The Happy Couple
Nicole was a bride-to-be living in California. She taught elementary school and her fiance, James, worked as an air conditioning engineer. The couple shared a love of sports, movies, and motorbikes. They had a great relationship, and both of their families supported the upcoming nuptials.
Nicole’s Father and Everyone Else
Nicole’s father was wearing her patience thin. He would come over unannounced and acted strangely. She felt like he was keeping a secret from her which was strange in her family. She ignored his strange behavior since they was family. She just wanted to enjoy the days leading up to her wedding day. Nicole says that everyone else was excited. Her students would ask about the wedding, and one of her students drew her a picture of Nicole and James. Her joy made it possible to ignore the secret that she believed her father to be keeping.
Knitting With Mom
Nicole and her mother had a close relationship. They often spent time knitting together in the evenings while chatting. When her father was home, he would talk with them as well. Nicole believed that they were a close family and there were no secrets between them. When she announced her engagement, they couldn’t wait to help with the wedding. They spent so much time together that Nicole couldn’t imagine that her father could have a hidden agenda.
Counting Down the Days
As Nicole’s wedding day got closer, she became more and more excited. She subscribed to online wedding planners to make sure that everything would be perfect. She even had a wedding website which counted down the months, days, hours, and minutes leading up to her wedding. She couldn’t wait to become James’ wife. When the day came, she was nervous, but it was a nervous excitement.
No Time Together
Nicole and James both had demanding jobs. Not only was Nicole an elementary school teacher, but she also interpreted sign language. James spent his days out in the 100-degree weather fixing vents. With the wedding getting closer, they had no time to relax and be together. It was an expensive year filled with late nights. Nicole handled it well because she knew that after the wedding, she and James could relax on their honeymoon as husband and wife. She knew that it would all be worth it.
The Big Day
Finally, her wedding day arrived. The weather was perfect, and things were going smoothly. Everything that Nicole worried would happen, didn’t. The day was going great. Her biggest fear was tripping on her dress while walking down the aisle, but that didn’t happen either. The couple had their ceremony, they said, “I do,” and they were finally husband and wife. The day was amazing. At the reception, it was time for people to give their speeches. When it was Nicole’s father’s turn, he mouthed something to her. When Dad mouths 4 words to daughter at wedding, nobody knows what to say. The crowd expected a heartfelt speech, but then the music started playing. It was Nicole’s favorite song. Nicole thought that he would sing, but she was shocked when he began using sign language instead. Nicole was a sign language interpreter, and her father worked for a year to learn the lyrics to her favorite song in sign language to show her how much he appreciated her. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing.
I Loved Her First
Nicole became overwhelmed with emotion. Her father was signing the words for the song; I Loved Her First. Both Nicole and James were in tears. James says that her father’s song moved him as much as it moved Nicole. He loved that fact that his new father-in-law was supportive of their marriage and that he went to such great lengths to show them.
It All Made Sense
Finally, Nicole’s father’s behavior made sense to her. He was acting secretive often because he didn’t want his daughter to know what he was doing. He stopped by her home to say hello late at night often because he was on his way home from his sign language lessons.
The Honeymoon
Right after the reception, Nicole and James left for their honeymoon in Cancun. She posted the video of her father online, and she was getting thousands of comments from people who saw the video. Nicole watched the video often while they were on their honeymoon because it meant so much to her.
The Best Day Of Her Life
Nicole says that her wedding day was the best of her life. Not only did she get to marry the love of her life who she would later travel with the world with, but her father also did something so touching that she would never forget it. She says that her father’s willingness to spend a year learning to sign her favorite song just showed her more how much he truly loved her.
