Reflections on the Royal Wedding

Prince William & Kate Middleton



 My only reaction to tomorrow's royal wedding of Britain's Prince William to Kate Middleton has been free-floating cynicism. But then I read the column by Leonard Pitts, jr. in last Saturday's Miami Herald, entitled "In Time of Decline, Royal Wedding Heartens Pessimistic Heart." His words opened my heart:

"To get married is to make a bet on always and forever. To stay married is a function of will and work, even more than of love. The capacity and willingness to make that bet, to put in that work, to bear down with that will, are slowly disappearing from American life. Fifty years ago, close to 70 percent of all American adults were married. Now it’s about 54. Britain has seen similar trends. We marry less, we marry later, we make marriage a reality show, we see our cynicism validated by Hollywood marriages that pop like soap bubbles.

A wedding, then, is not just an act of faith, but also one of defiance. Particularly for someone like William who is, after all, the child of a marriage that began as a fairytale and ended as a horror story. Royal obligations aside, one could hardly blame him if he chose to bag the whole idea. Instead, he will stand in the storied old church, promise himself to someone else and hear the same from her, like a million couples a million times before."

From the depths of my heart and soul, I wish the royal couple well. May they cherish their sacred commitment always.