A Singaporean In Australia

It was the first time I attended a church wedding and I actually liked it. Well, at least many parts of it. For the start, I was attracted to the props all around the places. Like some sort of a vase and a bottle of wine that the mothers of the newly weds had to retrieve on a pedestal and marched the aisle to hand over to the couple eventually. No idea what that meant but it was cool. The priests were clad in funny wear with designs like the clerics of Dragon Quest, the RPG game I played since I was young. The annoying part came when the priest began to talk about religion, which I disagreed with the bulk of the things he said but I didn't have the balls to voice out lest I get nailed on the cross like the guy hung on top. I wanted to take the best photograph of the ceremony that I could to use it as the feature pic for this post but guests were gently advised by the priests not to do so because "there were already photographers assigned to do a good job". I decided to comply after I stole another glance up there.

But I felt really happy to see two friends getting married. It was truly a joyous occasion. That was despite the fact that all attendees had to endure a cold 14 degree Celsius rainy weather throughout. There was no video montage on how they met, which was great in my opinion, because I could never figure out why people who need an introduction to the couple's love story should be attending that wedding in the first place. Plus the fact that how they looked 2 or 3 decades ago has nothing to do with their wedding, which the attendees are there to give their blessings for. Besides, the past is boring. I will probably stay awake if a couple decided to show a power point presentation of their future plans. Thankfully, this wedding has none of these bullshit in both the ceremonial hall and the makan hall.

Among the weddings I have attended both as a guest and a helper, rarely had I witnessed one without a tinge of conflict or unhappiness somewhere. At one particular one for instance, I witnessed relatives of the newly wedded unable to settle down in their designated tables, debating with wedding helpers loudly  why it should be arranged another way. Not this one. Free sitting. Take it - or sit at the lawn in the rain outside. Everyone sat down happily. There was enough seats and tables for everyone, not to mention a comfortable range of free space between every table. Everyone queued up for their food without a fuss. Parents and relatives were in high spirits, beaming after the wedding ceremony. There was no going around every table taking photos, all were done randomly in moderation. Not a single table were required to do a "fall in" for regimental photo taking session. I couldn't help but began to enjoy myself after the initial fright in the morning for waking up late, as I was tasked to buy some table cloth to drape a few tables that were short and a rather large amount of ice for drinks. No fans, air conditioners were required for the dining hall. Only natural cool air under the rhythm of the falling rain. What was there not to love about?

No doubt, some Singaporean guests who flew over to attend might have compared this wedding to a typical one held in a hotel in Singapore and felt it was underwhelming. If any, none of them showed it. I suspect, they secretly enjoyed such a laid back atmosphere where nobody were asked to stand up halfway munching that braised mushroom to clap for the newly wed making a second or third entrance. No emcee picking the unfortunate chap who just stained his clothes with sweet n sour sauce to go on stage to act like a monkey to amuse the crowd nor lame stale jokes and games we had to endure with. There wasn't anyone on stage reading a speech at a time where neither picking on that steamed fish nor stopping everything and pretend to pay attention seemed appropriate.

At the end of the dinner, guests even helped to assemble the chairs and dismantle tables before bidding the newly wed goodbye.

What a great wedding it was. I was honored to be invited to attend and enjoyed myself throughout. I wish both of you a blissful, happy marriage.