Weddings

Weddings take on many forms depending on where you are when they occur.  If you are the bride or groom, it can be one of the best days of your life, an affirmation on an unknown scale in their previous lives.  For the single person, it can take on the rancor of loneliness, or it can be a sign of hope that there is someone out there in the world waiting to pledge the same.  But, when you are the officiant, things take on a whole new meaning.

This blog is dedicated to the many hats I wear.  One of those hats is wedding officiant.  I've recently been contacted by an acquaintance who was in a jam.  They were days away from getting married and had found themselves without an officiant.  Normally I do weddings for people I know well, but I couldn't let the bride down.  She was panicked.  I agreed.  So, I've spent the last two hours thinking about marriage, and love, and their personal journey to this commitment.  It's a great exercise for a married man.

I think most married people, man or woman, should engage in the exercise of summing up what marriage means.  Simply meditating on the institution is more than most married people do, I think.  I've sat here for the past two or three hours, trying to find the words that express the meaning of love, of marriage, and I am humbled.  How can someone so average be expected to convey the magnitude of such a thing?  I feel an obligation to share both the joys and the warnings to this young couple, but I need to do so in a way that stresses the joy but gives them one small moment of pause to realize the magnitude of the commitment they are about to make. 

Like all my other roles, and all my other hats, I take this process seriously.  I've injected a few jokes to keep it light, but I am in full understanding that what I am being asked to perform is a solemn and serious task.  I hope I've been able to balance those roles.  If not, well, hopefully the open bar starts before the ceremony and no one will notice.