So here I sit, or lay as the case may be, outside Progresso,
Yucatan, Mexico enjoying an incredible honeymoon and reflecting on the last
week or so...
A week ago today Michelle and I were married in what we
jokingly refer to as an, “evangelical, hippie, Scottish, wedding held on the
Winter Solstice in a Beer Hall in North West Portland”. I wore the Grant Tartan
Kilt and Thomas and Sam wore our hunting kilt: the Black Watch. Sam, Thomas,
and I also rented tails to wear with our kilts. I won’t tell which of us went
commando and who didn’t. Besides it is not a polite question.
Maggie and Alex both wore stunning blue dresses. Alex
already drives the boys crazy with how beautiful she is and Maggie is not far
away from doing the same. Then came Michelle as Dan Zollner played Amazing
Grace so beautifully on his acoustic guitar. She was the picture she wanted to
be. Reality was better than the fantasy that preceded it. She wore a simple
corseted ivory dress with a red ribbon. Her hair was simple and straight with a
beautiful small tiara and veil. “Wow!” was all I could utter to myself.
Bob, who climbed out of a sick bed to officiate, welcomed
the small group of family who gathered to witness the event and asked who was
giving her to me. Her Dad had asked that this not be removed from the ceremony
(I’ll come back to that in a minute). After her Dad gave her hand to mine we
turned, hand in hand to listen to Dad sing the Lord’s Prayer. It started rough
but soon he found his voice, by the end those of us present heard the echoes of
his aging glorious voice.
After prayer came my favourite part of the ceremony, while Dan
Scott sang, Unless the Lord Builds the
House, by John Michael Talbot all of us together lit the unity candle and
stood together laughing, joking and just sharing a family moment. It was a
brief moment, devoid of any childish rivalry or jealousy. It was a small
snapshot of what we pray the family will grow to become. It was miraculous gift
that I didn’t expect.
After the traditional sermon by Bob we went to our vows.
Each of us had written vows to the children, and then to each other. I left my
vows at home and we were unable to print them so I emailed them to Bob and he
brought them up on his iPhone. I read all my vows via iPhone. It has got to be
a first. The only problem with this was that the screen went blank in the
middle and I couldn’t bring it back. It demanded Bob’s touch. He brought it back and I was able to finish
the vows. They will be published after this, and will hang in our the wall of our bedroom and our children’s
bedrooms.
After the vows and the rings came the pronouncement and the
kiss… my second favourite part of the ceremony…
Our friends showed up and we partied with them for a couple
of hours… It was wonderful to see so many of our friends show up to celebrate
what God is doing in our lives. I wonder these days why anyone would settle for
less than what we’ve found. It is beyond miraculous…it can only be described as
supernatural.
Here we sit in a very quiet corner of Mexico, removed from
the hustle and bustle of the vacation hubs. No one is around to disturb the
beach that lays just outside our door beyond our pool. We read a lot together. I am streaking
through The Good Marriage after
reading David Baldacci’s, The Collectors.
Shell is reading through Brennan Manning’s The
Ragamuffin Gospel and has now picked up Baldacci’s book as a second to the
thoughtful Manning.
We have visited a Mayan ruin site predates Jesus by 750
years, spent time exploring Merida, a neglected and wonderful city here.
Additionally, we spent today over on the Western Coast of the Yucatan in a town
called Celestun. While there we took a launch and visited canals cut through
the jungles of this mysterious place as well as several thousand flamingos, and
white pelicans. The flamingos were cracking Michelle up for though they look
graceful while standing still, they sound like turkeys and take off as
gracefully as you can imagine a turkey might – if a turkey could fly… For a
minute I thought I was watching a cartoon watching them try to get air born.
We are saving a bunch of money by cooking here at the house
on the beach. Sam’s Club even let us shop once without a membership. Can you
believe they pay better than most down here? We plan to go to Uxmal to see some
more ruins tomorrow, spend New Years in Progresso and then travel to the
Eastern coast past Chichen Iztza to the Caribbean coast line to snorkel. On
Saturday we will fly back to the cold and rain of Portland. All will be well because we have each
other. I have to quit for now… Michelle is pouring
the Tequilla shots…
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