Work It Out

Wendy sits staring at the front door of her home, afraid to leave. She lives in the house her father and mother built. Both are deceased now. Her only companions are the two cats that came on her porch and never left. Today will be the day she leaves the house, just to see what it’s like outside. It would seem like a simple thing to do, but Wendy is afraid to go outside. For years after she would come home from school, she would retreat to her room. Her parents weren’t particularly social, so it never occurred to them that Wendy was regressing with each passing year.

Wendy sat almost in a daze as she recounted the time her parents wanted to get away for a weekend. They left her home. They never really understood that Wendy had not developed the skills to be at home alone. They also failed to monitor that she really didn’t know how to cook. She was totally dependent on both parents. When they died within months of each other, Wendy was angry because she felt that dad died so soon after her mom, just so he didn’t have to deal with her. The grass was overgrown, and the house needed repairs. Wendy had money in an account that had been set up by her parents, so there wasn’t a need for her to work.

Today Wendy was gathering the mail that came as it did each day. It was beginning to pile up high. There was a case worker who stopped by to check on her – basically to make sure the utilities were paid; insurance was up to date and that there was food in the house. The social worker had arranged for grocery delivery. Things were going well.

Today’s mail was different. REVIVAL AT TABERNACLE BAPTIST CHURCH @ 7pm - read the note. Wendy was curious and thought she would check out the revival. She just had to get up the nerve to leave the house. The time was now 4 pm so Wendy needed to get ready. By 5pm she was dressed, staring at the front door. She only had a few choices in her closet, so she picked the one with the least amount of dust on it.

The revival location was in walking distance to Wendy’s home. She was almost in a catatonic state as she walked to the church. There were jaunts and jeers “cat lady”, weirdo, and the like. She kept focused on making it to the revival location.

As she approaches the door, she can hear an organ and the building sounding like it’s rocking from side to side. When she opens the door, there stands a man at back of the church holding the door closed. Wendy knocks on the door and the gentlemen still doesn’t open the door. She begins to pull on it. Finally, the young man on the other side says “It’s not time to go in” Wendy looks at the flier that was left at her house noting the time was 7:03 PM. She realizes she’s late and can’t get in. Perhaps she misread the paper at her home. As she walks back to the edge of the driveway of the church, a man pulls up. “I think you’re going the wrong way”. Wendy responds “No, I was too late, and they closed the doors on me. The man laughed as though he thought Wendy was joking. He then realized she wasn’t. No, he said. During the opening prayer you can’t walk in. Most of us regulars know that if we’re not on time, we just come later so we can get in. Wendy looked really confused. The man finally says, “Hi, I’m Scott”. Wendy just stares at him. Come on in with me. It’ll be fine. Once the doors open, Scott whisks Wendy to the front row of the church. Wendy signals “no”, but Scott insists. Wendy manages to sit through the entire revival and as she gets up to leave Scott motions for her to remain. Wendy is fascinated by the church service. She’s never been to an African American Baptist Church. “Don’t you want to meet the Pastor? Before Wendy could respond, Scott is navigating her through the crowd to meet the Pastor. The Pastor is a bit taken aback by the unsolicited introduction. Scott introduces Wendy to the Pastor as simply – Wendy. Scott then tells her it’s okay to leave. As Scott walks away the Pastor walks over to one of his officers and says” a really strange thing just happened. I was just introduced to a visitor by the name of Wendy, but I have no idea who just introduced me to her”. The church offer wondered what was so strange about being introduced to a visitor. The Pastor said, well, it’s not every day that two white folks come inside our church and sit on the front row during revival. Before he could point out who he was referring to the couple had disappeared into the crowd.

Outside the church, Wendy is walking home, Scott pulls up beside her in his vehicle and asks if he can take her home. Wendy smiles but then points to her house which is visible from where they are talking. “Wow, you live really close.” Wendy looks and smiles but doesn’t answer. She now observes that Scott is not bad on the eyes. Wendy manages a smile and continues to walk while Scott continues to follow her. “Do you have a phone number?” Wendy says yes. “Can I have it?” “I’m not sure” Let me think about it. She stands there and pulls out her phone. She goes through a series of social queries in her phone. She types in “how long do you have to know someone before you give them your phone number?’ The answer: It depends. Wendy types in “depends on what? – the query returns the response “it depends on where you met them” Wendy then types in “Safe places to meet people?”. The Query returns the answers- Library, school reunions, church, The theater.

