My Summer Adventure: A Wedding

This time last week (i.e., Wed. mid-morning) I was fixin' to set out on my adventure of the Summer of Ought Seven -- a trip to a wedding. No, not mine, dear reader! My son David's, in Lincoln, Nebraska.

The start of the adventure was WET! The skies above San Antonio opened up for a "gully-washer" as I finished my prep to go to the S.A. Greyhound depot. I got soaked from the knees down (i.e., below the poncho's hem) while out doing last-minute errands. So I phoned for a cab to take me from my door to a VÍA bus shelter and keep my luggage and me dry. They say that you should allow 20 minutes for the taxi's arrival; it was there in about 5! So my final packing was very hurried. And I skipped over a few items, the only necessary of which were my meds. Oh, well!

All during the bus trip there and back the buses were running from half an hour to over an hour late. And in most cases the drivers insisted on taking the 20 or 15 minute layover at stops listed on my ticket summary! Also, on the return the typical Greyhound thing happened in Dallas. My scheduled bus to S.A. was full, so I had to wait for the next scheduled one. Oh, well!

But 'nuf 'bout me. There was a WEDDING!!! It and the whole stay in Lincoln were wonderful! David wed Allison Nelson, oldest of three daughters and one son to Randy and Kathy Nelson, natives of Lincoln. Melissa, one of Allison's sisters, had married last June, and she was matron of honor; brother Aaron was a groomsman. David's best friend Arthur was best man. It was the first time I'd seen Arthur in over five years. He kind of surprised me by wearing cornrow hair and a wispy goatee. But he still had his delightful-to-be-around personality: easy-going and cheerful.

Back to the Nelsons. They're a very nice family. I'd had a good feeling about Allison since David first said anything about her. Meeting her and her family simply confirmed that that "good feeling" was real and valid. They home-schooled the four kids, and the home-schooling included courses (high-school level) involving other home-schooled students. The Nelsons are very active in their church in Lincoln.

We had rehearsal in Warren UMC Friday afternoon the 22d, followed by dinner at Da Vinci's, a pizza and salad buffet café. As we ate the skies opened up -- but this Nebraska gully-washer lasted only a few minutes. Then as we left Da Vinci's, we saw a beautiful double rainbow in complete arcs across the eastern sky! Several of us took this a sign of blessing upon the upcoming nuptials.

The photo session was Saturday, 23 June, in the morning a few hours before the ceremony. Dominant colors for the party were lavender and light blue. The groom and his comrades wore black tuxes. The bride wore the same dress worn by her mother and grandmother; talk about "family heirloom"! During the couple hours between pictures and the ceremony I used my cell phone to call first Mom and then let her speak with the groom, her grandson. Then I phoned my brother Patrick and let him likewise speak with the groom, his nephew.

And then it was THE event! The music was fine, and included two congregational hymns in the early minutes. Ellen and I were both impressed with Allison's vocal projection of her vows. It was very evident that she'd had good drama coaching even before she joined Covenant Players! There was a good-size crowd in Warren UMC to witness the event. I was told to stand beside the mother of the bride in the receiving line, and thus Kathy introduced me to most of the folks in attendance. Several, who were either members of the church or fellow home-schooling parents, commented to Kathy, "two down and two to go!" This referred to Aaron and the youngest daughter, Leighann, still being single.

After the reception family members drove out into the country to to the Nelsons' home, where David and Allison opened the few gifts and the many cards. Since they will continue their travels with CP, they had asked for gifts of cash or gift cards of chain stores. Most of the cards contained one or both such gifts, including mine, which had $60 and two tickets to Fiesta Texas. I was sort of impressed that the newlyweds received more than one Kohl's gift card (I've heard ads for Kohl's many times on S.A. radio, but have never been inside; guess I'll have to check out the department store).

The next day, Sunday, I joined the newlyweds and the bride's family at Warren UMC for worship. Then we had Sunday dinner at the Village Inn. And then Randy Nelson gave me the "grand tour" of Lincoln, including a visit into the Nebraska State Capitol. The city is neat and beautiful, and the skyscraper Capitol is fascinating. It was being built when the Great Depression commenced and still got finished, and altho' over-all it's Art Deco in style, it's an eclectic Art Deco. Numerous exterior bas-reliefs and interior murals and mosaics celebrate the history of humankind with focus on the progression of law and government into 20th-century American democracy. The building also celebrates the history and culture of Nebraska up to the Depression. I couldn't help but notice that this city and state, which is stereotyped as homogeneously white-race farmers (in my mind anyway), emphasized the diversity of its cultural heritage -- including the original indigenous (or Native American). Just like San Antonio!

Randy and I happened to enter the Capitol about 20 minutes before a tour was scheduled. So we walked a couple of first-floor hallways until time for the tour. Side hallways contained busts of famous Nebraskans. I was impressed with the detailing of some, which made them appear almost life-like. For example, a noted journalist and public servant was depicted reading a newspaper he held open. Near him another statesman's glasses frames were so real-looking that I was surprised to not see any hint of lenses. His necktie stood out from the shirt sufficiently that one felt one could run one's hand behind the tie -- and then either straighten the knot or jerk the wearer along! On the tour the highlight for me was being inside the Supreme Court chamber, wich had a very ornate, three-dimensional (kind of like an upside-down waffle) ceiling, which held my rapt gaze while the tour guide spoke about the rest of the chamber. After the tour we two went up to the fourteenth-floor observation deck and got a 360-degree panorama of sun-drenched Lincoln. Beautiful!

And thus went my adventure of the Summer of Ought Seven: a bus trip to and from a lovely city and state, for the wedding of my firstborn and only son! God's blessings be upon David and Allison, now and always!