My friend got married the other day. She looked really beautiful. Her dress was flowing (with train) and soft with a fitted bust-line decorated with the most delicate embroidery and beads, soft straps completing the look. Oh, and the most awesome red shoes. Her groom didn’t look too bad either, with his smart suit and his bright red tie.

Every wedding is unique. Some are sophisticated and formal, some are simple and intimate. This one was full of special, personal touches. The ‘wedding planner’ was a friend and he and his team were helping out of love for the couple and a little bit of the sheer joy of events. Must of the wedding feast (and it was a feast) was given as a gift.

The cake – a main cake to cut plus many, delicious cup-cakes – was made by the bride’s grandmother. Her mother, the bride’s mother, sang a blessing for the couple during the ceremony. The groom’s father shared a moving and meaningful tafelgebed.

Even the memories were trusted to friends. All the guests were asked to take pictures and then pass them on to the couple, and also to leave a note for the couple on their tables. One friend in particular, who is rather handy with a camera, took a whack of stunning pics.

There were special touches for the guests as well. Each table was named with a Latin phrase (ideal for this lawyerly couple) and each phrase was relevant in some way to the guests. The table of debaters was ‘ad hominem’, a long-standing debating in-joke.

Perhaps it was these personal touches, along with a shared fondness for the bride and groom, that blended together a varied, diverse gathering into a relaxed, simple, lovely celebration of the start married life together. They say it takes a village to raise a child. Perhaps a strong marriage equally is sustained by the support and solidarity of a caring community of friends and family, made stronger by the shared memory of a gentle, happy wedding day. Geluk, Janine en Pieter en dankie vir ‘n baie mooi dag.