Welcome Weddings are a joyous occasion. They’re a uniquely optimistic occasion where two people are committing their lives to each other in front of chosen family and friends. What’s even easier these days is there are few rules and so each wedding has its own personal blend. The few rules are that an authority figure or official celebrant must officiate and proclaim the vows made by the two people but other than that – your imagination can go wild. There’s been crazy weddings in midair while parachute jumping, some climb their favourite mountain getting hitched at the top, others head out on to the sea, but most tend to have their feet firmly on land often at a venue chosen for its special meaning to the couple. Take the couple featured on our cover. Mike and Loren chose her parent’s gorgeous rural homestead in South Wairarapa as the backdrop, and she married Mike on the tennis court with
the marquee to cater for the guests erected in gardens beside the house. So, that’s the venue – anyone’s choice! Then there’s the clothing to celebrate the event. Queen Victoria set a trend wearing a white gown and veil. It’s generally believed it was to display sexual purity and that’s why second and third marriages often have different colours being worn. Red features highly in Indian weddings as does red in China – considered the lucky colour. The use of a wedding ring has long been part of religious weddings in Europe and America, but the origin of the tradition is unclear. One possibility is the Roman belief, that a blood vessel that ran from the fourth finger (ring finger) went directly to the heart. Thus, when a couple wore rings on this finger, their hearts were connected. In the distant past, in most cultures it was only women who wore a ring to show she was ‘taken’. It was only in early 20th century America, that men began to also wear a ring and the practice gained popularity. The wedding reception or wedding breakfast, marks the first meal
together as a married couple. This is when the families of the two people share in their excitement by making speeches. Again, it used to be the father of the bride who took the lead, followed by the best man who revealed all sorts of stories about the groom. Dancing at weddings is universal. Traditionally, the first dance is for the newly betrothed couple, then the father/daughter and mother/ son combinations depict the binding of families. The ‘send-off’ in Western culture, used to be a great opportunity to dress up a married couples’ vehicle with streamers and tin cans to make sure they didn’t sneak away quietly. In many African and eastern cultures, it was more formal with the couple, farewelling their elders and announcing their move away from the festivities. However, these days most people all want to enjoy the party and so the ‘going away’ outfit does not occur much anymore.
Celebrant | MC | Facilitator
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