Lauren’s Law: Wedding Tales

Anyone who knows me well knows that Valentine’s Day is my favorite holiday. As a kid, I was obsessed with making heart-covered paper mailboxes and exchanging cards and candy with classmates.

As I got older, I loved romantic comedies, better known as rom-coms for us true fans. In the spirit of a great rom-com, I’m reminiscing about two silly and slightly embarrassing stories from weddings that feel right out of a movie — because what’s more romantic than a wedding?

New Orleans Wedding

My first tale takes place at the Cathedral-Basilica of Saint Louis, also known as St. Louis Cathedral. Located in New Orleans’ Jackson Square, this is the oldest cathedral in continuous use in the U.S. What I’m most impressed about is the fact that it’s featured in the Disney film “The Princess and the Frog.”

This was the first wedding my husband and I attended together while dating. It was also one of multiple weddings where I pretty much only knew him, the best man. Needless to say, I was hoping to make a good first impression.

Somehow, I became tasked with holding onto the bride and groom’s wedding rings, while the groomsmen were taking photos ahead of the wedding. I was sitting on a bench outside the breathtaking St. Louis Cathedral. A bad feeling crept in. Soon after, a beggar approached me to ask for money. Visions of the wedding rings being stolen from me flashed through my mind. I sort of blacked out from the fear of ruining the upcoming nuptial plans. I think I had a wildly out-of-character moment, yelled “No!” and then ran away, wedged heels and cocktail dress and all. The story has a good ending, though – the rings weren’t stolen, and I’m told I was a hit at the wedding.

Washington, D.C. Wedding

My next tale takes place in Washington, D.C., at the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament. My future sister-in-law and brother-in-law gave me the honor of reading at their wedding, which took place in the church where they met. Talk about an amazing meet-cute to share with family and friends that certainly beats the “we met in a bar” story.

During the rehearsal, my sister-in-law’s dear friend went first. She was applauded by the priest.

Public speaking was a regular occurrence of my career at the time, and I had practiced my reading several times. I felt confident when my turn came to read Colossians 3:12—17. To my surprise, the priest was not satisfied. His biggest critique was to slow down.

Well – I went back to my hotel room that night and practiced, practiced and practiced. When the time came to read at the wedding, all went smoothly.

Following the wedding ceremony, I ended up sitting next to the priest at dinner and having the loveliest time. He was pleased with my reading that day. Here’s a snippet of a meaningful message from this reading:

“Put on, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if one has a grievance against another; as the lord has forgiven you, so must you also do.”

So, while a priest threw me serious shade, I came to learn how it was the focus of his homily message. Thankfully, I now fully understand the importance of forgiveness in marriage. Lucky for my husband, right?

Lauren Burke Meyer is a Severna Park native who was inspired to write Lauren’s Law as a humorous play on the well-known Murphy’s Law adage: “anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.”