The Wedding
By Natalie Nyquist
with contributions by Melinda Lavorante
and Mark Tennison
(click all photos for larger view)
May 27, 2006, 2 p.m. Several hundred family and friends gather in a tiny town in central Oregon, a representation of the hundreds (thousands?) more who joined with us in prayer and spirit to witness the union of Merritt and Gretchen in holy marriage. 
Each wedding is as unique as the couple it joins together, but I would like to think that Gretchen and Merritt’s was a bit extra-special. Perhaps this glimpse in words and pictures of that day will show you why I think so–as told through the eyes of the maid of honor and a friend who traveled from Idaho just for the wedding. Enjoy!
An Early Start
After the Friday evening rehearsal and being up past midnight talking with some of the wedding party, I expected to sleep long and hard. Instead, around 4 am I woke up (thereby waking up Gretchen, she claims. I insist she woke me up) and decided the day had begun. There were an inordinant amount of giggles and hugs shared before the rest of the house began to stir. Gretchen’s mind was far away…she kept asking me “Did you know I’m getting married?” Through the weeks I spent with her prior to this day, I’d come up with quite a few clever answers to that rhetorical question. But today, all I could do was look at her and smile.
Even waking up at 4 and energizing ourselves with a rare (for me at least) treat of mocha, by 9 am I knew that we were not going to get everything finished that we desired. Thankfully, none of it was essential; amazing how little actually is essential beyond the bride, groom, pastor, and–for Gretchen–a photographer. 
Gowns, shoes, bobby pins, unity candle…did we forget anything? If so, I guess we won’t need it. The morning flew by getting Gretchen ready and atttempting to sit still long enough for my own hair to be fixed. But it was so much fun to do otherwise! I was bouncing everywhere–helping Gretchen with her hair and dress, delivering a love note to the groom, meeting friends, hunting down candlelighters, taking pictures, answering the phone…by the time the ceremony began my hardest work was done. Surviving the preparation and ensuring everyone was ready was the difficult task!
The sweetest moment of the morning came before pictures when Merritt stood alone at the front of the church, his back turned to the doors. Gretchen came in with her veil over her face, he turned around and…well, it was just beautiful. Have you ever seen something so wonderful that all you could do was laugh? I sniffed back happy tears the rest of the day. No sad ones…all joy.
The Guests Arrive
Melinda: The day of the wedding! The day we had all been waiting for…but no one more than Merritt and Gretchen. It was raining. Of course. But the drive through the countryside down to the cute, little town of Scio was so lovely. I just adore the rolling green of Oregon’s countryside!
We arrived about fifteen minutes before the wedding began, and the church and surrounding parking lot was already full. Everyone wanted to be there early for the special day! While we signed the guest book, I noticed quite a few familiar faces, those of Gretchen’s “big” brother William and sister Jessica, along with numerous cousins and other relatives I had seen pictures of throughout the years.
I knew the guests were arriving as I could hear the hubub of conversation and laughter. All of Merritt and Gretchen’s family and friends were gathering! Her brothers and his were ushering and passing out programs. Her sister and his were making sure their children were ready to play their role. The parents and grandparents were preparing to light the candles. Photographers–mostly family and friends–were everywhere.
Instead of joining the crowds, I headed upstairs to my sissy. I will never forget my time with Gretchen in the bride’s room for the half hour before the ceremony. Throughout the whole wedding planning and preparation she did not get stressed or visibly upset. I think I grew more nervous since she wasn’t! While we still had a few minutes to ourselves I hugged her close. For the last time, I prayed for her as Gretchen Glaser. What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer… including my sissy as she becomes a wife, and our thankfulness for God’s work in our lives. But then our time was over…here come the photographers!
A few minutes later I heard her cousin playing preludes in the sanctuary and watched her mother adjust the blusher over Gretchen’s face. There she sat, her gown spread wide, looking into the oval full-length mirror as her mother finished with the veil. I heard the Anne of Green Gables theme drift from the sanctuary. There was my Anne…more beautiful than I’d ever seen her…perfectly calm and joyful. The night before we had been giggling and remembering Anne and Diana on the night before Diana’s wedding–though Gretchen is Anne in every way, in this case the roles are switched. I was the one making her laugh the night before, saying how we had not broken the bed , and watching her get married…completely delighted that it was her and not me.
