It’s the beautiful easing into dawn as I write. I’m sitting in a rocking chair on the chapel deck, overlooking one of New York’s finger lakes. In the middle of the quiet and solitude, a speedboat just ripped across the lake as I finished that last sentence. It’s 6:50 a.m. I was up at 5:00, woken by my daughter crying. My back hurts and my neck aches from sleeping on the hard wooden bunk bed of the camp cabin we’re staying in.

Despite the aches, pains, and upset baby, I am at peace. My soul is at ease in the morning light over the lake. Now that my wife and daughter have gone back to bed, the seagulls are my only companions.

I had started reading Nietzsche but had to put it down. It’s just too… depressing. Too depressing for the goodness of this moment. Which is ironic, because he was talking about the need for solitude and nature. But he was discussing that need as it relates to all the “blood-sucking poison-flies” that we encounter in our interactions with other people. Sure, the “blood-sucking poison-flies” are out there, but I don’t think they’re as pervasive as Nietzsche thinks. And even if they were, that’s not what I want on my mind right now.

I’m excited for Mikenna and Josh getting married this afternoon. Though it can be stressful, I enjoy the excited energy of being around the wedding party in the days leading up to the wedding.

I used to think weddings were silly. A flashy “look at me” beginning to a lifelong commitment. I still think they are overemphasized in our culture, but I see the value in them now. Bringing people together and having grand celebrations helps everyone process and incorporate big life changes. This is true also for funerals, grad parties, and other traditional celebration/events for big life changes.

While a wedding is about the bride and groom, it is for everyone. As the attendees at a wedding, we get a shared experience of the start of the couple’s journey. We show our support for the couple, and we strengthen bonds with each other, further strengthening the couple’s support network. We are reminded of love. We are reminded that love is worth celebrating. We get to be part of a sacred covenant. Hopefully, we put aside our selfish aims for a day and allow the spotlight to be on the couple.

Maybe most importantly, we pause. We recognize that there are things in life worth pausing for. And the greatest of these is love.

An open journal rests on a deck railing with a lake in the background.