My friend, Dan, texted me yesterday morning.
“Did you marry someone at Flamig Farm?”
The text was accompanied by a photo of me, officiating a wedding at the local farm.
Apparently I’ve become a part of their advertising.
While I have memories of taking my children to that farm when they were little, my memories of that particular wedding are vague at best. It probably took place at least a decade ago, and I’ve officiated many wedding before and since. While some, like officiating the wedding of my former second and third grade student, remain etched in my memory forever, others are far more fleeting.
For the couple in the photo, it’s a day they will never forgot.
For me, it’s less so.
In fact, I only remember a few specific things about this wedding:
- The weather was beautiful. Always a concern when you’re being married on a farm.
- The ceremony took place at the back end of an enormous field, requiring everyone to walk a great distance to the ceremony except for the wedding party, which arrived via tractor. I remember wondering why I wasn’t asked to ride on the tractor, too.
- I forgot to ask the guests to sit after the opening prayer, which made for an awkward moment when the best man whispered to me that the guests were still standing.
- I had stopped wearing ties by then, which the couple knew. While they were fine with me officiating their ceremony without a necktie, the father of the bride was not and specifically asked me to wear one. I purchased a tie for the wedding and then threw it away during the reception.
- I was also the DJ at the wedding. I remember racing across that field to my car after the ceremony to beat the guests to the wedding venue. My partner, Bengi, was already at the venue, setting up, but I never trust him to complete this task. He’s easily distracted and prone to engaging in long conversations with whoever he can find.
I also noticed that I’m wearing my wedding ring, which I don’t anymore. It’s made of steel and began slipping off my finger years ago after I lost a lot of weight. Since it’s steel, it can’t be resized, so it sits in a cup on my desk, reminding me of how stupid I was to purchase a steel wedding ring.
Seems awful to forget so much about someone’s exceptionally special day, but honestly, I’m surprised that I remember as much as I do given the number of weddings I’ve attended as a guest, DJ, and minister.
Hopefully the happy couple is still happy and remember it all.
