09/21/2025
At my fatherâs funeral, as the priest spoke, the church doors opened. An elderly woman in a vintage wedding dress walked straight to his casket. Her trembling hand rested on the wood as she whispered: âYou finally got to see me in white, Daniel.â Then she began to tell a story that would tear my entire family apart. My name is Kate. Daniel was my father. On the day we laid him to rest, everything seemed ordinary. The organ played softly, the priest spoke gentle words, and my mother sat beside me, pale but composed.
Then the doors opened. A woman, at least seventy, entered slowly. She wore a white lace wedding dress â elegant, old-fashioned, not a costume but something real, something sacred. At first, I thought she must be lost. Then I saw my motherâs face drain of all color.
The woman walked straight to my fatherâs casket, placed her gloved hand on the polished wood, and whispered: âYou finally got to see me in white, Daniel.â
The church erupted in gasps and whispers. She turned, her voice trembling yet clear: âIâm not cra/zy. I know how I look. But if itâs alright, Iâd like to tell you a storyâŚâ She clutched a bouquet of lilies and began: âFifty years ago, I fell in love with a boy named Daniel at our high school prom. He wore a blue tie that clashed with his suit, and he danced like he didnât care. That night he told me, âOne day, Iâll see you in a wedding dress, Ellen. Maybe not tomorrow, but somedayâŚââ
Her eyes filled with tears. âTwo weeks later, he was drafted to Vietnam. He wrote me every week. And I wrote back. We planned a life in letters. But then his letters stopped. Two weeks later, I received a telegram: Killed in action.â
She gripped the casket tighter, her voice breaking. âI mourned him. I never married. I kept my promise â I saved the dress he was supposed to see. For fifty years, I lived with the memory of the boy who said heâd love me forever.â The church was silent. My motherâs hands trembled in her lap. And that was only the beginning of Ellenâs story⌠đ Read more in Comment or Most relevant -> All comments đ