutonnieres, and other floral assemblies for the wedding. We talked and laughed and talked and laughed some more, enjoying our girl time.

       
           Daniel drove into the driveway with some of the groomsmen. They spilled out of the car, making their way into the garage, and Daniel briefly told them our names, forgetting to do us the same courtesy before the guys headed into the house for lunch. But despite the fact that they moved through the garage quickly, I still saw HIM. He was wearing a dark blue, short-sleeved shirt and khaki cargo shorts with tennis shoes. I thought he was handsome. I also thought he was married. Yup, that's right, the very first time I saw Joshua Andrew Grimm, I didn't know that he was Joshua Andrew Grimm, but for some reason, instead I thought he was another of the groomsmen, one of the married ones.
        
         It wasn't until later, after the rehearsal, that I was officially introduced to him. A bunch of the bridesmaids were standing at the top of the aisle talking and HE was there with the best man, Joe. Joe finally made some introductions, and that's when I learned his name...and the fact that he wasn't married. That's also when I heard him laugh for the first time. That laugh drew me in right then and there.
          At the rehearsal dinner that night, I sat across from one of the pastors, who was sitting next to Josh. I kept noticing over the course of dinner that Josh was more interested in the conversations that I was having than with his own. He kept looking over as if he wanted to talk to me. If he claims in his side of the story that I teased him about the way he was eating his spaghetti, don't believe it ;) I'd never do that (haha!), and for the record, I have no memory of doing so.

          As interesting as I'd found him that day, I didn't really think about him as we left the rehearsal and headed back to the Willeke's that night. I didn't think about him as we gathered in front of the tv, watching chick-flicks, painting our nails, and practicing hair styles for the next day. He didn't really cross my mind as I got ready for bed or when I laid down on the floor next to Rachel and Ruby and fell asleep that night. Nor did I think about him as we applied makeup, tied sashes, or fixed our hair the next morning, June 5th, 2010. 
        No, it wasn't until later that day that I truly became interested in this young man...

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Joshua:
          "Joshy, some of Ashlee's bridesmaids are cute, young, homeschooled girls." Daniel was just having some fun at my expense, but I found his attempt at humor slightly annoying. I was working, thinking about going to seminary, and had no plans to pursue a girl. While finding a young lady from Ohio worked for him, I didn't think it would happen to me. I wasn't looking, and I felt pretty darn content about that! Still, I was happy to be one of Daniel's groomsmen and wanted to enjoy being part of the wedding party.
         "Just talk to everyone, have fun, and don't get attached to anyone." With that internal conversation, I resolved to be sociable with the bridesmaids but stay cool and detached. Some of the other groomsmen were married, and I could hang with them.

         Fast forward to June 4th, 2010, the day before Daniel's wedding. I remember the bridesmaids walking the aisle at the rehearsal, and seeing this one girl with blonde, curly hair pulled up and a big, bright smile. I thought she was cute but just filed it away in my mind. After the rehearsal I stood and talked with some old friends from Erskine College, but felt that I should be sociable with the wedding party. Daniel's best man, Joe, was talking with a group of three of the bridesmaids, and the girl with the big smile was one of them. He introduced me to the girls and we all made small talk before we had to move on. So far, so good!

         Then came the rehearsal dinner. The cute blonde girl sat across the table and one seat over from me. As we waited to eat, I heard her picking apart the popular movie Avatar in conversation with the officiating pastors (one of whom was my campus minister). I noticed the conviction in her voice and her commitment to a Christian worldview as she debunked Avatar's pantheistic worldview. She really is cute, I thought. I wanted to be involved in the conversation but couldn't figure out a way to enter it. This was an interesting girl...

         Whether out of tiredness or shyness or some mixture of both, I couldn't come up with an opening for making conversation with her at dinner. She was talking with one of her friends, and seemed to be having a lot of fun. I noticed her smile and her laugh. My attention was more focused on her than on what I was doing, causing me to have some issues eating my spaghetti. As several strands of spaghetti noodles fell down from my mouth, she tilted her head and sarcastically but nicely said to me, "Having problems there?" I explained my occasional issues with twirling noodles around my fork, and she responded that I was doing it wrong. After that, I didn't find an opening for conversation - I was annoyed with myself now! - and began listening to the conversation at the other end of the table. She had made an impression on me, but again I reinforced my guard and busied myself with cleaning up after the rehearsal dinner and hanging out with the groomsmen afterwards.

        But fortunately for me, this wasn't the last time I would see this beautiful young woman...