Wendy then abruptly responds “Okay” I’ll give you my phone number and does. “Thanks, Wendy”. I’ll call you soon.

By now it was dark, and Wendy needed to get inside the house. She really didn’t’ like leaving, so she was feeling a bit anxious. She makes a sandwich and then climbs in the bed. She starts using her social que app again.

Query: “how do you know when a guy is interested in you?” Response: They ask you out, and or ask if they can contact you.

Wendy seemed excited, but also nervous. It’s now about 10 pm. She gets a text message. Its Scott.

Scott text – “Are you busy? Wendy – “not really”.

Within seconds, Scott calls. Hey, do you want to talk? Wendy replies – my phone is almost dead. Okay, then I’ll come over so we can talk……….

Within 3 minutes, Scott is at the door. Wendy lets him in. They talk for hours about very uncommon things. He tells her that he can’t swim and doesn’t eat vegetables. She tells him that she bathes in water but doesn’t swim in it. She likes fruit and bread, but no vegetables.

Scott asks her if she lives alone. Wendy says yes. “I have people who check on me though”. Scott responds, “Oh I see”. He asks her if she has a washing machine. Wendy says yes. “Can I see it?” Wendy takes him to the hallway and pulls open the closet to reveal the washing machine and dryer. “Nice”. May I use your washer sometime? Wendy “Sure”. After about an hour of disconnected chatter, Scott falls asleep in the chair. Wendy just sits there watching him. She gets him a blanket but doesn’t awaken him.

At about 5 am Scott’s phone rings. It awakens her. She can hear him say, Oh, I fell asleep, I’m on the way home. Scott jumps up and says, I must check in. I’ll be right back.

Scott is gone for about an hour and then returns with a laundry basket. Wendy lets him in. He looks at his watch and says “I have to be at work in 30 minutes. Can you take care of this for me? Wendy has nowhere to go, and nothing really planned, so she says “Sure”.

Wendy takes the 2 laundry bags. Each has been separated by color. She dumps the colored bag on the floor. The bag is filled with a variety of T-shirts. She begins to read them.

“WWJD, The Time is Now, “It’s never too late”.

Wendy washes the T shirts – folds them and puts them back in the bag. She also washes the white clothes – mostly shirts and underwear.

Scott returns at about 4 pm. He has groceries. He stands in the main room and looks around. “I bought groceries for you to cook dinner.” Wendy looks hesitant because she doesn’t really cook that well but says “okay”. He asks where his laundry is” She points to the bags. He asks if she has an open drawer that he can put the items in? Wendy says yes. “I’ll put my clothes away and then come and help you with dinner.” Wendy points to a cabinet in her main room that has drawers in it. Scott says, no, the drawers should be in the bedroom. He follows her to the bedroom and begins to open her drawers. “I’ll move all of your things to one side, and I’ll put my things on the other side.

He then follows Wendy to the kitchen where they make grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup. Scott tells Wendy how that is his favorite meal. She looks on the cabinet to see 4 loaves of bread and 6 packages of cheese slices. “Wow, that’s a lot of cheese and bread”. Scott told her it was free.

He looks at his watch and says – it’s time for us to go to church.

Wendy tells him that she really doesn’t like going out. Scott tells her that things are different now that he’s there. Wendy repeats that she doesn’t’ really like going out. Scott says, “where is your coat?”.

They return to the church where they met. This time, they sit on the back row. The Pastor notices them while he’s in the pulpit during his sermon. After service, he makes his way to the back of the church. He purposefully approaches the couple because he remembers they were just there two nights ago. He thinks for a moment, then remembers……….” Wendy?” She responds, yes. And your friend. Scott says nothing. The pastor stands there waiting for Scott to respond. He looks at Wendy and tells her they must go.

As they exit, the Pastor goes to the door to watch them leave. He then calls out to Wendy, “Will you be coming back?” Before she should answer, Scott says “yes”, we’ll be back. Scott then circles back and says, Pastor, I liked that song you sang today. Which one, asked the Pastor – “Work it out”. Oh, yes. That’s a congregational favorite.

The next day when Wendy awakens, she sees that Scott has neatly folded his blanket on the chair and left a note that he has gone to work. There is a knock on her door. It’s her caseworker. Wendy answers all the usual questions asked by the caseworker – The caseworker notes the large amount of bread on the cabinet. “Did you overspend your budget on groceries this month? No, Wendy replied. The bread was free. The caseworker continues to ask her how things are going. Wendy is becoming agitated. She realizes by looking at her watch that Scott is due home any minute. Wendy walks the caseworker to the door and thanks her for her monthly visit.

