On August 13th, my oldest daughter Venche and her husband Ben will celebrate their 8th wedding anniversary. A few months ago, while at their house, I looked at a framed picture of toilet paper. Let me explain, and at this point, you say: Yes, Please do!
Well the morning of their wedding as I woke up very early I had some things I wanted to say at their wedding. So I had to write it down but the only paper I had to do it on was some hotel toilet paper. Fortunately we stayed at a classy hotel which used nothing but the best toilet paper.
So what was I supposed to do? I unfurled some paper and started writing. I didn’t rip it off immediately as I wasn’t sure how much I had to say. But I got it done with 7 sheets of the two-ply paper.
Here’s what I wrote: The sign says Love Never Fails. Love also makes us do strange things like wallpaper that spare room the same day as the big game or the day you wanted to go hunting for big game.
Love will make you go to a kindergarten choir concert when you could be doing…nothing!
Those examples tell us truly that LOVE is patient, LOVE is kind. LOVE always trusts. LOVE always perseveres. Yes, LOVE NEVER FAILS!
Love is written about in song all the time. From Percy Sledge singing ‘When a Man Loves a Woman to the Beatles singing Love Me Do!
Randy Travis sang about My Love is deeper than a holler, stronger than the rivers, Higher than the pine trees growin’ tall upon the hill. My love is purer than the snowflakes that fall in late December and honest as a robin on a springtime window sill and longer than the song of a whippoorwill.
Johnny Cash sang about a thing called LOVE. Can't see it with your eyes, hold it in your hands
Like the rules that govern our land, it’s strong enough to rule the heart of every man, this thing called LOVE.
It can lift you up, it can put you down, Take your world and turn it all around
Ever since time nothing's ever been found stronger than love.
Yes, LOVE is patient, LOVE is kind. LOVE never fails.
Venche and Ben, May the LOVE of Jesus always be the center of your marriage from this day to the end of time. 8-13-2016. Love you both, Dad.
So when it was my turn to get up front and give my speech, I reached in to the pocket of my rented tux and unfurled the toilet paper. Ben laughed while Venche had that look of fear and wondering ‘Now What?’
It was not the wildest thing that happened that day though. At the reception later, they had a popcorn machine that was inexplicably placed under a fire alarm. Sure enough, one popper started to smoke and the alarms went off and notified the fire department and soon after that the big red rig arrived. Venche, in her quick thinking saw it as a photo opp! So the entire wedding party posed in front of the truck and the best of a bad situation was made.
That reminds me of another song that I could have quoted but I didn’t know they had planned on the fire department coming to the wedding. A singer named Dickie Feller back in the 70’s recorded a song called; ‘Making the Best of a Bad Situation’. In my very early days of being on the radio, I would play that song. Little did I know that, years later, it was to be a theme song for my daughter’s wedding.
