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Fast forward to last Sunday, the wedding day. I was nervous but at least I was completely scripted. From the welcome to the closing prayer, I had everything written down. Things would go smoothly, or at least I hoped so. I tried to eat breakfast, honest! But my stomach was in a knot and the best I could do was to drink some tea.
I was nervous up until the wedding ceremony itself. I caught the Professor's kids smoking outside the country club and yelled over to them, "Hey, that stuff legal?"
They answered, "Yeah."
"Too bad," was my reply.
I did learn that Mom was nervous too, though. But I suspected (correctly) that it was about arrangement and not about being married itself. I knew that John and Barbara loved each other very much and this was the right course for them. This day confirmed that for me.
So I paced a bit. Okay, I paced a lot.
The musicians and some of the other people doing stuff, like the accompanyist and vocalist, were amused yet supportive. I greeted some guests, whom I knew from school and just got a kick out of saying, "Hello. Reverend Elliott Wong. Pleased to meet you." I figured that for a few hours, I could be an official minister and I was going to milk it for all that it was worth.
As expected, the wedding ceremony went exceptionally well. My Homily/Charge had a theater theme and the people watching laughed at all the right times. But the show stealer was the Professor. She wrote a reflection about her relationship with John and it showed how clearly that there's wasn't just a love relationship, it was a love affair and it was on-going. It was really beautiful and confirmed my work for them.
I've declared that I've stopped going to weddings, but that's not true. I've continue to go to wedding ceremonies but have stopped going to banquets and receptions. I really do believe in marriage and am proud to witness them taking place. So it's exceptionally meaningful to me to perform a wedding ceremony that will last forever. Barbara's reflection gave me that confidence.
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