“The crows have flown away, together, Tonie. It is uncanny, but, as you say, I think they are happy to be together again.”
I had a sudden thought. “Suzanne, isn’t a collection of crows called a ‘murder of crows’?”
Epilogue
At noon on Saturday, the nineteenth of May, 2018, Suzanne and I were married at St. John’s Church on Brooklands Road, in Sale. It was no coincidence that this was the very same day and time that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were married at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle. Apart from the date and time, there was little else in common between the two marriages.
Unlike the royal couple, at least we would not be followed by news-hungry paparazzi, never being able to escape public scrutiny.
When I had been asked about who was going to be my best man, I had to admit that I did not have a male friend who could take the part, as I had never really had any close friends. I did have some friends from school and University, yet nobody who was close enough to play this important role.
There was really only one option. I felt certain that Kelly would not mind playing this role, even though her gender was, technically, incorrect. She would not be able to give a speech at our reception, but this could well have been a blessing.
Kelly and I were waiting patiently, as Suzanne and her father walked, slowly, along the aisle towards us. I only knew this because the church organ had started playing “Here comes the bride”, but, in my mind, I could imagine how beautiful she must have looked as she approached me.
When I felt her hand take mine, I gave it a gentle squeeze of reassurance and smiled, happy to be together on this, the most important day of our lives.
The priest’s voice echoed around the church, boosted by the amplifier as he made his introductory greeting and speech, followed by the all-important wedding vows. As usual for a Church of England wedding, the priest prompted both of us, in turn, with the precise wording.
“I, Tonie James Buckingham, take you, Suzanne Olivia Clover, to be my wife, to have and to hold from this day forward; for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death us do part, according to God’s holy law. In the presence of God I make this vow.”
It was amazing to think that, just twelve months earlier, marriage would have been the last thing on my mind and, yet, here I was, saying these vows for the most fantastic woman who, I hoped, would be my partner for the rest of my life.
Again, the priest said the vow for Suzanne to repeat. Her soft, sweet voice was enough to make my heart melt.
“You may exchange your rings, now.”
I had fastened a small box to Kelly’s harness and, bending down to open it, took hold of the all-important ring. Suzanne held out her hand and I slipped it on to her wedding finger. Similarly, Suzanne slipped a ring onto my own finger.
When the priest asked if anybody present should speak if they knew of any reason why we should not marry, I breathed a sigh of relief at the awkward silence. I had imagined that Suzanne’s mother may still have objected, at this point, yet I knew that her previous doubts about my ability to be a suitable husband to her daughter had since disappeared.
“I now pronounce you man and wife.”
I could hear the smile in the priest’s voice as he continued. “You may kiss, now.”
We really did not need his permission as we kissed each other gently on the lips, aware of the many pairs of eyes watching us.
Moving to a separate Registry room within the church, together with relatives as witnesses, both of us signed the marriage register, Suzanne assisting me to sign in the correct place.
We were now legally married and feeling thoroughly exalted by the significance of the ceremony as we re-entered the Church for prayers and hymns. As we took our places in the pews, Kelly lay down at my feet. She probably wondered what all this was about, but was eager to get to her feet when it came to the walk along the aisle.
Although the bride is, traditionally, on the left of the groom as they walk together along the aisle, in our case, Kelly was, in harness, on my left with Suzanne on my right. I had to hold Kelly back a little to keep her at a slow pace as we walked along the aisle to Adele’s moving version of Bob Dylan’s “make you feel my love”. Both of us felt this song to be perfect and appropriate for this walk in front of our family and friends. My sister, Hannah was very proud to be the bridesmaid, walking behind us.
As we came out through the main doors of the church, I could feel the heat of the sun on my face. Relatives and friends, even some from our office, followed us into the bright, sunny day. We had to endure posing for many photographs and videos to be taken of this quite large group, who had chosen to attend our wedding instead of following the royal wedding on television. No doubt, most would, later, watch recordings of Meghan and Prince Harry.
I hoped that my smile was not looking too exaggerated as the cameras continued clicking. Suddenly, I felt Suzanne’s hand tighten on my arm. “What is it, love?”
Quietly, she explained, “I’m certain that the two crows sitting on a tree branch, facing us right now, are the same as those we spotted in our garden, a few weeks ago.”
I did feel a sudden chill race through my body, yet relaxed when Suzanne said, “The crows have just flown away, now, as if they were saying a final ‘goodbye’ to us.” After a short pause, she exclaimed, “How fantastic! The space were the crows were sitting, now has the sunlight shining through the branches, somehow making the shape of the crucifix!”
It was almost as though the crows had left some remarkable, ethereal blessing for our wedding. I whispered, “I think that Ivanko and Selmira are in their own form of paradise, now.” Prompted by the photographer, we had to pose and smiled, again, for the camera. “You are my own personal paradise, Suzanne. Love you, always.”
Dedication
I married my first wife, Marie, in 1967. Marie was totally blind when I first met her and, during 1969, we did experiment with a Ouija board, something which we probably should have avoided. We did experience some strange happenings, which resulted in Marie turning to automatic writing, instead of using the Ouija board. Eventually, after some weird experiences and painful headaches for Marie, we decided to stop trying to make any further contact with the dead.
Marie did have a German Shepherd guide dog called Kelly during part of our 20-year marriage and Marie is happy for me to use Kelly’s name in my story.
I would like to dedicate this book to Marie as, without her weird and unusual experiences, this story could not have been told.
Copyright
Copyright © 2019 J. S. Raynor
KINDLE Edition
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book, or portions thereof in any form. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored, in any form or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical without the express written permission of the author.
This is a work of fiction. Names and characters are the product of the author’s imagination and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.
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