Good Memories

I sat down and watched our wedding video yesterday. I recently had the video converted from VHS tape to DVD but hadn't watched it yet. The kids were still home on summer break and my parents were still visiting. I wasn't sure how I would react to seeing video of Tim. I was afraid that I would break down completely and I wanted to be alone just in case. So Monday morning after I took the kids to school, I popped the DVD into the player and sat on the couch with my morning coffee prepared to bawl my way through the entire thing.

I watched the whole tape, which lasted over an hour and a half, and I didn't cry at all. What I did do was laugh - a lot. The quality of the picture and sound were not the best but it was good enough to remind me of who was there and what we did.

You know what we did? We had a great time! My dad actually shot a lot of video during the rehearsal dinner and the reception in addition to the video of the actually ceremony. So there was a lot of footage of relatives, some of whom, like Tim, are gone now, and friends, some of whom I haven't seen in many years. Here are three of my favorite moments from the video:

1. The Wet Trousers Look

Our rehearsal dinner took place at a restaurant on Lake Zumbro. We had our appetizers and cocktails out on the lake in the restaurant's two pontoon boats. Tim's nephew Jeremy was seated on the front of the boat with his feet in the water when another boat sped by in the opposite direction. As we crossed the wake, it splashed up onto the front of the pontoon, soaking Jeremy's pants.

2. The Singing Reception

At many receptions, the guests will tap their silverware against their glasses to encourage the bride and groom to kiss. At our wedding, the guests were required to stand up and sing a song with the word "love" in the lyrics before we would kiss. There are too many funny moments to list them all. One of the best involves all my male cousins performing an excellent version of "Blue Moon" complete with ding-a-dong-dings and Tim's brother Steven stepping in to help them with the words for the second verse.

3. Our Wedding Mass

Tim and I put a lot of thought into what readings and songs to include in our wedding liturgy. Luckily for us, there is a lot of musical talent in our families and our siblings provided us with beautiful music. One of the best musical moments, however, came not from our siblings but from Fr. Mark, who presided at the liturgy. The long time chaplain of our church, Fr. John Krump, had recently passed away. He liked to sing part of the Eucharistic prayer on special occasions. We asked Fr. Mark to sing this prayer at our wedding. He did a beautiful job. Hearing him sing was one of the high points of our day.

As I watched the video, I was reminded of how much I enjoyed celebrating our wedding with our family and friends. It was three days of love and joy and laughter, including and especially our wedding mass. It occurred to me that while it was a much sadder occasion, the two days of Tim's wake and funeral were likewise full of family and friends without whom the occasion would have been incomplete. So many people gave so generously of their time and talent to make Tim's funeral a beautiful celebration of his life. How fitting that our married life should begin and end with wonderful liturgies, the memories of which I will always cherish.