Four Feet More

Yesterday, my dear friend Cathy married her Prince Charming, Matte. They met more than two years ago, after a mutual friend (with extraordinary matchmaking skills) introduced them, and it was clear that they were perfect for each other. Cathy is such a wonderful person, and Matte truly deserves everything she has to give.

Cathy and I met 7 years ago when she joined the dresser crew backstage at the American Musical Theater of San Jose. I helped show her the ropes, and we soon became fast friends. She has this incredible smile that puts Mary Lou Retton's to shame, and a fantastic sense of humor to go along with it. Since she had broken up with her boyfriend, J, she was now single and on the prowl. Unfortunately, musical theatre is not the best place to look for a date, as most of the male cast members are gay. So, we began a system of putting a dot by the names of the men in the cast who were straight (a much easier task than marking the ones that were gay), just to let the single dressers (mostly Cathy) know which guys could potentially fall for their charms. The dressers in the crew who were "taken" made it our personal mission to match Cathy with one of the cute cast members. But, despite the fact that she captured the attention of a guy in the cast who was wanted by all the long-legged chorus girls (you GO Cathy!), a long-term romance with an actor was just not for her.

Then her ex-boyfriend, J, was diagnosed with a very aggressive and rare form of cancer. Cathy put her life on hold for a year to become his caretaker, staying by his side through numerous chemo treatments and a stem-cell transplant. She gave everything she had to him, and nearly finished herself off in the process. That's the kind of person Cathy is - so giving and loyal that she often puts the needs of others before of her own. I became very worried about Cath during this time because I suspected that J was the kind of person to take everything she had to give, and give nothing in return. Sadly, my suspicions were mostly confirmed, and Cathy was heartbroken. However, from that experience, she emerged a stronger person, and when J passed away a year later, she had the courage to forgive him and forge a wonderful friendship with his girlfriend.

This newfound strength has stayed with her, and when she met Matte it became even more solidified in her personality. Matte is the first person Cathy has been with who gave her every bit as much as she gave him. He has never taken Cathy for granted, and his support for her is unwavering. He knows what she experienced with J, and he is proud of her for coming through that difficult time the way that she did. When I first met Matte, I could instantly see the deep respect, admiration and love he has for Cathy. Even more importantly, I could see how it affected her. She became more confident and sure of herself, and truly blossomed under his regard. I was (and am) so happy for her because finally, she has gotten what she so deeply deserves: unconditional love.

The wedding yesterday was such a wonderful celebration of that love. It also showed the quirks of Cathy and Matte's personalities in some really fun ways. For example, their wedding day happened to be the 30th anniversary of the release of the first Star Wars movie. Being a huge fan, Matte could not let this happy coincidence go unnoticed. Pointing the way to the wedding (which was held at an extremely classy winery) was a cardboard cutout of C3PO and R2D2. All the tables were named after Star Wars characters (the dressers were seated at the "Jawa" table), and in order to get the bride and groom to kiss, you had to answer a Star Wars trivia question instead of clinking your champagne glass. It was funny to see small pictures of Obi-Wan Kenobi and the Death Star among the beautiful table settings of orchids, candles and twinkling white lights. These little non-traditional touches made the wedding even more memorable than it already was.

Matte is also a big fan of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, so when his best man asked us to toast the happy couple, several wedding guests threw actual pieces of toast at them. It was hilarious! Although, I must admit that I was a bit scared by how well Matte danced "The Time Warp." Clearly, he has seen the movie a few too many times....

Despite the whole "Rocky Horror" thing, Matte is perfect for Cathy, and she is perfect for him. I wish them many years of happiness, and look forward to seeing them grow old together. Congratulations Matte and Cathy! I'm thrilled you found each other and extremely honored to be a part of your lives.


The dressers ducked into the photo booth for a "moment" with C3PO.

Don't tell Matte!