This is a post I have been meaning to post for a few months, ever since I had the great honour of presiding at the wedding of my daughter’s best friend, whom I consider to be something of an “adopted” daughter.
My daughter’s friend – we’ll call her Judith, because, well, that’s her name – and her fiance had asked me if I would perform their wedding ceremony. They wanted me to perform it because they wanted it to be someone they knew, who meant something to them. To be honest, I wasn’t really sure what to expect, and there were times I felt like perhaps I should have thought twice before saying “yes”, but I was so very honoured that they wanted me, and had asked, and because it was Judith, of course I would do it.
Well, let me tell you that any reservations I had were absolutely for naught.
Performing a wedding turned out to be one of the most amazing experiences I have ever had.
I had no idea.
It is such an incredible honour to share such an intimate moment between two people. Not just to share it, but to be a part of it. This is a view which the wedding guests – the wedding party – even the bride and groom themselves don’t get. To watch two people, looking into each other’s eyes, tears streaming down their faces, as they dedicate their lives to each other – creating a new life together – to be right there as it happens, and helping them to get there….wow. It is just an absolutely powerful, amazing moment, and is an incredible privelege.
Later, I asked a minister friend of mine, with whom I am quite close and have known for many years, “How come you never told me how amazing this was??”, to which he just smiled (I assume – it was in email) and agreed that it is an incredible experience and wonderful privilege.
So you can imagine how honoured and delighted I was when Judith’s sister, Rachel, asked me to perform her wedding a few months later. And she’d even seen me perform my first wedding, and still wanted me to do it!
So that is what I did yesterday. And it was every bit as amazing.
I had to smile each time when the bride and groom thanked me; I think that they really didn’t realize what an honour it was for me (despite my telling them so, of course).
I’m hooked.
If anyone out there is looking for someone to perform their wedding….