I didn't realize that I wasn't going to until the MC (my brother) announced it: "Now Colleen is going to throw the bouquet."
Surprised, I said, "I am?"
Instead of throwing it, I went to the podium and made a speech, completely impromptu, about how humiliating that practice has been for me and for so many other single women and how my friend Crystal gave red roses to all the single women at her wedding and how I wished I had done something like that.
I talked them about the book I received this fall, Redeeming Singleness, in which the author says that the Christian life is not about being single or married but being in Christ. So I wanted to bless everybody in the room, married or single, and pray that they would know themselves "in Christ."
It will be interesting to watch that on video ... :)
It was a gorgeous bouquet, crafted by my friend Carol. I hung it to dry beside Kevin’s boutonniere at the log cabin where we stayed on our honeymoon, then forgot it when we left. I wonder if they’ve saved it for me …
At Jay's dad's wedding this summer, Sandy threw her bouquet. All these 20 somethings and old teenage girls lined up, and who caught it? My girls! The young ladies were a little disgruntled. I agree, it is an old fashioned tradition, rooted in the thinking that we as women have nothing to look forward to but marriage, and the sooner the better. We kept two of the white roses from Sandy's bouquet and gave them to her down here a few weeks ago. I hope they did keep your bouquet, but without prior instruction to do so, it might be unlikely. It can be a nice decorative keepsake (if you like dried flowers).
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