Before Wendy can return to her chair, Scott knocks on the door. Wendy races to open the door. “Who was that Scott asks?”. “my caseworker responds Wendy”. “You don’t need a caseworker, says, Scott, you have me. I’m going to need a key though, so I can let myself in when I need to.

Wendy grabs her jacket and they both drive to the locksmith. Scott emerges from the hardware store with a key. He also gives her a set of keys to his car. Scott then says, we must share everything.

Do you have a bank account? Wendy responds that she has a trust fund and a bank account. She said the caseworker checks on my trust fund. Scott notes that he needs to deposit money into her account. He will bring the money tomorrow. The following day, Scott arrives as promised with a bag of money. He pours in on the table and they count it. $20,000. How are we going to deposit all this money into my account? Wendy takes her phone and looks up bank deposit. She tells Scott there are rules about depositing cash into the bank. “I read that you can set up direct deposit for your checks from work. Let’s just keep this cash at home.

“Do we need to buy anything?” Wendy replies – you need to buy a bed instead of sleeping in the chair. “Why don’t we buy a bigger bed for your room, asks Scott, Okay, sure, Wendy, replies.

Scott goes out the next morning to buy a bed. He pulls up in front of the house with a mattress on the top of the car. Wendy meets him at the front door “Where is the rest of the bed?” “I’m bringing it home in pieces, says Scott. I have 3 more trips. By 8 pm, the bed is fully assembled in the bedroom. Scott says “I think you’re supposed to take a shower before you go to bed. Wendy says okay and takes a shower. Then Scott takes a shower. They get in bed together. Scott says, “you know what happens next right?” Wendy looks puzzled then says, “wait a minute”. Wendy puts on her robe and goes into the living room. She queries her app – Sex? She begins to read what comes up on the search in her phone. After about an hour, Scott calls out to her Wendy returns to the bedroom and says, no sex until after marriage, I think. Scott replies really. He stares at Wendy for quite a long time. He then says, Okay. The next day he goes to the Jewelry store and is looking at rings. He asks to try on one. The Jeweler is getting annoyed because he has asked to see every ring in the case. The Jeweler says “perhaps we should take you to our selection that is more within your price range? Scott opens the bag of cash and asks the clerk to look inside. “Is this enough to buy a ring? The Jeweler says absolutely – but you really shouldn’t be carrying around a bad of money. Please put that under your coat young man. The Jeweler asks what size ring – Scott points at his pinkie. Scott finally yells out – I want the one that talks about getting naked. People in the shop begin to stare – he points to a ring that says “closeout”. No, said the jeweler. That means it’s the last of its kind and you can’t return it. It has nothing to do with clothes.

Scott returns home with the ring. Dinner is waiting on the table – Grilled cheese and tomato soup. Scott says grace and then slides a bag across the table. Wendy looks inside and removes the tiny box inside. She opens the box. She smiles and places the ring on the table. She picks up her phone and queries “where to place a ring from a man”. She says “I think you’re supposed to say something before I put it on. Scott says, “like what?” “I don’t know. I ‘ll look it up, but I’m pretty sure you’re supposed to say something. Wendy leaves the room and then returns with a screen shot of a man on his knees. She plays the video of a man proposing to his girlfriend at a park. Scott says, play it again so I can see.

Scott looks at Wendy, grabs her by the arm and takes her outside in the back yard. He kneels. “Will you marry Scott? Scott likes living with you. Your bed is nice, and you make great grilled cheese sandwiches”. Wendy says “give me a minute to think about it. Scott says that he can’t return the ring, so she has to say yes. She sees the tag that says closeout. She snaps the ring box closed. Scott asks why she slammed the box? She said the box must be shut after you take the ring out. You must close when the ring is out.

The next day Scott and Wendy go to the church, hoping to speak with the Pastor. They tell him they want to get married so they can sleep together. The Pastor just stares at them. He said “Technically, you don’t need to be married to sleep together. I admire your desire to follow biblical principles, but I would advise that you should be in love before you get married.

