Megan & Bjørn : The Tuesday Ritual

Despite my long forgotten sense of romance and belief in anything but the most cynical rationalizations of relationships, ceremony and all that family values hypocrisy, I attended the wedding of my dear friends Bjørn and Megan.

While an hour outside of L.A., I was blessed with wonderful traveling companions Vanessa (a documentary filmmaker) and Robbie (a brilliant guitarist) (above). While virtual strangers on the way up, by the end of the journey we were fast friends exchanging ideas and intently learning about each other.  Once there, the Dutch and American themed decor truly celebrated the union of not only these two people, but the two cultures merging.

Carolina & Sascha

the mother of the bride

The dads

Guests wrote their names on pieces of paper and pinned them to a map in their approximate geographical origin. Here, Carolina pins her name to her beloved Buenos Aires.

Wedding cake

Megan with Sascha and Carolina

Bjørn's ring

Missy and Vanessa

Prior to the event, Bjørn and Meg honored me with a request to lay down some of my poetry to commemorate the event. Over a home cooked meal of fennel chicken followed by fresh fruit filled crepes we discussed what was important and what needed to be said. Here it is:



THE TUESDAY RITUAL


Tuesday nights were burlesque.
And looooooooong......
arriving before the dissidents rode up,
and staying until the bar-back began restocking.


I came to watch the girls dance.
The band was the best and that was a bonus.
Bjørn was the bass.
the bottom end.
the starboard.


Our conversation —
not your average guy talk;
sharing stories of
a worldwide search -
our quasi-quests for love.


We had much in common.


One day -
in a most magical exchange -
Megan entered his life.


Cordially at first - she attended Tuesday nights -
I kept my eye on her and in loyalty to Bjørn,
made sure no one tried to hit on her.

So, while he plucked his bass
with meticulous musicality
I kept her amused until he punched-out for the night.
There was non-stop laughter
in a dark club filled with creepy men surreptitiously taking provocative pictures of dancing girls.

We only paused to cheer the bass solo.

This was the Tuesday ritual.

Los Angeles is full of phonies
and people who will bring you down


Always showing support and love-
Bjørn and Megan-
always give back.
They have integrity
They have credibility
and now they have each other.


Their journey involves a prophecy;
to see the other side-
and entwine their spirits and souls
as they carve their route to make the world more full of love.


A lofty address certainly,
and to make this singular duo the bearer
of such awesome responsibilities
is nothing less than something of cosmic importance.


Thusly,
they will always receive what they send-
love and laughter and music and beauty-
all things conjured up by invincible imaginations-
will be bestowed upon their life.
(8/13/11)


________________________________________

The wedding itself is beyond my descriptive words, and even the photos I took did not do it justice. The professionals hired for the event have posted some brilliant photos and exposition [HERE].

Incidentally, I am not a "knick-knack" person.

I don't like that kind of clutter.

At the wedding we were given a thimble-sized ceramic pair of white clogs with "HOLLAND" written on them in blue letters and an ornate (but very tiny) windmill painted on them. The shoes were bound together by a single knotted piece of patriotic red, white and blue ribbon. They were wrapped in mesh, which was gathered at the top and tied with a red and white string. This now sits on my western-facing windowsill next to my other knick-knack miniature replica of the Chrysler Building (the significance of this involves a trip to NY and an obsession with Matthew Barney's Cremaster films - the one which involves the construction of the aforementioned Manhattan structure).

Bjørn : He's deep and thoughtful, at least 6 foot 2 with a penchant for mugging whenever my camera points at him; his deep passion and talent lies within his creation of music. Bjørn recently released his debut CD 1 Only [get it on iTunes] - a collection of deeply spiritual and personal songs with all the instruments and vocals performed by him exclusively.

Megan: She loves to laugh and enjoys pretty things as well as music, travel, nightlife, and she spends much of her time smiling and amused. She attended FIDM and has been called professionally to work in New York a few times since graduating last Spring. She is well on her way.

Congratulations and deepest thanks to the parents of both Bjørn and Meg and to the happy couple themselves.