_{“It is not a lack of love, but a lack of friendship that makes unhappy marriages.” Friedrich Nietzsche}

I am sitting writing this in a cold London. It is not yet dark and already the temperature is below freezing, but there is a warmth in the air, and that is thanks to the sound of a wedding party gathering nearby.

What is it about a wedding that is so warming? So life-affirming?

For me it is not the clothes, the food, the venue, the wine, the speeches – it is that thing happening right at its core. The promise. Two people promising to do their best for each other, forever. Two people committing themselves to a daunting, difficult, deliberate partnership around which they promise to build their lives for as long they both shall live.

Then, promises made, off they go along the road of life together. What a moment.

The hard part of course, in any marriage, is keeping that flame, that campfire, burning brightly enough so that others can see it and feel its warmth. But it can happen and it does happen, and with every wedding there is the hope that it will happen again.

Copyright Georgie Knaggs & The Phraser 2023