My parents cut my wedding dress in half the night before my ceremony – so I walked into a small-town American church in full Navy whites, two silver stars on my shoulders, and watched my father’s face drain of color in front of everyone who once thought I was “just the quiet daughter who left for the military.” I always thought weddings brought out the best in families. I pictured the usual American scene: church bells, folding chairs on fresh-cut grass, relatives passing cake and stories down t