I knelt by her and put my forehead to hers as we do so often, and just smiled. Here sat my true sister in every way–and now my girlhood best friend had found a new best friend. I was still her bestest girlfriend but another now came first. As it should be.
Melinda: The prelude music was the happiest/saddest/sappiness collection of music you could imagine. Anne of Green Gables. Phantom of the Opera. Fiddler on the Roof. Awwwww.
The church was decorated very simply with a silver arch at the front of the church, wrapped in yellow and orange roses and two candelabras. There were also bows and flowers along the aisle. The decorations were very simple, as was the wedding itself, but so beautiful and sweet….perfectly suited for the bride and groom. It was their day, and they truly stood out, so much in love, so darling and cute, and so, so, so, so happy.
Simple beauty. That is the best way to describe everything about the wedding. The decorations were pretty, but not elaborate. Our gowns were lovely, but cut very conservatively and did not draw attention to themselves. Even the ceremony reflected that theme: the richness of the traditional vows and beloved hymns kept the focus where it should be, instead of on mere novelty and production and drama, like some weddings I’ve attended.
Canon in D…
Melinda: Then the wedding began. The grandmothers each lit a candelabra holding multiple candles at the front of the church. And then the mothers, in matching periwinkle suit dresses, each took a flame from their respective candelabras and lit two candles under the arch. And then the wedding party entered. When it was the flower girl’s turn, it got amusing. She was three and very not wanting to go down the aisle. Apparently all the people in the church made her feel scared, but the way she was crying, it sounded like she was very upset and mad. In attempts to calm her down, they gave her some stuffed animals, and as the ring bearer dragged her by the hand down the aisle, she pressed the animals against her face and let out little yelps of cries all the way up the aisle. At first the audience tittered, but then we couldn’t help it–we all started laughing until there was peals of laughter rolling all around the room.
Poor us…the flower girl’s mother (one of Merritt’s sisters) had already gone down the aisle to her place, leaving her daughter, ring-bearer cousin, and me. No time for me to get nervous or think about the significance of the moment–I was trying to calm the flower girl while not missing my cue. Somewhat out of breath, I dashed into the sanctuary and tried to calm down. When the best man escorted me to my place I whispered what was happening in the foyer. We tried to contain our chuckles into broad smiles.
A moment later the ring bearer and flower girl appeared, the boy pulling and tugging his cousin each inch down the aisle. I laughed til I cried. Would we be able to recover enough before Gretchen appeared?
But the mood changed the moment the bride, on the arm of her proud father, stepped through the doors. Oh, how do I describe it?! Gretchen was glowing. Positively glowing! So beautiful, serene, pure, and positively blissful. After loving her one-and-only for so many years, she was finally going to be his. I don’t think there could possibly be a happier bride this side of heaven.
Gretchen and Merritt’s sheer ecstasy at being together at last did not strike me so strongly, perhaps because I have seen their intense love over many years. This was the culmination of their commitment to each other, the beginning of a new life as one. In my eyes, their expressions of joy and love were the most natural thing in the world. Utterly disarming.
Down the aisle she came on her father’s arm, and I was too delighted to even think of tears. Every time throughout the ceremony when Merritt or Gretchen shot a glance my way I returned my biggest smile and a wink. Whole conversations were carried on through those visual exchanges. “Wasn’t this fun?” “Can you believe you’re actually getting married?” “I love you so much!”
Melinda: Gretchen and Merritt were the most darling, cutest couple ever. As they stood at the front of the church together, they kept exchanging smiles with each other, whispering things for their ears only, and just about melting with happiness.
Gretchen did not cry during her wedding, but a lot of us sure did. Most of the time I was too happy for them to cry, but when there was a congregational singing of “Great is Thy Faithfulness” toward the start of the wedding…oh my. It was just so true for the Gretchen and Merritt, and we all were so grateful for God’s faithfulness toward them…tears couldn’t be helped! If there is a picture of God’s faithfulness, it is of Gretchen and Merritt. It was so incredible to be there to see his faithfulness toward them and their faithfulness toward him rewarded. At long last.
