My son got married this weekend. It was a wonderful ceremony and celebration thanks to the tremendous thought, planning and committment of the bride, her family and so many more. This was a long awaited event since it was originally planned for the summer of 2020, but when the pandemic struck, the wedding was postponed to the Fall of 2021.
Thanks to a wet season in the northeast, the foliage bloom arrived late this year providing a beautiful, colorful backdrop for the entire celebration. The fact that the wedding took place in a woodsy, New Hampshire mountain location meant that the weather added drama since that colorful backdrop included a mix of sunshine, blue skies and clouds of all hues from fluffy white to dark gray. Fortunately the rain held off until the evening hours which made for a wet, dark gondola ride from the beautiful mountain top wedding location--this was a great contrast to the colorful ride up to the ceremony many hours before.
The marriage included a large array of activities--there was something for everyone from beautiful woodsy hikes to ebullient dancing on the reception dance floor. As the mother of the groom, I was full of emotion as I participated and observed the celebratory events. As the bride described, there was a surreal feeling throughout the event--a feeling of being there and watching from the outside too.
During the ceremony, I listened carefully as the bride's brother and his girlfriend read many poignant lines about the couple and the meaning of the ceremony, and then the bride and groom took us intimately into their relationship with their loving vows. Later there was time for dancing, wonderful toasts, words of gratitude from the bride and groom, photos, tattoos, good food and friendship.
It had been such a long time since our wider family had a chance to celebrate together, and it was so special to be there together for a joyful celebration.
I'm sure we'll relive the celebratory weekend again and again, and hopefully this will be one of many good times to comes. Onward.