Highly unusual circumstances seemed to be the norm in my life by the end of 1991. Preparing for a small wedding to be held in the Sydney Australia Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints on the 4th of January 1992 and completing my high school certificate as I made table decorations for my big day seemed an oxymoron. Now that I have 2 daughters that have completed high school and are going onto to university they still appear to be infants to me in this fast moving world and I can’t even imagine them being ready to make a covenant for time and all eternity to anyone. They are still so young and I guess so was I. I have always said perhaps I was young and dumb…but in being that way inclined it was the best thing for me. There were plenty of other dumb thing I could have done…like gotten drunk every weekend, taken drugs, partied to hard, started smoking etc…but no the world does not shame or see these things as dumb…its normal so I have been told. But for my actions people gasp at the thought of one so young taking the life journey with my loved one and choosing to settle down and have a family. Of course this is not the norm of the world…some people would say I ripped myself off and haven’t really lived. I dare to say that my life has been rich and full.
My parents had to go about finding the funds for my wedding. It was not easy for them as they had just come of the back of the recession that apparently we had to have. Steel fabrication was slow at the time but Dad was resourceful and as the date of the wedding was after Christmas he decided to get his employees to start building old fashioned swing sets and seesaws. You know the ones that they have now ripped out of parks because the wooden seats would swing back and knock a child unconcious with one push…but none the less he set a goal to sell 20 of them before Santa could leave the North Pole. He reached his goal and with that my wedding was paid for.
The day of our wedding came ever so quickly…at first it seemed to take a long time to get to December but the whole month just flew by. The Sydney Temple at the time was the only Temple of its sort in all of Australia. For members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints it is the panicle of all places to be. When you are married within its walls you are not just joined together until Death do you part? This covenant is one you make for Time and All Eternity. It was going to be a big expedition to Sydney. Getting all of my family and a few of our friends to drive the 10 hours and look fabulous on the day was a big ask. It didn’t help that my sister and her boyfriend drove down in their car that subsequently brock down just out of Taree leaving them to hitch hike the rest of the way and leaving us short one bridal car. We look back and laugh about it now but I am sure my mother was having heart palpitations. I know that her right eye developed a sight twitch.
It wasn’t the lavish wedding you see in bridal magazines and websites today. It was a wedding that only members of the church could actually attend for the ceremony part. So you see my Dad being a Catholic meant that he was not present when I tied the knot. It was a little heart breaking knowing that my Dad could not come into the temple to see me get married. This is something he had come to terms with a long time before as he knew this would be the case for any of his children who wished to get married to a Mormon in the temple. To make the day inclusive of my Dad we offered that instead of holding the reception in the regular Mormon Church hall that we would hold it in his favourite drinking spot…The Budapest Club. All of our family and friends who attended were aware of the reason why we chose this venue. It was not pretty, the room was not even big enough to hold all of our guests comfortably, we had to have the bridal table up against the toilet doors in order to fit everyone seated. The wait staff didn’t turn up, the air conditioning broke down, the caterers ran out of food, and the greasy looking photographer that showed up left a sweeping reminder of his unwashed hair across nearly every photo that was taken on the day. But did I care…no…My Dad was happy, I was with my #blindman for eternity and my Mum was relieved.
I did manage to get a few good shots in at the local park in Oatley. These remain my treasured memories and the feeling I got kneeling across the alter to my beloved Dean to make eternal commitments will be one I will never forget. Weather Dean could see me or not it did not matter to me. I felt beautiful and that is all that mattered to me.
I think for my own daughters the thought of them eloping to the nearest Latter-Day Saint temple appeals to me…no fuss…just tell me at the last minute and I will be there…that’s what I have given them instruction to do…That’s if they ever get married…my greatest hope is that they are happy and have eternal joy.
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