I was about five years old. One day, a neighbor who was a friend of my mom's had to go to her niece's (?) wedding and asked my mom if I wanted to go. My mom said yes, so I went to my first wedding.

It's one of my most vivid memories, but it comes in pieces. I remember the building where the party was; I know where it is, and whenever I pass by (which isn't very often), the memories come flooding back. I remember the party: there was music and lots of people. It was the late '80s, so you can imagine the music (Pet Shop Boys, Depeche Mode, etc.). From that moment on, for me, the best song in the world is "Always on My Mind" by Pet Shop Boys (the extended version).

I was looking at all of that when I saw her: she was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen in my entire life, an angel who had come down from heaven with her blonde hair, her blue eyes, her smile and her beautiful white dress. I was completely captivated by her beauty. I remember her flowing dress, her white headdress, her white stockings (not sure if i had a glimpse of a garter, but i believe so) and her white shoes. I remember how everything seemed to float when she danced, I remember her laughter, I remember my emotion when she approached, bent down, and kissed me on the cheek. I didn't know it then (I found out when I got home and my mom smiled and said, "So you have a girlfriend now?") but she left a red mark on my face that I think I'll always have on my right cheek...

She was so beautiful, so heavenly beautiful, that I fell madly in love not only with her, but with the archetype she represented. I fell so deeply in love that I began to wish I could be her, to look as beautiful as her, to wear that gorgeous dress, those shoes, that headpiece... It was an epiphany for me, the first time I ever wished I were a bride.

Back home, I spent the following nights literally dreaming that I was her, feeling that dress on my skin and everyone's eyes on me, knowing I was beautiful. And that desire never left me; it was a cornerstone in the construction of who I am today.