True and Meaningful Purpose

Yesterday, Saturday 5/11, I officiated Erin and Dan's wedding at the Rookery in Chicago, Illinois. Here are the personal remarks I shared with them and their guests:

Erin and Dan are a fascinating couple. They relish in infusing their life with meaning, and purpose. They seek to do this not just the in the grand, but in the minute too. They do this as individuals, but more importantly as a couple, deeply in love. In the latter they realize that sometimes there is no hidden purpose or meaning beyond the greatness of the moment, the wonder of the here and now, in their loving togetherness.

Dan describes the moments Erin and he enjoy the most, together and with friends and family. (Guys, listen up; this may be worth imitating with our significant others.)

"I’m sure I make her happy by whipping up a meal effortlessly for her, but it is in the growth with our friends and family where we believe cooking and hosting can give pleasure to our lives. I get to work with my hands and I’ll cook for hours on end while just a few feet away Erin opens bottles of wine and chats with our guests. The purpose of life can’t be any more complicated than that."

Erin and Dan, I think you have stumbled upon one of the great secrets to a happy and joyous marriage. As humans there are evolutionary reasons we search for meaning and purpose. All too often, however, we seek these in the grand, and we neglect the minute and delicate. Marriage, however, is usually more about the minute and delicate, the here and now. You remind us that in creating a joyous here and now, in not allowing the grand to block out the minute, and in relishing in the small pleasures we experience as couples, we can find and create true and meaningful purpose, in love together.