That Time I Got Married With a Plastic Ring (True Story)

I feel like writing a blog is passé now that we have social media but I do like the long form of storytelling that I just miss from short form social media. I don't do it often because I feel like it takes away from my precious writing time, especially during the summer when I want to spend the last few rays of summer sunshine with my kids at home.

But I also love telling stories. Especially funny ones. And this is a story I think you'll enjoy.

Once upon a time, Rob and I got engaged, about 1000 years ago. We were dirt poor. I had about $200 in the bank and we got married on love and hope. But I had attended a church meeting where they gave out those fake plastic, but they look metallic, rings as part of a lesson. It looked real, complete with little carvings on it. You could only tell it was plastic by the weight (it was light) and the little slit in the circumference.

Well, I went to a local jewelers to buy Rob a ring (he has since lost this little relic) and I asked him his ring size, etc. When I visited him to ensure it fit, I decided to play a little joke on him. Using the plastic ring, I slipped it on his finger which only came up to his knuckle, I proclaimed, "Oh, no! You gave me the wrong size!" His heart stopped for a minute, then he was like, what is this? and I admitted to my little shenanigan. (BTW, humor I think is one of the essentials of a long married life, but I digress). He laughed and I didn't think anything of it until...

Rob got in a car wreck ten days before our wedding. Don't worry. He was fine, but he totaled the 1984 Nissan baby pickup truck. (Some guy in a 1960's era steel framed Chevy truck plowed into him, driving on an illegal license!) But at least Rob was unhurt, thank heavens! However, this left us with a bit of a pickle; we no longer had a car. His mom drove four  hours round trip from his home town where the wedding was to where he attended college and picked him up for our wedding. We discovered, however, when he arrived at the wedding venue, that because he didn't have the car, he forgot to pick up my wedding ring! He called and asked them to FedEx it, but our wedding was scheduled for the first thing in the morning and it wouldn't likely make it overnight. So what to do? I had to have a ring!

I pulled out the plastic joke ring and said, "Let's use this."

The ceremony was lovely. The mother of the bride cried, the mother of the groom cried. All of our family and friends surrounded us in their love and support. So we get to the part where were supposed to exchange rings. Everyone but the officiator knew about the plastic ring. So when the officiator asked him to put the ring on my finger and hold it up for everyone to see, Rob did. But when the officiator said, "This ring is a symbol of your love," there was a collective halting giggle from the audience. The poor officiator looked totally confused  and probably thought we were all being disrespectful as I stood there with a cheap, ten cent plastic ring!

But that ring did become a symbol of our love--we learned to be resilient, resourceful, flexible, to have a sense of humor. We tried to focus on the things that mattered most, our vows to each other and to God. And we didn't sweat the small stuff.

At 11am when the wedding was over, we drove to the house and picked up the ring that now encircles my finger as a symbol of our love. 

Weird things always happen at weddings. Do you have a funny story to share about a your special day or a wedding you attended? Leave it in the comments below.