The column “Find Your Buried Treasure” appears weekly in the Chanhassen (MN) Villager. This column was published on May 5, 2011.

The wedding was out of this world.

I say that partly because it had an “outer space” theme, and partly because everything about it was stunning. But mostly, because – well, because it was my daughter’s wedding.

Since she lives in Florida now, and since that’s where her husband is from – and I’m still getting used to saying the word “husband” instead of boyfriend or fiancé – that’s where the wedding took place. So even though I helped my daughter with some of the planning and arrangements, and was here anytime she needed an opinion or advice, she did most of the work herself of putting the wedding together. As the mother of the bride, I had a front-row seat to everything involved with the wedding and the preparations. But I was also able to view it from a bit of a distance and with fresh eyes once the big day arrived. And even though I was now seeing my daughter in an entirely new way – not only as a beautiful bride, but as a totally grown up, married woman – much about the wedding reminded me of the gifts and talents I watched her develop as she was growing up, and the sense of style she has that’s uniquely hers.

For one thing, the wedding wasn’t your traditional church wedding. Instead, the ceremony took place on the terrace of the Orlando Science Center, with the reception in a magically transformed area inside the “Dino Digs” exhibit hall. One of my favorite photos of the wedding, in fact, is one I took of the bride and groom in front of a large and imposing skeleton of a Tyrannosaurus Rex. It almost looks as though the T-Rex is a fierce mother, protecting and watching over the couple, glaring and promising severe consequences to anyone who might want to hurt them or threaten them. I can relate to that.

In keeping with the outer space theme, the wedding colors were blue, black and silver. The bouquets for the bride and her maid of honor were made up not of flowers, but of shiny blue, black and silver orbs resembling a cluster of planets. As I watched my daughter put the finishing touches on them a few days before the wedding, I couldn’t help but think of all the arts-and-crafts and science projects she has built over the years, transforming cereal boxes and Styrofoam into mountains, maps and villages. And now, a beautiful bridal bouquet out of glitter, paint, soft netting and ribbon.

Naturally, I got misty-eyed a number of times during the wedding ceremony, especially watching my husband walk our daughter down the aisle, and hearing her exchange the wedding vows of love, hope and promise with her soon-to-be-husband. Throughout the afternoon and evening, my heart felt like bursting whenever I heard someone say what a wonderful couple they were, how devoted they were to each other, and how good they looked together. And I know this wasn’t meant in response to how they looked on the outside, all dressed up for their wedding, but to the glow that comes from the inside, when you’re with someone who makes your life complete, and whom you love with all your heart.

That’s what I – and everyone else – saw in my daughter and her husband on Saturday as they became husband and wife. And it’s what I wish for them from this day forward. A love that’s as big as the universe, as beautiful and breathless as the night sky, and as timeless as eternity.

CHANHASSEN VILLAGER
5/5/11
© Betty Liedtke, 2011