Deirdre’s Wedding
.I spent most of today at my friend Deirdre’s wedding to Jason. (No photos, but I suspect I’ll be able to grab some from any number of people for posting at a later date.)
I did think it was a shame that it was a Catholic ceremony, because I don’t have much time for that church, and I didn’t think that either Deirdre or Jason were religious. I understand the pressure from family, though, and how tough it would be to both get extended family support (which is absolutely necessary to do a wedding, really) and simultaneously insist to that extended family that you were going to completely ignore their expectation of a ‘normal’ ceremony (because a Catholic wedding still is the norm in Ireland).
I thought the ceremony itself was well done, and that the priest did do rather well within the constraints he had to work with. I am a bit of a sucker for proclamations about love and lifelong commitment (these tendencies being rather at odds with my more intellectual objections to marriage and social expectations of monogamous relationships).
The speeches and dinner were good, and the important thing is that Deirdre was clearly really happy, which was wonderful to see.
At the end of the speeches, I was feeling somewhat maudlin, preoccupied with my past mistakes and mulling over the fact that in love as much as anything else, fear is the mind-killer. A lesson I seem to still be learning.
However, a brief chat with the wonderful Helen served as a rapid reality check, and I spent the rest of the evening having a lot of fun talking to great people who I don’t normally get to spend enough time with. There are few better ways to spend time.
Deirdre and Jason, I wish you all the best.