Something Old

One thing I haven’t blogged about until now is my engagement ring because it’s such an emotional topic for me. I have to say first of all that I absolutely love my ring. Not only because of the unique design (it definitely doesn’t look like anybody else’s ring!), but because of who it was made for and what it represents. 

 

Before it was ever on my finger, my ring belonged to my grandma, Nanny Waterfall. I already blogged about how my grandparent’s church wedding influenced my wedding vision. What I didn’t mention is that their marriage has shaped the way that I hope my own marriage will be like. Even well into their sixties, my grandparents would go out on date night on Friday Nights for dinner and drinks at their favorite, swanky, Havana restaurant. My grandma would wear perfume and heels because she knew that my grandpa liked them, and he, always the perfect gentleman, would spritz on fresh-smelling cologne and wear a crisp guayabera. Even as a child, I was perfectly aware of how in love my grandparents were; they never yelled or fought in front of us, or lacked respect for one another. Instead, they always called each other by their pet names and handled their disagreements (of which I’m sure there were plenty) with grace and dignity.

My grandparents dancing at a party. Can you spot Miss Waterfall?

They truly believed in “Till death do us part” and faced their share of difficulties as a couple, including several miscarriages, but they always got through them together. Sadly, their marriage was cut short after only 37 years, when my grandpa died of leukemia. Even after his death, my grandma remained utterly in love with grandpa, and continued to wear her rings until she lost her own battle to cancer, nearly 10 years later. 

She didn’t own many possessions, but she knew what her ring meant to me, so it was her one bequeath. A couple of years after she passed, when Mr. Waterfall and I started talking about an engagement, I had only one request: that he use my grandmother’s ring. 

Words cannot even describe how blessed I feel to be able to wear my grandmother’s ring, not only as a symbol of a great marriage, but as a reminder that my grandparents are very much still here with me, accompanying me on my life’s journey. 

Of course, I missed them dearly on my wedding day, because I know how much they would have loved to be there, but it was such a great comfort to be able to glance down at my ring and feel that they were walking down the aisle right alongside me.

Did anybody else wear an heirloom?

All photos personal