Wedding

Today we go to a wedding. I really don't want to go, but it is obligatory. It is a young couple who are members of the church we attend most of the time. Not only are we expected to go, we are expected to give the couple a considerable sum of money. In this country the groom has to give the parents of the bride a "Bride Price." It has to be the equivalent of $3,000 US dollars minimum and more depending on the negotiations the groom makes with the brides parents. This is one of the reasons that many couples do not marry until they are 30 years old or older and it is also why there are so many young women here with illegitimate children and no man in sight. At least the young man in question here has a very good job.

We have been to a couple of weddings in this country and they are fairly typical of Christian weddings in the US. The bride wears a white dress and the groom usually wears black. The vows are similar to the way we do them. I have never been to a Buddhist wedding, so I don't know how they work. I have been to a couple of Hmong Christian weddings and they are very nice. So today may be interesting. Or not. Just have to wait and see. More after the wedding.