My fiance and I went to a wedding this past weekend, and as nice as it was, there was a very sad undertone: the bride's parents were not there.
It wasn't that they were deceased, sick, or otherwise unable to. It was their choice. And a last minute choice at that.
From witness accounts, this is what happened at the rehearsal dinner which lead to these sad circumstances. Keep in mind, I don't know the parents of the bride, although I know there has been tension between the two families, but nothing that was anything like this, from what I understand.
The parents arrived about a half-hour late, the father dressed in a T-Shirt and shorts, and the mother also inadequately dressed. They sit down, and the father orders a salad to start. When the salad arrives he is immediately displeased and screams for the waitress. The problem? There weren't enough tomatoes on the salad. The waitress apologizes and I assume is trying to offer to remake it, but the guy is simply demeaning the poor woman who is on the verge of tears at this point, unable to get a word in edgewise.
Everyone else at the table are absolutely appalled at his behavior (not sure about the bride's mother, but the bride, groom, and groom's parents were just amazed at the callousness). The waitress leaves, with him still screaming at her with f-bombs gallore, and then he's upset about that. Everyone in the restaurant are just staring at this table now.
The groom is now expressing his anger towards his future father-in-law for making a scene over something so petty and the father's now directing his steam towards the table. Now there is some back-and-forth going on, and at some point someone at the table, in their ranting, brings up the poor outfit choices both of them are wearing and that just sets him off further.
Finally the manager arrives and tells him to leave the restaurant. Obviously this doesn't sit well with him and saying that everyone else should leave with him to "teach the restaurant a lesson", but the bride, groom, and groom's parents all tell him that he is the problem and should leave so they can have a peaceful dinner for the remainder of the time there.
Both mother and father vow they will not come to the wedding, and now, with the bride in tears over the whole thing, leave the restaurant. Sure enough, the bride's parents are absent, and the bride had to call an audible and have her brother walk her down the aisle and do the "father-daughter" dance.
Again, I don't know if there were other events which culminated before the rehearsal dinner and this was just the last straw, but it was definitely the parents who excused themselves from the wedding, and not anyone else telling them not to attend.
Overall, the wedding was great, given the sad circumstances. The bride kept her best face on, but I know deep inside her she was very upset about her own parents refusing to partake in the ceremony and celebration mostly because of what went down during the rehearsal dinner. I doubt she'll ever forgive her parents for abandoning her on her best day.
It wasn't that they were deceased, sick, or otherwise unable to. It was their choice. And a last minute choice at that.
From witness accounts, this is what happened at the rehearsal dinner which lead to these sad circumstances. Keep in mind, I don't know the parents of the bride, although I know there has been tension between the two families, but nothing that was anything like this, from what I understand.
The parents arrived about a half-hour late, the father dressed in a T-Shirt and shorts, and the mother also inadequately dressed. They sit down, and the father orders a salad to start. When the salad arrives he is immediately displeased and screams for the waitress. The problem? There weren't enough tomatoes on the salad. The waitress apologizes and I assume is trying to offer to remake it, but the guy is simply demeaning the poor woman who is on the verge of tears at this point, unable to get a word in edgewise.
Everyone else at the table are absolutely appalled at his behavior (not sure about the bride's mother, but the bride, groom, and groom's parents were just amazed at the callousness). The waitress leaves, with him still screaming at her with f-bombs gallore, and then he's upset about that. Everyone in the restaurant are just staring at this table now.
The groom is now expressing his anger towards his future father-in-law for making a scene over something so petty and the father's now directing his steam towards the table. Now there is some back-and-forth going on, and at some point someone at the table, in their ranting, brings up the poor outfit choices both of them are wearing and that just sets him off further.
Finally the manager arrives and tells him to leave the restaurant. Obviously this doesn't sit well with him and saying that everyone else should leave with him to "teach the restaurant a lesson", but the bride, groom, and groom's parents all tell him that he is the problem and should leave so they can have a peaceful dinner for the remainder of the time there.
Both mother and father vow they will not come to the wedding, and now, with the bride in tears over the whole thing, leave the restaurant. Sure enough, the bride's parents are absent, and the bride had to call an audible and have her brother walk her down the aisle and do the "father-daughter" dance.
Again, I don't know if there were other events which culminated before the rehearsal dinner and this was just the last straw, but it was definitely the parents who excused themselves from the wedding, and not anyone else telling them not to attend.
Overall, the wedding was great, given the sad circumstances. The bride kept her best face on, but I know deep inside her she was very upset about her own parents refusing to partake in the ceremony and celebration mostly because of what went down during the rehearsal dinner. I doubt she'll ever forgive her parents for abandoning her on her best day.


Comment