Expression

I went to a wedding the other day. It was a friend's daughter and he officiated. I learned something.

It was a great wedding. The musicians were great. There were no glitches that I was aware of. And my friend did a great job. One thing I liked about the wedding was the simplicity. No tulle hanging everywhere. No mounds of gaudy flowers. Nothing outlandish. The sun shining through the stained glass windows bathed the whole place with a nice warm golden light that fit perfectly.

My friend did a great job of expressing himself both at the wedding and at the reception. But in spite of that I got the feeling that he wasn't satisfied with what he said. You could tell he was absolutely bursting with emotion. It was like he wanted everyone to know what he was feeling but didn't feel like he was doing those feelings justice. The words just weren't there. I think he might have been happier if he had the roar of a cheering crowd at a packed football stadium blasting through the sound system for a half hour. I tried to think of what I would say if I were in his shoes and drew a complete blank. I would have looked like a bumbling idiot and it is a credit to him that he did such a great job.

So this is what I learned. Those times when there are no words to express ourselves happen more often than we know. That's a good thing. That's what pushes human creativity. That's where beautiful art comes from. Beautiful music. Beautiful poetry. Beauty.

So I get it. I know that my friend was feeling a lot more than he could ever express with words. And while I get that I also get that I will never truly understand all that he was feeling. And that's a good thing too.