A walk to remember

Last weekend while I was trying to put the final report cards of the school year together I turned on the TV to catch a glimpse of the wedding gown of crown princess Victoria of Sweden. Not that P&A were that thrilled about this but at least P was so kind to put up with it for a while. It turned out to be a rather simple dress with very meaningful details and a very long train .

In case you have forgotten I am still not married!! It still drives me insane but I try to be very patient. I do think that people who take wedding vows seriously deserve some extra credit. Even being close to 40 I still stand still before shops where they sell wedding gowns. While I am standing there I do have some very sweet dreams about how my own wedding could look like.

People who do know me better will know that I do consider the wedding service the highlight of that day. I don't care about the party or the number of guests. But I already have very specific wishes and demands for that special moment in my life. Ever since college where I minored in religion and studied the sacrements I have found out the deeper meaning of the exchange of this meaningful act.

Only there is one moment that will never be that good enough and that is the walk to aisle. Because that walk I would only wish to have done in the close company with my father. He was the only up for that task. During that trip I wanted to thank him for all he did for me and what values he thaught me. It would have been the perfect moment to show the unconditional love I feel for my father and all he stands for!

The day my dad died that one wish also died along with him. For me that day something broke inside me. A very big hole in my heart was created. Many people knowing the impact of grief into their daily lives will be with me on this one. My live suddenly got a darker side. That period of time stands for the very first real emotional test I got about life!

When I then found out that Victoria wanted her father to walk her to the spot her Daniel was waiting for her I did not make a big thing out of it. But the majority of feminists were a bit outraged. They did not get it that in a country were man and woman are considered equals you want to walk into church with your father and then being handed over to an other man!

In Sweden the Royal Family is still very popular. The whole nation had been looking forward to this particular day that their crown princess was going to tie the knot with a commoner. Because that is what her personal trainer Daniel is in general. I even have to state that I did think that his parents did look a bit uncomfortable while sitting their amongst the crowned heads. I even wonder if my own queen Paola was so kind to talk to the nice mother in law of Victoria.

Above all I do think that Royal Weddings are sometimes blown out of proportion. Critics will be happy to spit out very loud their point of view about anything that annoys them. In case you have forgotten, you might have done for sure exact the same thing about one or two weddings you did attend in your life! If it is not the food that is too cold, it is the DJ who seems to play a one man show, or the wedding service was way too long, or the table setting that annoys you, or it is the fact that you did not get the right drinks along with your food, or you did not receive a meaningful thank you note,blah blah blah. Do I need to go on? I don't think so.

Well, that Victoria did want to do something that the majority of the very liberal thinking Swedish nation considers less normal must have a different meaning to her. The Palace even had to make an official statement why the Royal daughter wanted to do this. All she wanted to take that one very significant last walk with her father before crossing the line to board on a new adventure. Turning the page.

I still need that walk badly to feel more at ease with life. It is a very personal feeling but perhaps some people will understand me what I try to state her. I would have truely enjoyed those last steps in the company of my father and being able to embrace my new life and let go the old one. I would still have felt backed up by him because the moment that he would have walked to his seat in church he would have expressed all the faith in me that I am up to the test. Up till today I do feel that I never had the opportunity to turn that significant page. And yes, I am very envious of the daughters and fathers who were able to enjoy that significant precious moment together.

By now the newly weds Victoria and Daniel will be enjoying their well deserved honeymoon. The kingdom of Sweden has finally calmed down after the Royal Wedding and most of the royal households have taken their gala outfits to the cleaners. All there is left are the memories and the many pictures that are to be found on the net or in magazines.

Crown princess Victoria and personal trainer Daniel (and also the father of the bride!) two thumbs up for that extra ordinary walk. But perhaps a pair of stylish white running shoes pimped up with blue ribbons and some Swarovski stones underneath that breathtaking wedding gown would have made it even a more special moment. Or is that a bit too much? And to all the already married copples perhaps this is a good moment to get your wedding album out and remember!! Bet that most of the things to be found in that big album will still make you smile.