Scott then says “I bought this ring so I could sleep with her. She said we had to get married. Now you’re saying I must love her too? This is too complicated. Wendy begins to cry. Well, then don’t marry me. The Pastor asks “is there anyone who helps you make these kinds of decisions young lady? “You mean my caseworker?”, Yes, your caseworker? “Scott said I didn’t need a caseworker, that he would take care of things for us. This is all so confusing, says Wendy, - Scott, let’s go home. The Pastor then says, let me make a phone call to see if I can get someone to help you. Scott then changes demeanor and says to the Pastor, unless you’re calling God, we don’t need any help. Can you marry us or not? We have money. Scott pulls the bag out from under his coat. The Pastor sees all the money in the bag. The Pastor tells them to go home and he will make some calls to assist them in getting married. He asks them both to write down their names. He tells them to come back in the morning at 10 AM.

That night they laid in bed and Scott told Wendy – I feel something strange. Wendy said – I do too. “do you think we should try something before we see the Pastor tomorrow? Wendy says, sure. They go under the blankets and after about 10 minutes figure out how to relieve the tension they are feeling. Scott then says, “that was interesting”. Wendy says – yes it was. Let’s do it again – “now? Says Scott? Sure, says Wendy. What’s wrong. Scott “I’m not sure, but I don’t think I can do anything right now. Wendy looks frustrated but says, okay let’s try again tomorrow……..before we go to see the Pastor.

The next morning when Scott and Wendy go inside the Pastors office, Wendy’s former caseworker is there with a Sheriff’s deputy. The Pastor begins to explain why the caseworker is there. Scott says commandingly, “we don’t need no caseworker to get married do we? The caseworker looks at the Pastor, without speaking to Scott and says “Pastor, he walked away from his group home. They have been looking for him for weeks. Wendy then says “he lives with me. The caseworker says “I know, and I’m very concerned about that. Scott then says, I’m my own guardian. I can live where I want. Wendy then says, yes he lives with me. The caseworker looks at Wendy and says, ‘I just visited you a few weeks ago. You didn’t have anyone living with you. Now you have a strange man living in your home and you’re talking about getting married. You have no idea what you are doing. Wendy asks the caseworker if she is married? The caseworker says, not anymore. I’m divorced. Wendy responds, well I can’t; do any worse than you can I? The caseworker gets angry and says, “No, you don’t understand, men can take advantage of you. Scott says “No, she wanted to do it again and I couldn’t. “What?’, said the caseworker? That’s right said Scott. She wanted to do it again and I couldn’t. The caseworker turned four shades of red. “Pastor, this is highly unusual and I’m not sure what to say. The caseworker then looks at Wendy and asks her “Are you in love with this man?” Wendy calmly responds, No. She then looks at Scott and says, are you in love with Wendy. He calmly says, No. “Wendy, do you see he doesn’t love you? “Well, says Wendy, I don’t love him either, so it seems like we’re on the same page as far as that goes. Wendy, you are asking to marry a man who does not love you, and you’re having sex with him. “Sex? Who’s having sex? Well, I’m assuming that what you just described was sex. Wendy then says “Oh, what we did under the blankets? That was nice. Scott chimes in “It sure was”. Pastor asks Wendy and Scott to step outside of his office. The caseworker remains inside.

The Pastor is holding his head – “well, what do you think?” The caseworker responds: Well, technically and legally they are their own guardians. They can do anything they want. I’m just concerned that Wendy is not understanding what is happening here. “Look” says the Pastor. I will marry then and invite them to join my congregation. We should be able to give them some supports. The caseworker looks shocked. “Are you serious?” Yes. You just told me that legally they are their own guardians. I’d say that’s the end of that. I’ll get our staff here to help them with their paperwork. It looks like we’re going to have a wedding. The caseworker abruptly leaves, slamming the door behind her. The pastor motions for Scott and Wendy to come back into the office. “I’m going to ask my office staff to assist you in preparing to get married. If I’m going to marry you, I’ll need to give you counseling.

Scott jumps up “No” no counseling. I’ve been through counseling all my life. Wendy shakes her head in the affirmative. Me too, says Wendy. No counseling.

The Pastor laughs – no, it’s something I do for any couple that I’m going to marry. Wendy perks up = “so you’re going to marry us?” “Yes, as long as you come to all of the counseling sessions and try to start coming to church regularly. Scott then looks at the Pastor – “so there’s a catch?” We come to your counseling then we must join your church. Pastor “you come to my counseling, so I can marry you”. I’d like you to consider joining the church, so you can have additional people to meet and get to know. Wendy then looks puzzled. She pulls out her phone and types in marriage counseling. She shares her search results with Scott. “Okay, we’ll do the counseling and then we’ll decide if we want to join your church” As they were about the leave, the pastor said “ Could you refrain from going under the blanket until the counseling has been completed? Scott and Wendy looked at each other……there was a really long silence – a really long silence………………………………………………………………………………………………………..” How long does this counseling take? The Pastor laughs and indicates “about 2 months”. Scott said “Okay, but not a day longer. The pastor then has more detail “And then’s there’s the actual wedding. Did you want something fancy or …… just then Wendy said “I don’t want anything fancy. I just want to wear the dress that my mom bought for me before she passed. It’s in my closet. I’ll wear it to our last day of counseling and then you can marry us when we finish. The Pastor chuckled, and said, we’ll work out the logistics.

