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Would it have been better in The Graduate if the church door had held, and Dustin Hoffman had not been able to burst in on the scene and whisk Katharine Ross away? In which circumstance would the damsel have been in greater distress? Does love really conquer all? That, I always thought, was the point of the movie.
Yet another way to look at a wedding (the way I prefer to look at it) is that everything will be as good and right as it is hoped to be, and that this inauguration of a joined life will be perfect. Why not? I know that it is unrealistic to think like that, but reality is overrated. Who in his right mind would not opt for paradise before the fall, Eden pre-snake?
There is a lot in life that's perfect, after all. Perfect pitch. Toss enough perfect pitches, and you have a perfect game. Ask the Yankees' David Wells. What should one strive for if not perfect justice, honor, truth? These things do not exist except in perfect states. While I'm at it, add perfect love and happiness. Why should you not have a perfect marriage? You yourself are heaven.
On Saturday, the weather will be perfect; it is perfect for all weddings. The hors d'oeuvres, I am told, will be perfection.
And I, of course, will play the perfect fool. I will cry as I did at your older brother's wedding, and as I will at your younger brother's, when it comes to that. I cry at the weddings of perfect strangers (they can be perfect too). Don't mind me when I cry. It's just my way of enjoying myself.
When you take my arm, and we begin that awkward stately walk toward your husband-to-be, I will envy him only one thing. He will be able to see you coming toward him. He will behold you in your brightness, confidence and wonder, as you cause everyone to gasp in amazement--just as you did the day you were first presented to the world.