Reflections on a Wedding
As you might have noticed, the website has been a bit silent for the past couple of days (although I’m making up for it with a vengeance tonight). One reason is because I have no internet connection at my new house (yet), and much of my stuff is still in boxes. However, the main reason is because I was out of town, attending my brother’s wedding.
I have to admit, the whole thing was somewhat surreal. Throughout the day, I was constantly hit with the fact that my little brother — the one I constantly picked on when we were kids, who was once much scrawnier than me (and that’s saying something), who was always a pain in the butt — became a fully-fledged adult complete with career, relationships, and responsibilities when I wasn’t looking. And part of me couldn’t quite process that. While I was standing up there at the altar while he made his vows, some of me couldn’t fathom what was happening. I almost felt like I was at a stranger’s wedding. And I felt even moreso at the reception, during the best man’s toast.
When I look back at how his friend toasted Hans and their friendship, I realize I’ve greatly misjudged my brother. In the back of my mind, I still see him as the ornery little brat who constantly annoyed me when we were kids. As a result, I think I’ve always interacted with him in a particular way when I’ve seen him, albeit on a competely subconscious level. When he announced he was getting married, I was, of course, very happy for him and his fiance. But at the same time, I couldn’t believe that he was the one getting married.
It appears that I’m the one who needs to grow up, to realize that my little brother is “little” only in the technical sense.
As an addendum, when I returned home from the wedding, I was hit with just how truly blessed I am right now, and I mean truly blessed. As I got ready for bed, I couldn’t help but say a prayer of thanks for the many good things in my life:
- A family who lets me travel my own path.
- Parents who always insist on letting me know how proud they are.
- A brother who gets cooler by the minute, and gives me a wonderful new sister-in-law to boot.
- A job where I genuinely like and respect every single one of my co-workers.
- A church body where I’m finally learning the concept of community, as terrifying as it seems sometimes.
- A hobby that takes up way too much of my time, but always finds new ways to be rewarding.
- A girlfriend who understands me better than I do, and yet still values me.
- A God who has this annoying habit of refusing to leave me alone, regardless of how much I claim to want that.
And the list goes on… All of which is a very long-winded way of saying “Congratulations!” and “Cheers!” to Hans and Leslie (who might very well have been the most radiant and joyful bride I’ve ever seen). Many blessings, and traveling mercies.