Four blue i cast to me and trembling
when father knelt me down at altar-stone, at priestly-feet, and thrust my hand out to take two girlish hands. The priestly-man cupped our crowns in priestly-hands and said: “A marriage is as much a vow twixt family as twixt woman, man. And so, brother, do you vow to bear these sisters and keep their virtues pure until you can deliver them to husbands on some bright future day?”
No words, said i. Til father jostled shoulders, hissed: “That’s you.”
And so solemnly i vowed to them, “Of course. I do, I do.”
