"What A Wedding Weekend!"

A few years ago we went to the wedding of some friends of ours son. It was a great weekend full of good food, good music, good friends - and a chance to see true love shine brightly. I have told people over and over that it was the most fun I ever had at a wedding, that was not my own, and one I doubted would ever be topped.

Well last weekend another son of this couple got married. The wedding was up above Atlanta so we made plans to spend the night. We knew, in light of the previous wedding, that there would be a lot of fun and socializing going on. And there was!

The wedding itself was beautiful, and unique. Couples today are not bound by tradition and that is a good thing. They do what pleases them, and if you don't like it well too bad. This couple nodded at tradition but added some flourishes of their own. The first was that the traditional music was played on a guitar and a banjo. The organ and trumpet were used later in the ceremony but the initial music had a bluegrass sound to it.

Later on the service there was a song. One of the bridesmaids stepped up and sang an a cappella version of "Amazing Grace." It was beautiful. She didn't need accompaniment and so she didn't have any.

After the wedding we all headed over for the reception. It was great to see some of our old friends who had moved away and were back for this event. We ate lots of good food, had some drinks, and visited. Then the band arrived, and that's when things really got good.

The group was called "Complete Desire" and they were amazing. Now let me say that I had never seen this group perform before at any time. I don't own stock in their outfit, and I have no interest in seeing them succeed other than the fact that they are very good at what they do. They are six people who dress in purple zoot suits, wear hats, and possess amazing talent.

They had the place rocking as soon as they came into the room. They sang, they danced, and they made us all have a good time. At one point they begin picking people in the crowd gathering around the band area to come forward and dance. I never knew some of my friends had so much talent. The father of the groom went into a dancing frenzy and startled his family and those of us who have known him a long time. His feet were flying.

Then a young lady who is the daughter of another set of my friends went up. Her name is Ann Brannen and she really could dance. But what was even more amazing was how she could sing. Somehow they handed her the mike and she launched into a rendition of "I Will Survive" that had the room cheering to the rafters. I wish the judges from "American Idol" had been there. They would have unanimously picked her for that title right then and there.

The party went on until midnight when the bride and groom finally departed. They were waved off in a barrage of sparklers, and flowing on a river of love that washed over them from all the well wishers. They glowed in their love for each other and in the warmth of the entire night.

Every once in a while you get involved in a celebration or an event that makes you feel good about yourself, your friends and your little corner of the world. That was the way I felt last week. In this "who needs a marriage" world of our today it is a welcome sight to see a couple so committed to each other that they want to show the world how much they care about the special love they share.

Travis and Cameron, I pray for you a life full of love and wonder. You deserve it. And thanks for last weekend's memories.

 

 

 

 

 

©2004 Jackie K. Cooper

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