The photo to the left is one of the best memories from the ceremony. While her cousins sang, after the unity candle was lit, Gretchen and Merritt kept stealing glances my way. Finally Gretchen turned to give me the broadest smile as if to say, “Look at this wonderful man God has given me!” It was all I could do to stay in my place and not run over to hug them. That would come later.
The ceremony was over in a flash–I found myself wondering if we had left out a part or something! A most romantic conclusion: the pronouncement as husband and wife followed by a Sweet Kiss as the church bells sent out the news all across the Willamette Valley. Gretchen must have been slightly distracted, for she left her bouquet in my hands and floated out of the sanctuary on the arm of her new husband. Hmm. What to do? I managed to hold both bouquets in one hand and take the arm of my escort with the other. It took self-control not to burst into delighted laughter or run down the aisle.
Melinda: After the wedding party exited, we were shown a lovely slide show of Gretchen and Merritt through the years, showing them from infants up through when they met in Yellowstone when they were twelve, through their friendship years, through their courtship years, and through their engagement. It was a long, beautiful story…whose ending we got to witness! Well, not ending. Their wedding day is just the beginning of all the together years they shall enjoy together.
Reception and Farewells
Melinda: After the slide show, we went through the building to the room where the reception was. It was pretty much standing room only, with the bride and groom in the thick of it. We all had to push our way through to get a chance to congratulate the happy couple.
While everyone else was watching the slideshow, the wedding party enjoyed tears, laughter, and crushing hugs in the fellowship hall. The solemnity over, we began to celebrate! I lost count of how many times I hugged my sissy–inbetween bustling her train, loving on Jessica (who cried enough for the rest of us combined!) and getting hugs from everyone else. My happiness is not able to be expressed in words. Or perhaps all the other emotions 
welled up so much that the only sensible outlet for that point in time was sheer exuberance.
After the traditional cake cutting (Gretchen and Merritt were very nice to each other, despite the calls for them to smash it in each others’ faces), the guests began to go through the line for refreshments and a chance to congratulate the new couple. After speaking with all the family members I found Elizabeth and Jonathan to continue my conversation. (Photo on left: all the friends who traveled from around the country to attend the wedding. Left to right: Melinda Lavorante, Kellie M., Lizzy S., Gretchen and Merritt, Natalie, Skye W., Elizabeth and Jonathan Jackson.)
Finally meeting our own Elizabeth stands as a highlight of the day. After being friends and kindred spirits for so long, I could look in her eyes and hear her voice (very sweet and soft) while we talked! Our time was too short, but long enough for me to know that she was everything I expected–and more. God blessed me richly through her friendship and our conversations. I am seriously contemplating a visit to Alaska!
Admist all the commotion I did get a glance at what the cake looked like (basket weave design, heart-shaped and decorated with fresh yellow roses) but a sip of kiwi lemonade (the same green as our gowns) is all I tasted. I hear they served nuts and M&Ms with the cake but I’ll wait to see photographic proof. 
No tears until the time came for goodbyes…then her siblings started choking up and I was a goner.
Melinda: Soon it was time for Gretchen and Merritt to leave. They had William’s antique truck as their get-a-way vehicle, and amid flying rose petals they clambored inside…kissed for the camera and crowds…and then they were off! Everyone clapped and cheered and wished the blissful couple well as they drove off in the…rain!
As everyone began cleaning up I went back to the bride’s room and gathered Gretchen’s things, including a card she wrote for Merritt to read that morning. Somehow in the commotion it had been left.With the excuse of returning that and Gretchen’s car, I went to say a final goodbye to the couple where they were doing the final loading for their honeymoon. More hugs, more tears, more goodbyes…but it was the perfect closing flourish on a perfectly gorgeous day. This is probably one of my favorite pictures of all!
The hymn sung at Merritt and Gretchen’s wedding is the ideal way to close this account of the special day.
Great is Thy Faithfulness
Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;
As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be.
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!
Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.
Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!
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