Wedding bliss.

In the eighties a little book came out about Preppy Things. It was little in size, pink and green and was meant to be witty. And there was another one, maybe entitled "Real Men Don't Eat Quiche." This started a rash of small books with one thing written on each page, meant to inspire us, make us laugh, and acquire some of our dollars. One of these books was red plaid, and the title had something to do with Life Lessons, or Live, Laugh,...something. Anyway, inside, on each page, was a tidbit of advice on life. They were bon mots by folks of all ages. Some were funny, some poignant, some just plain cheeeeeesy. But I remember my parents pointing out one in particular. I cannot quote it directly, but it was something like "Your choice of spouse will contribute 90% of both your happiness and your despair. Choose wisely."
It did stick with me, and what pressure there! 90% is too big a chunk to overcome. What if you don't choose wisely.? Bummer!
It looks like I did pretty well in the end, as nearly 18 years into my marriage, I'm happy 90% of the time. So, I guess the other 10% is all me.

Well, I took that choice of mine with me, and the kids, too, to a wedding this weekend. We climbed into Denty at dawn on Saturday and drove east into the sunrise. The day was a beautiful one, sunny and perfect temperature. We arrived an hour before the wedding, as planned, in our jammies. So, my nonplussed family piled out of the minivan, in the bottom of the church parking lot and changed into our wedding finery behind the car. This is where we all shake our heads. Really?   Italian suits and sundresses donned in the parking lot? Yep. And we looked all pressed and fresh walking into the church.
I do love weddings. This was a beautiful one, and the bride was just stunning. She was just a wee tyke when I met her in the late 80's, so I bet she never read the little plaid book with life lessons inside. It seems, from what I could see that she did well anyway, and her prospects for 90% happiness are very good. Her groom was gracious and sweet and gentlemanly. I look forward to seeing pictures of their life together- mostly on the bride's parent's Facebook pages. No longer do we have to wait for Christmas cards to get a picture of  faraway friends- Facebook will be there for that. And that Internet connection is there, and led me to the bigger connection. The one made by going to this wedding. Bearing witness to their vows and watching a fine waltz of a father with his grown, gorgeous daughter. Strengthening little threads of friendship that connect us all. If we pay them no attention, the threads can become quite fragile, like the gossamer filaments of spider's web. But, just like the spun web, the threads are quite strong when they connect to something. The small effort of  packing up the family, getting Miss K. to take care of the farm and piling into the car made those threads connect and strengthen. Old friends, but still friends. I am proud of them all.