just back from a wedding, and this time i attended all the way from the holy matrimony to the dinner. ah, i actually skipped the tea-offering, or whatever we call that ceremony.

it is different than a few last weddings i attended which i believe will please everyone related. who wants to have identical special occasions of their lives?!

the wedding is not the glamorous type. not the western type, in fact a very very chinese one thanks to the groom's mum's influence. however, interestingly, the ceremony left a very good impression at least on me. it is a very simple wedding. the marriage vow is not anything close to romantic or tear-dropping. in their struggle in remembering the vows while stuttering on some of the words, they looked so real. it is not anything like the hollywood movie, or korean reality show. there was no piano accompanying them while they were uttering the words. but, they still sounded very very real.

then as scheduled, we reached where the pastor came on stage to preach for half an hour or so. she was the old-school close to the hardcore type. in short, the message was work on your marriage, cover it in the love of God, and divorce is a big no.

seated there, i was left wondering about the others. i tried to leave my small brain, and dive into others. i know for quite sure that some of the people sitting there, their marriages did not work so well. just like when everyone told us that school is much more fun than working, they always told us that marriage is never a play ground. it is the real deal. the preaching suddenly felt like a cheap one.

i am not a pro-divorce guy. i am also not saying that the pastor should only preach what the majority of the crowds would like to hear. she was saying the truth, and she should only say that.

but, the problem is real. those families have their struggle. those families have seen the real thing, and some have survived with a lot of scars, and some are not that lucky.

and, a wedding is a funny place where those different people gather. the younger generation that thinks that they will get lucky and have a peaceful family, much more peaceful than their older generations'. there is also the old generation that is very happy and hopes for the best for their younger counterpart.

party ended, and everyone went back home facing their reality; the not perfect family, that they initially thought or, at least, hope would be a perfect one.

lastly, i am not trying to condemn marriage, really not at all. i believe it is sort of setting your life to "level hard". just like any game, it would earn you more experience and satisfaction.