A Wedding Song for Dainna & Jordan

Here are poems and excerpts from a ceremony that I performed August 14 2010 for my niece Dainna and her fiance Jordan at Ten Mile Station in Breckenridge, CO.

For Dainna & Jordan –Prothalamion (Wedding Song & Opening Poem)

by Arielle Emmett (c) Arielle Emmett

When the road seems wide and lit with magic lamps, all bending to thy will,
Flaring with the night a flame so red, so gold, the thrill;
I see my youth, my Traveler, passing swiftly by,
Bidding me to march much faster, Time is passing, Time the Master,
Time that waits for no one, leads to nowhere but the footsteps on the hill –

Will you slow your pace for me, Father Time, Mother Rhyme, will you let me dream and love,
And slow my pace, for your embrace; and love the one I love?

For she is lovely, my dove; she is Godiva and Lady all at once, her blond hair falling as rain
In winter’s sunlight upon her breast. She rides a beast so light and dark I know not what its color is—
A Trojan horse with eyes and sinews mad with fright, taking flight with no cause other than to live;
But for her touch, which calms the beast in all of us, and makes a man cry with joy
Just at the scent of Air, the Air of her body rushing by, breathing in him such sweet tendrils of delight.

And he, from far away, a warrior whose only sword is the kindness of his heart,
The skill of his mind and hands, matching hers, the gentleness of his touch—
He loves all Creatures, large and small;
Especially his Dainna, he that loves her with eyes as the eyes of doves;
His cheeks as a bed of spices…his lips like lilies, dropping sweet-smelling myrrh;
It is he, Jordan, she loves. It is she, Dainna, his soul adores.

Set me as a seal upon thine heart; as a seal upon thine hand;
For love is as strong as life; jealousy is as cruel as the grave; and
I shall strive to love thee all my life; and keep all jealousy away.

Oh daughters of Jerusalem, oh sons of Zion,
These two come here today to make their peace with Time.
Time that waits for no one, time that, for a moment, makes a flower,
Pins it quietly to a bower, only wide enough for two --
Today these two, Dainna and Jordan, shall declare to all:
“This is my beloved. This is my friend. We shall walk the road with magic lamps together,
Bending around the curve, not knowing where it will end.”

Will you slow your pace for me, Father Time, Mother Rhyme, will you let us dream and love,
And slow our pace, for your embrace; and love the one we love?

Tarry not. Arise and go now, my loves, and make thy life together –
Make haste for happiness, love, family, and friendship…forever!

Part II

Beneath this wide Colorado sky, two miles high, at the top of a continent still new and full of promise, two young lives will be entwined today…two who will make a difference.

I’m Dainna’s aunt. Like many of you, I’m Jordan’s friend and admirer. We are here as witnesses and participants in a rare joy…a marriage of a beloved son and daughter who actually belong together. Families and friends have come from thousands of miles apart, from every city in the US, and even from Canada, to share their miracle of deep and abiding love.

These two young people were born thousands of miles apart. But somehow, they managed to find each other at a Vet school in California… Their passions are animals and healing…their loves are biking, hiking, running and scuba…and their families and dearest friends. They are born adventurers. We’ve all seen their incredible journey of places, times, and moods on their website…where every image shows such tenderness between them… the fun they have...their communication…whether it’s the Olympic Peninsula, or the beaches of Washington State where Jordan proposed to Dainna with their dogs as witnesses, his “Marry Me?” written in the sand with the Pacific as a backdrop….or whether it’s hiking or skiing in the Grand Tetons or scaling the Empire State building, or bonding 60 feet under water with scuba gear…

It’s unique to bathe in their light. When we look at them, we feel their altitude of mind, where every smile is saying “Wow, this is so great. It’s our time to bask in sun and rain and each other’s company. The best part is…we touch eternity every day together, and we are so full of vitality, youth, and purpose.”

I’m not going to throw much water on this. Dainna and Jordan, you know there will be times when things will not be happy…when you’ll both be tested…. But you are already prepared to answer these challenges, I think, given your unique set of disciplines. So here we are, two families about to be united in these craggy heights and mists …celebrating Dainna and Jordan’s remarkable union. This is as good as it gets.

