Phew! I finished writing the first draft of my wedding ceremony yesterday. This piece was a real challenge for several reasons:
- My partner is Scottish, and Scots are not big on “American”-style cheese. Oh, sure, X-Factor and dancing shows and drama in the news — that’s all fine. But they don’t go for the gooshy stuff in real life. So I had to fully express the right sentiments, but keep someone else’s very finely attuned cheese-o-meter in mind, too.
- “Oh, but you’re a writer.” Yeah, that’s actually a problem. Writers seize up when they start thinking about impressing people. That’s not what this was about. Also, in writing for a public event (even if it’s just family), it’s nearly impossible to not get preoccupied with “What will they think?”, which I contend is the question behind every instance of writer’s block.
So I endeavoured to keep remembering what the purpose of this was, yet still be true to what I wanted it to be about — which, happily, Craig agreed with.
In the end, I think it’s pretty natural and straightforward, which is consistent with who we are, and hopefully leaves room for it to be a relaxed event about what it’s about, rather than exploding into some trying-too-hard magical Cinderella production number.
Unless, of course, my family forego doing readings and decide to burst into song and dance. Which is fine; I’d like to see that.
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