A Union of Hope

The sparkling wine was chilling nicely, the lemon and elderflower cake had been baked and iced and it was fish and chips, Pimms and scones with clotted cream and jam on the menu for the day. We were planning to have our very own, very propah British celebration for Harry and Meghan’s nuptials. After all, they were only a stone’s throw away in Windsor. Practically neighbours!

Jokes aside, nearly all of Britain (and quite a bit of the world!) was just as caught up in the excitement and anticipation of possibly the last BIG Royal wedding for a few years to come. And what a beautiful wedding it was! From the glorious day to the beautiful setting of St. George’s Chapel, the military precision of the organisers, the pomp and the ceremony, the fabulous guests in their fabulous outfits, the multiple invitees of various charities, the divine music, the attendance of the great and the good, and ultimately to the young couple themselves, it was a spectacle from start to finish.

What is it about weddings that has us getting teary eyed? Vows that we have heard repeated so many times in so many different ways that we could repeat them verbatim, and yet they evoke such a powerful response in us? What is it about getting together and celebrating the union of two people that makes us joyful and hopeful time and again?

Marriage is a leap of faith. It is the coming together of two individuals who may differ in so many ways- in background, education, culture, class, religion, temperament, ideas and opinions- and yet choose to be with one another. Choose to pledge their fidelity and their futures to each another. In their coming together, they knit their families together as well, and in this fashion the fabric of society weaves itself into another beautiful pattern.

Harry and Meghan’s wedding hasn’t just brought together two families, it has brought together two nations and two races as well. In choosing to marry Meghan, a bi-racial divorcee actress who is older than himself, Harry hasn’t just shrugged the cloak of tradition aside, he has practically flung it off.

As for Meghan, what can one say about this incredibly beautiful, progressive, elegant, self assured young woman who so obviously adores her husband? Very little that hasn’t been said already.

1.9 billion people tuned in to watch the live broadcast of the Royal wedding. 1.9 billion people who were just as enthralled by the love story of Diana’s second son as we were. In the melding together of two cultures, we saw the formality and structure of British ceremony marry the fluidity and informality of American culture. In Michael Curry’s impassioned address to the couple he spoke openly about the redemptive power of love.

The same power that saw Meghan walk solo down the aisle for she walked towards the man she loved. The same power that made Prince Charles step in to give her away, for his son and his future daughter-in-law’s happiness. The same power that saw Doria Ragland well up as her daughter spoke her vows, but hold on to her composure with admirable dignity and grace. The same power that made a 96 year old Prince Philip who had hip surgery last month, walk unaided to the front of the chapel. The same power that has seen the Royal family open their arms to the girl their grandson, son, nephew or brother has fallen in love with. Redemptive and transformative.

One can, and must, expect wonderful things from this union. For anyone who sees the Royal family as a stuffy old establishment best consigned to the past, they miss the point. The Royal family is our connection to the past. In their time honoured traditions, in their (mostly) proper conduct, in their tireless service to charity and good works, they function as an example and a barometer of the nation. In this very modern marriage of equals, Meghan will add her own unique qualities and substance to the mix, enhancing their potency and effectiveness.

I am no Royalist, yet I couldn’t help but be enchanted by this young couple’s wedding. Love shone out of their eyes as they looked upon on another, and in that love there was hope for a future where caste, creed or colour will cease to matter.