New Year’s Eve I received an email from a former UCLA Extension student. Because of her work schedule, Vanessa missed almost half the classes and I presumed that she took little, if anything, away from the course (Interpersonal Communications). And so I was puzzled when I found her email and just presumed she was looking for a favor, perhaps a recommendation.
The
email contained just one sentence:
“Thinking of everything I learned in your
class and feeling oh so very grateful for the positive impact it's been in my
life. . .HAPPY HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!”
I
was beyond surprised but also grateful and happy that I actually had reached a
person whom I had written off. Ah, life!
So
here it is a New Year and Vanessa reminds me that the best and happiest way to
make a new beginning is by giving thanks.
What am I thankful for as I stand facing out to 2013?
2012 would have been far less
energizing without the 70 couples who invited me to officiate their wedding.
2012 would have been a dull and
considerably complacent year without the humor, creativity and generosity of
all my colleagues––event planners and on-site directors, photographers and
videographers, floral designers, musicians, sound techs and even a dove
wrangler all of whom I collaborated with each week to create celebrations that
helped cheer and refresh not just the couples but their thousands of family and
friends.
I’m often asked why I officiate
weddings. Well, I can’t imagine not celebrating wedding ceremonies. And while it’s not the only thing I do––I
also teach, write, consult and speak––it is a dimension of my life that gives
me life.
Why do I love weddings? The simple answer is that I love stories. Every couple that comes to me not only has a story, every couple is a story!
I love listening to the myriad ways
in which people first met, and I especially enjoy having them tell me the story
of what happened after that first meeting––the story of how they’ve gone about
creating a life––often times a life that has surprised them in terms of where
it has taken them and what their newly formed and forming dreams are all about.
Why do I love weddings? I
love them because I continually stand in awe of people’s courage and daring and
hope. It’s simply not possible to commit
to another person without courage and daring and hope, which undergird all that
faith and love.
I love weddings because I love looking at a couple’s guests as they
mingle about before the ceremony and then as they sit in anticipation of the
ceremony’s start. I love feeling the
wave of emotion that ripples throughout the gathering (whether it’s two people
or two hundred and fifty people).
I look at the guests and I know
that they know how brutally tough, demanding and too often disappointing life
can be. That not every day can be as
joyful as that day, BUT I see the hope and the excitement in their eyes. They’ve come to root on the couple, “yes, you can live life in a way that will
give you life, in a way that is meaningful, no matter the mistakes.”
I love standing in the middle of so
much hope.
I love witnessing a couple’s
courage, no matter how nervous they may be.
The painter Vincent Van Gogh
believed that “The best way to know life is to love many
things.”
Weddings
help me love many things and many people.
So,
I begin 2013 remembering what I’m grateful for. . .I’m grateful that I’m able
to do and be a part of what I love.
I
eagerly embark on this year of fresh, new stories. . .
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