Wedding 7

It's a sad state of events when sudden weddings no longer occur due to pregnancy, but rather due to the need for health insurance. I received a call from a woman who was planning on getting married in September, but due to a recent job loss, and a more impending need for medical tests, she and her fiance decided to move the date up in order to get health insurance coverage.

January 20, 2007 was a bitterly cold day, however the couple's home was nice and toasty. As this was a second marriage for both, the couple was attended by their children and grandchildren. It was a very nice family affair, filled with laughter. As the couple attempted to repeat their vows, I was reminded that I need to rewrite my ceremony - there is one phrase that is a killer tongue-twister that needs to be removed!

After the ceremony was completed, we shared delicious home-made cake. The couple still plans a larger ceremony and reception in September.

Wedding 6

On September 10, 2006, I conducted my largest wedding to date, at an actual venue - the Meeting House in Olde Mystic Village. Having arrived at the chapel early, I met a woman who was setting up a guitar and amplifier. She explained that she was a co-worker of the bride and had been asked to sing a processional. The guests started to arrive, dressed in their finery. As I hadn't met the bride and groom prior to the wedding, I wasn't exactly sure who I was waiting for. The couple had explained that this would be a small (20 people), casual wedding, but given that description and it being a Saturday afternoon, the guests were very over-dressed.

The chapel filled with the guests and finally the couple arrived. The guitarist started singing a song - poorly - as the couple entered the meeting house. The bride looked beautiful in a light brown satin beaded dress. The groom looked handsome in a well-fitting suit and it finally dawned on me that I had to give more of a "show" than I had for my living room weddings.

I welcomed the guests, spoke a bit about it being a quintessential New England day in a quintessential New England setting before starting the ceremony. I had earlier explained to the couple that my ceremony is very short - about 5 minutes - and they were fine with that. However, after completion of the ceremony, the guests looked stunned. They had clearly been expecting more, having most likely taken longer to brush their teeth than witness the wedding. I expected the musician to play the couple out of the chapel, but she had already packed up her equipment and was walking out the door, leaving the group with an awkward silence. It was an anti-climatic ending to the ceremony, although the couple looked happy and was anticipating spending time with their friends later that afternoon.

Wedding 5

On August 12, 2006, I performed a wedding for a colleague from work. He and his fiance had both moved to the same coast, after years of bi-coastal dating. The bride and groom are both from East Asia, and their families will prepare a traditional religious wedding celebration for them in the winter, but until then, a civil ceremony was in order. The ceremony was held in their living room on a muggy, rainy summer day, but the couple was cool and collected and looking forward to their new life together.