wedding road trip

Wedding Lesson #123: Letting Go

Photo by Lesley Bryce Photography

Looking back on my wedding, I have few regrets. Almost everything went as planned, from the Wedding Road Trip to our ceremony at the Yellow Umbrella Company. The after-party at the Candlelight Kitchen even came with some unexpected bonuses, namely a big, bouncy white pillow bed and a fantastic Father of the Bride toast, complete with junior high audio recordings that my friends still talk about.

But perhaps my favorite part of the whole schbang was a post-dinner performance by my friends Todd and Colleen. At first, I was adamant that all 80s rap was to be stricken from the playlist. I was convinced that crazy rap numbers would mar the perfect after-party images that were dancing through my head. Three days before the wedding, over margaritas and pop music, I finally relented and gave the contraband performance the thumbs up.

So on the night of the Wedding Road Trip ceremony, my good friend Colleen and our “minister” Todd led the crowd in a rousing rendition of “Bust a Move,” complete with our mothers as backup dancers. Family howled and friends cheered as Todd and Colleen rocked Candlelight Kitchen in a way that few ever have (and probably ever will). Our photographer, Lesley Bryce, even caught a picture of me laughing, evidence that I loved every second of the Vegas-worthy performance. Every second was perfect, down to the last “you want it, you got it.”

Photo by Lesley Bryce Photography

Now, two months post-wedding, it’s “Bust a Move” that I remember. Not the tablecloths, not the entrees, and certainly not the flowers that I never ordered.

Instead, I remember how my moms (and future mother-in-law) let loose in the name of love and bad eighties rap. I smile at the moment that had me collapsed with laughter. I recall the way Colleen’s shoes lit up the dance floor like she was channeling Tupac.

And in the end, I am humbled by the reality that maybe, just maybe, some of the greatest moments in my life were not under my control or born of my imagination.

Thanks, Todd and Colleen.