Belated Well-Wishing

My baby sister got married last weekend, at a lovely ceremony in Knoxville, TN. I was her matron of honor, and as such, should have given a speech at the reception. Only I sort of forgot about that part until the day of, and didn't have anything prepared. And since I have an allergic reaction to ill-prepared speechifying, I weasled out of the duty, and just let the best man say all the kind words. Which was lame of me. So now that I've had time to think about it, here's what I should have said at the time:

"When Ellen and I were little, I thought we were totally different. She had dark hair, I had light; she was outgoing and bubbly, I was shy; she was an irritating little sister, I was a superior oldest sister. (pause for laughter)

"But as we've gotten older, I've come to realize just how similar we really are. Just about every time we visit each other, we realize we have the same toothbrush or use the same kind of shampoo. We'll email each other on the same day to recommend the same movie to one another. In fact, we even have the same taste in husbands. Unhealthy obsession with video games? Check. A tendency towards scruffy facial hair? Check. Quiet but with a vicious sense of humor? Double check. Having been married myself for nearly 5 years now, I know I thank my lucky stars every day that I have such a wonderful, funny, loving husband to share my life with. Being married to the right person is just about the best thing there is. I know Ellen and Jon are each other's "right person" and I wish them as much happiness and success in married life as I've known so far: may your lives together be doubled in joy and halved in sorrow. To Ellen and Jon!"

And I mean it, too. Sorry it's a little late.