On June 20th, I did something I never thought I would do. After two dozen relationships and countless “adventures” – I stood in front of my family, friends and colleagues…

…and I married my Julie.

In a tuxedo, standing in front of Archbishop David I. Hartman, I looked into her beautiful eyes and said the following:

“Judy Garland once said, ‘For it was not into my ear you whispered, but into my heart. It was not my lips you kissed, but my soul.’

For close to two years you have done that each and every day – and so much more. You have laughed at my jokes, wiped tears from my face, tolerated my craziness – and made my life much better then it ever has been. When I met you, we were friends and nothing more – each of us, up to that point – on completely different paths down the road of life. For a few years we remained friends, causally entering each other’s lives now and then at South Park conventions. But then, by no fault of our own – we lost contact for close to three years. It was only a matter of circumstance – or now I say fate – that we found each other again – but found not friends – but life partners.

And now, here today in front of those we love – we make our partnership official – and lifelong.

Julie Ann Somerville, I, Paul Wein take you to be my lawfully wedded wife, to love and to cherish, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part.

You say the same thing to me each time I thank you for doing me a selfless favor. You say, ‘Oh baby, you deserve it’ While I thank you for that and still feel I don’t, what you deserve is a lifetime of happiness, laughter, memories, pleasure, jokes, romance and tears of joy – and again, in front of the most special people in our lives – I promise that that is precisely what I am going to give you.

To the rest of the journey – together – I love you.”

Julie, looking like a Goddess in her wedding dress, looked at me and said:

“I never thought I would ever find anyone who loves me the way you do, someone who’s as devoted to me as you are and believes in me as much as you do. The love and support you have given me has been the best thing to ever happen to me, and I can’t thank you enough for that. You make life worth living, and you make every day a million times better than it would be without you.

All the years we were just friends, I never imagined true love was staring me in the face. When you and I got back in touch I knew we had something special, and my only regret is that we didn’t realize it sooner. You have shown me what true love really is and I will always be grateful for that. The love that we share is so amazing to me that sometimes I still don’t believe it’s real. I have never met anyone more accepting of me, or more devoted to me than you are. It amazes me every day that you love me as much as I know you do.

As we stand here today, pledging our love to each other, I want you to know how much you mean to me and that I would go to the ends of the earth to make you happy. If I can bring you half as much joy as you’ve brought me, I’ll have accomplished something amazing in my life. I know that no matter what life throws at us, we will deal with it together, and we will be stronger because we have each other. I love the life we’ve built together and I can’t wait to continue on the journey as husband and wife.

I Julie, take you Paul, to be my lawfully wedded husband. To have and to hold, from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and cherish till death do us part.”

Honestly, I was never nervous – because I knew marrying her was absolutely the right decision. She is the definitive poster child of a woman. Other girls I have dated could not hold a candle to her. In the past, I have written columns about how horrible relationships are – much less marriage. But Julie showed me the light, the love – and the life. We are only two weeks into our marriage – and I already feel the warmth of forever.

I love you Mrs. Paul Wein – ‘till death do us part.