Fericit Ziua Nuntii!

I once had a boss ask me what nationality I was. I started rattling off the English, Scotch-Irish, Danish and the rest before he interrupted me and said, "With those eyes?" I pointed to them and said, "Romanian." Ah, he said, "I wondered." I was told our tiny eyes - which both Anton and I have - were of Romanian descent. They are so small, getting my contacts in and out took some getting used to. Just couldn't get those eyes open enough. However, I have seen many Romanians with big eyes, so not sure how accurate that description is.

Well, since we have Romanian in the family, we thought we'd take a look at their wedding traditions. Romanians, by the way, are descendants of gypsies. Maybe that's why we've moved so much.

The groom is given a shave by his best man ... with an axe or knife. Be cool to see a chef's knife used here, hee hee. Then he and the groomsmen go pick up the bride to take her to church, gifting her with a bouquet. The groomsmen show up with pine trees which they leave at her door for good luck.

The couple has marriage godparents (naşi), perhaps a mentor couple. The couple picks who they want to be their naşi. It is the marriage godmother along with the mother of the bride who break a loaf of sweet bread or cake above the bride's head. I could see crumbs getting in the fancy hairdo here. The bread is given to unmarried wedding guests to eat. The godmother puts the bride's veil on her then replaces it at the reception for a head scarf symbolizing her transition to wife.The veil is then placed on the head of the unmarried woman who caught the bouquet at the reception.

If someone sneezes before the wedding it's good luck, as is finding a spider in the crease of the dress. Dropping the wedding rings is bad luck. There are buckets of water set at the entrance of the church which people drop coins into. As the married couple leaves the church, they kick the buckets over so all the water spills out, washing away any bad luck for the couple. As Ayla and Rob are getting married on an upper deck, I would feel real bad for the folks on the first level under those buckets! The money is given to the couple at the reception.

The godparents escort the couple into the church for the wedding. During the ceremony - now I LOVE this part - the bride and groom get crowns, symbolizing how they are now king and queen of their new home. How cool is that? Who wouldn't want crowns?!

At the reception, the groomsmen kidnap the bride and hold her for ransom. The ransom is usually alcohol.There is the traditional money dance. There are even parties given for two days after the wedding which the bride and groom must attend, so the honeymoon is postponed a couple days.

So there you go. Many to choose from! Fericit ziua nuntii! (Happy Wedding Day!)

Discussion: Any of the Romanian wedding traditions appeal to you? Which are a complete "no way!"

Prayer: Lord, there are such unique traditions in every country. How fun all the different places are. We pray you are glorified in every wedding moment all around the world. In Jesus, Amen.