Hubs and I got out for a family wedding last night. It was so much fun, absolutely beautiful, and completely full of the loving feelings weddings bring.
When Hubs and I got married, our priest, Father Ivanovich, told us why weddings are so special in his homily.
In addition to uniting the couple on the alter, the entire wedding party is welcomed to bear witness and renew their own vows. To love. We hear all the words spoken and we can repromise ourselves in that moment, hearing the convictions of others, sharing in the sincerity of their earnest vows. Whether you’re single or married, we say yes to the belief and power of love.
At the time, I thought it was kind of weird for our priest to say that. I thought the idea was nice, but I didn’t think he knew what he was talking about. A wedding is about the couple. Hands down. No one else feels like those people up there! They’ve got the spotlight, I thought.
Until last night.
The couple wrote their own vows. They had lovely, incredible, meaningful words for each other. They expressed their love and intentions and it was just beautiful.
And I kind of started to remember our wedding. And our vows. And why we said “yes” to each other all those years ago. We were young when we got married (24), but we fell in love and knew the same tender feelings then that this couple has found. It’s this incredible knowing that you’re with your person. It’s a calming peace in the certainty that another human gets to live through this life with you. The ups and downs, the beauty and the uglies. We’re not alone because some stroke of fate led us to find each other. And somehow, we’re brave enough to say “yes” to each other.
Wedding vows are the commitment that “yes” won’t become a no. Yes doesn’t stop when the going gets tough. Yes gets hard when life gets hard, and we rarely think back to that wedding day, when yes felt so easy.
But it’s there. The wedding day, those moments, those memories: they shape who we want to become. They are our conviction, our willpower, our love.
There is peace on my heart when I see this commitment between others. There is peace in growing love. And there is peace when we can share such incredible feelings. Even as an audience member. I continue to be grateful for the bride and groom’s love. Because it informs our own. It’s a reminder and a tap on the shoulder. Keep saying yes. Keep remembering. Keep promising.
What brought you peace this week? Share the peace!
4 the Love of Peace 