Day 7-A Song That Reminds You of an Event

For many people, music creates memories associated with an event. A particular song you hear at a school dance, wedding processionals, summer nights by a camp fire, funerals. Music is a strong cue for emotion and memory. For our wedding, like many weddings, music carried a great deal of significance. I thought very carefully about the music selections for the more significant parts of the day. There is a hymn called Parent's Prayer that we selected for when our parents and grandparents walked down the aisle. The song I chose for myself is a very common wedding song. I played frequently it on the piano as a kid and it was my mother's favorite from my childhood piano days. Catholic ceremonies dont allow secular music which bugged me as a non-Catholic but we made do. The only "hymn" that was allowed that I liked for our unity candle lighting was "God Bless Our Love" by John Lennon. So strange it was allowed considering it was written by a secular artist and one that once created quite the stir by saying the Beatles were more popular than Jesus. Our first dance was "Keeper of the Stars" by Tracy Byrd. Our last song was "I Could Not Ask For More" by Sara Evans. They all make me smile and reminisce in their own ways.

One song that instantly takes me and DH back to our wedding is "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)" by the Proclaimers. I chose it for our wedding party intro song at our reception. I chose it because its about going miles and miles to be with the one you love. It was a great song for DH and I because we were long-distance for our entire relationship. We met online in 2003. From the time we met in person for the first time (2005) until we got married (2007), we spent our school breaks and holidays together and it totaled 90 days. Yes, only 90 days of in-person contact before we got married but I cant even begin to count the number of hours on MSN chatting and nights on the phone for 4 years. Also every single member of our bridal party, except for one, came from some sort of distance. Anywhere from one hour to a few plane rides. Four of our five groomsmen came from Canada and my bridesmaids and ushers were scattered across the USA. So "I'm Gonna Be" was also a tribute to them, thanking them for coming from all distances to be with us on our special day. When it was played, each member of our bridal party was introduced by name and we all made it to the dance floor where we danced in a big circle. I danced with each person in the middle of the circle and it made all of us smile and laugh. It was a great way to kick off our reception, such joy and fun. Even my 84 year old grandmother remembers that particular moment with a smile. It brings a smile to my face when this song comes on the radio, to remember my relationship with DH and how loyal and wonderful all of our friends are to both of us.

The Proclaimers-"I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)"