Today is a holiday in my home country, Canada - it's our Thanksgiving weekend, which we usually have a month before our southern friends.
It was also the weekend that my eldest son Willie (William) married his soulmate Laura. The wedding was held in a glorious outdoor location in the Muskoka region north of Toronto - the autumn colors were popping at the same time that showers and sun were lingering together in the air. I had been watching the weather for weeks, and forecasted 10 days before the wedding that the temperature would be 13C with clouds and a bit of sun - and that's exactly what we had! The rain held off until the final moments, and the sun peaked through the clouds giving some blue sky. We were so lucky since the next day it was cold, drizzling, and rain - and yuck! We even had a rainbow, capping the joyful moment!
There were many tears of joy throughout the ceremony and throughout the day - I will admit that I was absolutely blubbering with joy as I walked Willie down the aisle with my wife. My wife was doing the same throughout, and again as we hugged our son and new daughter-in-law seconds after the ceremony. I think that all of the guests were similarly caught up in the joy - relatives, friends, and family.
As if they did not have enough to do with their careers and wedding planning (Laura just began her Ph.D. in Music Therapy a month ago), they received a wonderful gift from her parents - a canoe that they built from the keel up under the guidance of a canoe master. It was their goal to take their first paddle at the wedding location - and the sun and sky obliged, giving them the perfect moment in the new canoe that will guide them into so many adventures.
This now makes our family a wonderful group of six - my wife and I, Tom and Kim (married last year), and Willie and Laura.
We are blessed with our good fortune with our little family unit, and are overjoyed at our good fortune!
Jim Carroll met his wife Christa on October 5, 1987, making the weekend all the more poignant, marking 36 years together.
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