The Symbolic Bamboo Wedding Arch

Ya know...planned weddings are pieces of art! If you really stop to think about all that goes into making dreams come true, you would find it takes work...lots of  artistic work if you want it to be the best it can be.

Dennis and I came away from our firstborn's recent wedding feeling like we just went to enjoy the event. And enjoy it, we did! Very little did we put our hands to in the form of  "work".We didn't need to. It was all planned out and carried out long before the actual event. Yes, there were still some things needing attention a couple days before the wedding. But everyone had a list of what needed done and who was to do it. How Dennis and I got off so easy, I'll never understand. We felt more like guests than parents. Thanks to Todd and Lindsey's organization skills.

However...there was one fellow that put his heart and soul into making a beautiful memory for our kids. He would say it was no big deal. But you could tell he had pride in his accomplishments. Not from boasting...just from his quiet, humble demeanor. His eyes were grateful for the talents he had been giving. He put his hands to the task and saw it through. It had begun long before the wedding week. Planning, thinking it through, purchasing needed material, hauling those materials 4-5 hours from home to the beach, and then waiting until the exact moments, in the early morning hours of the wedding day. And his task begins...

The Bamboo Arch seemed perfect as it stood strong against the edge of the sound. It had replaced a very frail, weak arch, that had been left by the previous wedding party. I suppose. Strong ropes had secured each cross point of this much larger arch, speaking majestic echos of another place, another time. Smaller bamboo sticks had accented, with support, the larger bamboo frame. Len worked tirelessly. Help was close by, should he need it, in the form of a very kind and, "here I am, use me," sort of fellow.  Patrick. Patrick was always close by, just in case someone needed help. Patrick belongs to Todd's Aunt Belinda and Uncle Gary. They have two other equally awesome boys and one beautiful, quiet spirit, young lady. (Another story.) =}

Leonard Laughlin. The name itself speaks stability. Len is Todd's dad. He doesn't say much, but still waters run deep. These are the people I would love to sit and chat with. People that don't feel as if they have to talk all the time. I would love to be able to search out their thoughts and see the world, as they see. He never asked for help. Never. Dennis would have to look for him to see if there was something he might help Len with. By the time he came across him, Leonard would have the job virtually completed. We went with no list in hand and had no list handed us when we got there. I had previously asked Lindsey if I could take care of the poles that lined the wedding area...and that is all I did. She may have had someone else in mind for the job. I didn't ask and she didn't say. She just graciously allowed me that honor. And I enjoyed it. 

The wedding being over, we began cleaning up the area the next day, preparing to leave this enchanted place. Working in the kitchen, Len and Cindy were discussing the Bamboo arch it had taken so long to produce. Cindy didn't want to take it home...no place to put it. I suggested offering it to the Hatterus Island Realty for future events....at a price of course. That's just the business woman in me. It went so well with the view and was a very durable silhouette, firmly braced and rooted in the sand. I wasn't considering the hours and heart that went into the making of such a thing. I was thinking they could profit from the time and effort. It would bring an easy $1000. Well...my sensitive side wasn't showing up. And the very thing I have lived by all these years, "money isn't everything", was hiding somewhere in the depths of my brain. I realized Len was attached to the bamboo archway. It wasn't because he loves what he does...it was because of WHO is was done for! It held many memories and was an offering to HIS firstborn and his choice of a wife! Once that sank in, I totally got it. I think Todd actually helped me with that. I could tell by what he was saying, that he too, wanted to preserve it. I am so glad they decided to take it home. When it is time for Todd and Lindsey to purchase their first home as a couple, hopefully they will have a place they can put it back together and display it...maybe amongst a beautiful flower bed or home-made rock garden fountain. I'm sure they will come up with something.

Thank you Leonard for the memories! The very artistic memories!

Oh yes...the symbolism of the bamboo?  Separation from any other...to each other.