The music sounded familiar and soothing yet I knew I had never heard it before. It touched me; it had a presence – it was almost hypnotic. And the fragrance – oh, the fragrance – sweet and barely there. I found myself taking it in, breathing deeply, appreciating it. The hall was filled with more people than I had ever seen in one gathering; strangely there was ample room to move around. Some of them were dancing, some laughing – everyone seemed to be doing something as I looked on.
I couldn’t keep my eyes off her. She was resplendent. Her complexion appeared dew-kissed, flawless, so soft. Her fragrance filled the air delighting every sense in me. Every word she spoke sounded like the harmonious strumming of a harp. The train of her gown floated as she moved. I knew she was looking for a particular place, a spot against the wall, a place where she could be inconspicuous. There would be no more of that. The gathering – this night – was a celebration in her honour and she had no idea. I had been waiting for her all her life.
I just wanted to do something, to be useful, to fade into the background and go unnoticed. These people, they were movers and shakers, they had accomplished important things. They were so beautiful, so, so everything I wasn’t. I kept asking myself the same question.Why had I accepted the invitation? And then I would remember that the invitation was addressed to me with my name engraved in gold! Who was I to be invited to such a place? Who was I to be included, to be chosen? I was afraid someone would figure out that I was an imposter – a fraud – masquerading around as someone who belonged. I clung to those gates. I wanted to stay, but I needed to leave . . . the wallflower needed to leave.
I read her every thought from afar. I was brought to tears knowing that she didn’t understand that I had orchestrated all of this for her. Sure, there were others there. Yes, I invited them, indeed! And I loved each and every one them - but her . . . I had loved her from afar for so very long. I knew her intimately before I had ever laid eyes on her. Her beauty was no comparison to the purity in her heart. Her heart gave me a reason to live, a reason to love as deeply as I did. Every choice I had ever made I had made with her in mind, knowing that one day I would make her mine in every way. We would become one - one heart.
My cowardice convinced me to leave, but my curiosity caught me off-guard. The music began to change, it slowed down. My feet couldn’t move. My legs couldn’t move. My heart began to beat a song that took my breathe away. The sea of people parted down the middle, leaving a straight, but narrow, path to – to – to Him. He was exquisite. He was magnificent. It was as if I could see His heart – and it was beating for me – it was beating for me. He put His hand out and in that exact second I knew . . . I knew Him. I had always known Him. He was the One I had always dreamed of and longed for. He knew me as no one else had. My eyes filled with tears, but I saw more clearly in that moment than I had ever seen in my life. Each beat of my heart brought me closer to Him until we touched. We became one. We became One. I had never been a wallflower in His eyes.
