Here Comes the Brides

Every wedding has something unique about it that makes you remember it. The wedding I attended last night will definitely be one I won't forget.

Let me give a little background on the wedding first. Several of the ladies that work at Nicaragua Christian Academy have never been married in the church. Although they have been with their spouses for many years and have several children, for economic reasons they have never been able to be married in the church. It is common among the poor in Nicaragua to have a civil wedding only, even among Christians. A wedding in the church is costly because you need to hire a pastor, buy new cloths, and feed the guests. As a result, many couples are not able to afford it. As a school community, we came together to support these couples as they celebrated this very special day.

The five brides

The ceremony was suppose to start at 5:00 and we were asked to be there by 4:30. I should have known better than that because we finally got underway at 6:00. In the hour and a half while we were waiting for things to begin, we got the heaviest downpour of the season. I thought it was going to be a hurricane. Because 3 of the sides of the chapel are open, the wind started blowing in the rain and there was a drip above the chair I was sitting in. So yes we did get slightly wet and could have used an umbrella at this wedding and it wasn't even outdoors. My roommates and I with Carmen. Yup that's a white skirt and I didn't even get a dirty!

Like I said earlier this event would be something these families would never be able to afford on their own, making this celebration extra meaningful and special for them. It also was special knowing that this is a culture where spouses are often not faithful to one another and yet these 5 couples promised their commitment to one another.

Rachel and I chauffeured three of the couples to a hotel at the end of the evening. We had heard that it is a custom in Nicaragua to get the vehicle shaken back and forth to get the the bride and groom to kiss. Although this didn't happen we did attach cans and bottles to the back and hung a sign that said 'Racien Casados' or 'Just Married'. Our other decorations got washed away in the rain.