Believe it or not, I’m reminded of a Chinese saying. It is about couples who are made as pairs in Heaven. The Chinese expression is "yuan fen."

“Wu yuan jian mian bu xiang shih, you yuan, qian li lai xiang hui.”

Roughly translated, it means “If there is no pairing, no match, you can meet head on and not think a thing about it. But if you are a pair, a couple ordained to be as one, a thousand Li cannot keep you apart.”

Let it be so with Dainna and Jordan…you two, I believe, are yuan fen.

For a moment, let me acknowledge all the family members and friends who have come here today to share your blessing. Remember, Dainna and Jordan wouldn’t be here today, making these vows, starting a new life together, if it were not for the love and support of each and every one of you… mothers, fathers, sisters, aunts, uncles, grandparents, cousins, and friends. And I have to say, never in all my years have I seen two families from a bride and groom with so much in common.

When I first met Elyse, Jordan’s beautiful, funny, mother, I was amazed at how she and my sister, Rowena, Dainna’s mother, bonded…The same with Michael Waters, Elyse’s husband, and my brother-in-law David Stelmach, Dainna’s father, who walked Dainna down the aisle just a few minutes ago….And then there’s Jordan’s incredible sister Ali, who loves Dainna and even flew out to accompany my niece across the country so Dainna would not be alone on her drive back from Texas to the West coast. That’s the bonding of families… My sister said to me a few days ago, “What do Elyse and I have in common?” Well, one thing is that we’ve both had children who have never disappointed us…and their light shines in and around us every day."

I’d like to honor today some other family members who are here: Jordan’s Dad, Andy Scherk, who gives Jordan his rapier New York wit…Teddy and Joel Moscot, Jordan’s terrific grandparents, who share a love of the theatre with our family. In addition, Michael Waters’ parents are here –Adam and Kammy Waters, and Andy Scherk’s Mom, Joan Scherk. We also want to especially honor Betty Moscot, a jewelry artist, who designed Jordan and Dainna’s gorgeous wedding rings, which look different from the outside because of the couple’s differences in style, Jordan explained to me. But inside, both rings have an identical ruby, signifying their deepest love that unites them even in their differences…

Let the spirit and light of this couple be with you this LOVELY evening and all days forward...Let their commitment, love, and trust for each other shine on you and all your loves and friendships. Know, each and every one of you, that your light shines within Jordan and Dainna, too, as an aura that carries them forward to light their way, to help them become more real, centered, and loving every day of their lives:

We will now have a reading from “The Velveteen Rabbit”:

(Samantha Moscot reads excerpt about becoming 'real.')

Okay, Dainna and Jordan, this is it. You are about to exchange your vows and your ruby-throated wedding rings. You are about to smash that glass – surely a symbol of fertility. But before you do, I’d like to read you this, not as a denial of Evolution, but as a covenant to protect it:

"And God said, 'Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds; livestock, creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, each according to its kind. And it was so. God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds.' And God saw that it was good.

"And God said, 'Let the waters teem with living creatures, and let birds fly about the earth across the great expanse of the sky. So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with which the water teams, according to their kinds; and every winged bird according to its kind.' And God saw that it was good…

"And God blessed them and said, 'Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.' And there was evening, and there was morning – the fifth day.”

And there was life.

Now it is your life, Dainna and Jordan. Work hard and be fruitful. Enjoy your rest, cherish each other always, and keep your vows. You may now say them to each other.

(Dainna and Jordan speak their vows.)

(Exchange Rings)

Before all these witnesses who love you, before the Earth and Sky that need your protection, will you, Jordan, take Dainna to be your wife? Will you love and comfort her, honor and keep her, in joy and in sorrow, in sickness and in health, for richer, for poorer, for better or for worse, as long as you both shall live?

Jordan: I will.

Dainna, before all these witnesses who love you, before the Earth and Sky that need your protection, will you take Jordan to be your husband? Will you love and comfort him, honor and keep him, in joy and in sorrow, in sickness and in health, for richer, for poorer, for better or for worse, as long as you both shall live?

Dainna: I will.

By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife.

(Break the glass and kiss…)

Friends and Family…I now introduce Dr. Jordan Scherk and Dr. Dainna Stelmach, partners in life!