When Scott and Wendy got home, Scott flopped in the chair in the living room. He looked disappointed. What’s wrong Scott” asked Wendy, “oh nothing…….I just have to sleep on the couch for the next 2 months. Why, asked Wendy? Well, if I get in that bed with you and can’t go under the blanket, what’s the point? Wendy stares at him and says, “then I’ll sleep out here on the chair and we’ll save the bed for after we get married, does that sound fair? Scott smiled and said okay – I’m going to make a grilled cheese. Wendy said “no, let’s celebrate”. I’ll make double decker grilled cheese.

About a month has passed and the counseling sessions are going fine. Scott and Wendy had not missed one session. In fact, the pastor had to remind them they didn’t need to arrive so early. The first appointment they were 2 hours early. The second appointment only 1 hour early. Subsequent appointments they were about 15 minutes early. During the appointments, they reconciled what married life would be like and made lists of things they would need to take care of. The church staff thoroughly enjoyed working with them and was excited about their upcoming nuptials.

On this day, Scott shows up for the counseling session without Wendy. He asks if he can speak to the Pastor before Wendy arrives. The Pastor tells him to make himself comfortable, but Scott is anxious – palms and hands sweating. What’s wrong, the pastor asks? Well, Pastor, I’ve not been totally honest in these meetings. I don’t know if you know it or not, but I have a disability. Some say I have behaviors. – repetitive behaviors. The Pastor smiles and says, Scott, we all have something that we spend our lifetimes trying to manage out of the way. I counsel people all day. I have people who have addictions, and all type of issues that they conceal daily – the world doesn’t label them as quickly as they might label your disability. Scott looks and says “but I haven’t told Wendy that I have a disability, yet and we have two more sessions – well actually one more and then we get married. The Pastor looks at him and says, well then, I guess you’d better consider telling her today? Scott then looks frightened – well what if she calls it off? The Pastor pauses and then looks at him and says, well then, I guess that’s where that love thing comes in. If she doesn’t want to marry you, then she’s not willing to commit to loving you. The last time we talked about love, neither of you admitted to loving each other. Is that still the case?

Scott smiles and says “I just know that nobody makes grilled cheese the way she does, or irons my shirts or smells pretty. She doesn’t raise her voice at me when I do something wrong, she’s patient while other people laugh or criticize me. “Well, I’d say that’s what love looks like – when the other person knows and accepts your faults, but still wants to be around you.” Let’s see what Wendy has to say when you tell her your secret.

By then Wendy arrives at the appointment and wonders if she’s late. “Did I get the time wrong? – No, says Scott. I’ve got something to tell you that might change everything. Wendy responds “well then I better sit down – most of the movies I watch say you need to be sitting down for bad news – and something says this might be bad news. Scott takes her by the hand and says “I have a disability” ……. Wendy interrupts “you mean how you repeat yourself and do things that make people laugh sometimes? Scott says, yes. Well perhaps you didn’t notice I have some quirks as well. I was always told not to tell anyone. I’m more detailed than you are. I noticed our medications are the same. I looked up your medications and guessed that something was going on – but I guess what I’m trying to say is that it didn’t matter to me because you were the first man that ever was kind to me, didn’t tease mem call me cat lady or make me feel foolish. You said I smelled nice, and you ate my cooking. You never ever once looked at me like I was less than perfect. You paid our bills from the first day you moved in and worked all day to make sure I had what we needed. I looked up qualities in a man (she pulls out this printout from google). I checked next to each of them. Out of 10 things you scored 9 of them. The only reason you didn’t score a 10 was because I never met your family or any of your friends. That would have given you a 10. “Really, said Scott? Really, said Wendy. After the session, Scott told Wendy he would meet her at the house that he had an errand to run. He drove about 7 miles to a huge estate in the country. He went to the back door. A woman answered the door and said, “OH my god – John come quick, its Scott”. Where have you been, the woman scoffed between tears and joy and anger. We hadn’t heard from you, so we went to your group home and they had to admit they didn’t know where you were. We contacted the bank and could see that you had withdrawn some of your money, so we hired a PI to make sure it was you. Scott laughed – a private investigator – mom? Look Scott, we agreed that you wanted to live your own life, but all bets are off if we think you’re not safe. Just then Scott’s father runs down the steps to the door, trying to look normal but is obviously relieved.

