When our son John told us last November that he and Ken, his partner for 37 years, planned to be married in April, it surprised us. As a result of some legal steps they wanted to take, their attorney advised them that it would be so much easier if they were married! The idea of placing such a meaningful seal on their commitment to each other began to take shape.
Through the years that John and Ken have been together, we have met many of their friends. Their community is important to them. They are active in their church where John sings in the choir and Ken ushers. They have built a multimillion-dollar business. They have a happy life together.
Certainly a wedding could not take place in Florida where they live. They shose the City of New York and the Episcopal Church of Saint Mary the Virgin. Our other two children and their families would attend, as well as Ken's son and his family (except for one son who is a student at Appalachian). Russell and I would attend by Skype (yikes!). (We had several rehearsals and, to our amazement, it worked!) We even managed to "host" the dinner the evening before the ceremony for our families and others in town to attend the wedding.
We invited two dear friends to "come to the wedding" at our home. They have known John most of his life, and it meant so much to all of use to have them here. We told them they needed to look nice from the waist up and that they couldn't talk during the ceremony. About 10 AM the morning of the ceremony, Four Seasons delivered a corsage for the mother of the groom and a boutonniere for his father.
The ceremony was lovely. John and Ken looked so classy in their tuxedos. Each member from both of the families who was present had some part in the ceremony. The entire ceremony was written out--vows, liturgy, scripture, etc. John had sent us copies, and we could follow along and read and respond with them.
When the ceremony was over and the pictures were being taken, we had a brief "reception" at our house, with sparkling grape juice and nibbles, using our wedding china and my mother's antique glasses.
Later in the afternoon, Russell and I reflected on the entire celebration--the two families enjoying being together, each of them participating in the ceremony in some way, our own happiness that this marriage has taken place, this affirmation that there is a lifelong commitment on the part of our son to another. We pray that God will continue to richly bless this union. Do we believe that He will? Yes! Amen.
