I have been a Justice of the Peace for sixteen years. I have officiated hundreds of marriages and love it! It is a time of such promise and joy and hope (even though not all work out for the best - one marriage I officiated was over in two days). I have married two people in the back seat of my Jeep in an outlet mall parking lot, in front of 250 people gathered in a church (although I can not perform a religious wedding), and everything in-between.
I have married couples on horseback, on top of mountains (no more climbing for me, however), lakeside, in the woods, at Dunk's, many standard venues, and so on. Most often, I show up, perform the ceremony, and leave. Most couples are gracious and ask me to stay, which I did a few times, but it's usually a bit awkward, so unless I know the people, I just go. When it's all over, I rarely see the couple again, but recently, a couple of people changed that.
Back in October, I was asked to speak at graveside ceremony; it was the first time I had done something like that. Several attendees were former students and friends from the area. When I was done, and we were all standing around talking, a woman walked up to me and asked if I remembered her. I didn't. I had married her and her husband six years earlier just up the road in a nearby town. She was driving by, happened to recognize me and stopped to thank me and let me now how things were going. Like most couples, they had their ups and downs but hung in, kept working at it, and are doing well.
I got a call today from another woman I had married ten years ago. She just wanted to let me know she and her husband were still married and how appreciative they were for the small ceremony (at a highway rest area) and words I offered. They had called me the night before their marriage to see if I was available. I was.They still have a copy of my ceremony, and look at it every now and again. What a nice, uplifting call.
The shortest turn-around time from call to wedding for me was 15 minutes. There was a medical issue, and town clerk called to see if I was available to come down to marry the couple - I was. Everything fell nicely into place.
On the other end, I was at home one day hanging around when I got a phone call asking where I was - everyone was waiting for me. After our earlier planning meeting, I am not sure what happened, but I never transferred the information to my active calendar and didn't realize that was the day of the wedding. I was there within 30 minutes. It worked out, but it was embarrassing and could have been disastrous if I hadn't been home!
In the big picture, it's all been good. I love being a Justice of the Peace and am looking forward to what this new year brings.
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