Scott was fixated as though he didn’t hear a word his mother said. “Mom, I need to score a 10. “What? Said his mother? Well, I’m getting married in a few weeks and I need to score a 10. Scott’s dad chimes in “what about this 10 thing?

“Wendy says that her perfect man is a 10 and I only scored a 9. She said that if she had met my family or friends that I would have been a 10. Well, I’m out of options because I don’t have any friends. All I have is Wendy.

Scott’s mom begins to cry. “Well of course we have to meet Wendy. When can we meet her? “Well, says Scott, I guess you should meet her before the wedding, because she deserves a 10. You wait right here, and I’ll go and get her. Scott returns in about an hour with Wendy. Wendy asks what is this place – is it like a library? Scott says, no, this is where my family lives. “What family?” My family. My parents live here. I don’t live here though. I didn’t want to live here. I wanted to live on my own. I need to be a 10. “What – then Wendy laughs, oh, that.

Wendy meets Scott’s parents. Of course, Scott’s mom has tons of questions about the wedding. “Could you at least have the wedding here at our home?” Wendy looked at Scott and said “I don’t want anything fancy – just something small with me and Scott and the Pastor and the church choir– and I guess well you two. The mom then said, well Scott has sisters and brothers and nieces and nephews. Can they come to? Wendy asks her to wait a minute. She goes to her phone and types in # of guests at a small wedding.

Okay, says Wendy. No more than 50 people. “That’s what a small wedding should be. No more than 50 people. Oh, two more requests, says Scott. I want to invite the fellas from my old group home and can the choir sing “Work it out? – Scott’s mom looks puzzled and says What” - Yes, work it out – that’s the song I want them to sing at our wedding.

Finally, the big day was here. Scott wakes Wendy and is kneeling next to her. She opens her eyes. “It’s our wedding day” says Scott, Yes, I know, says Wendy. “Are you sure?” Wendy says, “no – absolutely nothing is certain. I’m certain about us together more than I am about me apart and alone. “Okay, then says, Scott. The bonus is that you’re marrying a 10” boasts Scott. Yes, I’m marrying a 10. Well, says Scott, we need to stop by the church and get our final counseling session with Pastor and then get to my parents’ house. We have lots to do. Wendy pauses for a moment and smiles – Scott, we have the rest of our lives to do and be whatever we want to be. We’re going to be alright. Aren’t we? I think so, says Scott.

The sky was beautiful as Scott’s parents had prepared the house for their son’s wedding. Even though they didn’t want anything fancy, the home was a spectacular Victorian era estate that was as regal as you could get. The guests were starting to arrive – including the large choir and their musicians.

Meanwhile, Wendy opens the box containing the dress that her mother had left for her. Inside the box was a note. Wendy had never noticed a note being in the box. The note read:

I always told you this was a special dress, but it’s not. What makes this dress special is you. The world will always find a way to tell you that you need something else to make you complete. You have everything you need right inside of you.

Love Mom.

After Wendy put on that dress, she seemed to grow 3 inches. She stood up straight and grabbed her phone. She typed in “how to feel on your wedding day”. Before the screen could load, The word Happy just flashed across her screen. Wendy understood happy very well. Scott made her happy. She understood happy better than she understood love. Love was complicated and didn’t seem to come with a guarantee of happiness. She was about to leave her room to go and get married when her cell phone rang. It was Scott. He asked her “Will you say with me forever? Wendy said yes. “Do you promise to continue to be my best friend? Wendy said yes. When we get done, can we go back to our house and get under the blanket? Wendy said yes. Scott said “Okay, I’m downstairs when you’re ready to get married. Okay, says Wendy, I’m on the way downstairs. When she gets to the top of the stairs and the Pastor sees her, the choir starts singing “Work it out”. Scott’s family stands almost frozen until Scott’s 3-year-old nephew starts clapping, his grandfather starts patting his feet and his roommates from the group home start clapping. The rest of the children follow. The adults look at each other and after a while start rocking too. Scott’s dad looks at him, still puzzled and Scott whispers in his ear “Jesus will work it out”.