Boortz [1] asks some interesting questions about this Willbanks thing….
Many, many years ago I had a relative commit suicide over an unwilling participation in a huge wedding. Is it possible that Jennifer Wilbanks ran away for the same reason? Was this huge wedding her idea, or was it something that was more or less forced on her by her parents. I don’t know if we’ll ever know the answer to this one, but is it possible that Jennifer wanted a quieter wedding, but was being compelled to participate in something that she felt was getting completely out of control? Sometimes you wonder just who these weddings are for .. the bride and groom, or the parents?
I’ll tell you a little secret; In the thousand or so weddings I’ve DJ’d since the early 70’s, I’d say 10-15% of them were like this… overly large and formal… and were making the bride and groom more nervous than they really needed to be. Getting married is a big step, and they’re already nervous enough.
Think 8 wedding showers and 28 attendants is going to push an already nervous bride, over the edge?
My Donna and I had a fairly small wedding, and the night before she had a case of the jitters….but did splendidly on our wedding day. Then again, we had a fairly small company in attendence.. we had the wedding fairly early in the day, actually had brunch (instead of a lavish dinner) for our guests, and we were done and on the road by 3pm…..
Which is another interesting note in terms of informality… Most people have weddings in warmer months. We married in November. Mostly because it being off season, and my knowing every hall in town, we got a pretty good deal. A DJ freind of mine did the MC Honors. And as for our honeymoon, we didn’t go to a south sea island somewhere…. we drove north from Rochester to Toronto…. spending out first night together in Niagara Falls, which as I’ve told you before in these spaces, is an old freind for both of us.
In November. Yes, it snowed.
Part of the idea was to keep the pressumes down on both of us. And both our families supported the concept.
I wonder, in the case of Willbanks, et al, if the huge production this whole thing had become before she left, was WHY she left? And if the family is that overbearing, what do you do if you’re the groom in this situation?
(Shudder) She’s a cute kid, but if the overbearing family (and the overbearing family money) was the issue, do I really want that baggage for the next 60 years, or so?