Sitting with my dog this afternoon in the vets' waiting room, I glanced over to a TV talk show that I couldn't resist overhearing. Some guy named Greg was interviewing a couple who had a Disaster Wedding!
It turns out from my viewpoint not a disaster wedding at all, but a set of circumstances that occurred around the wedding day that had an emotional effect different from the ordinary fairy tale joy we've come to (naively) expect. The bride's grandfather died the week before the wedding. The groom's grandmother died the Monday before the wedding. And the groom's mother had a minor stroke the day before the wedding, went into the emergency room, was admitted and missed the wedding day.
Well, I wouldn't call this a string of good luck, but it is the rhythm of life, the lineup of unpredictable events in how our stories fall together, and not exactly on our own timeline.
In fact, when a wedding is scheduled, all the guests are there to bring their own joy and support to the couple. What could be better than a joining of two hearts in a lasting bond to create a new entity, a new family group? Death and illness are always with us, and sometimes the best laid plans cannot work the way we wanted. The talk show emphasized the down side of this wedding. I guess it just doesn't sell on TV to herald the positive and joyous side of celebrating life and love, even in the midst of loss.
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