Have you ever considered why we do certain things when we get married?  Why are the engagement and wedding rings placed on the left hand’s third finger?  Why does a bride wear a veil? Why does she wear something blue?  Whose idea was it to tie cans to the bridal couple’s car? 

This weekend I had the occasion to consider the answers to these questions while completing a quiz at a bride-to-be’s kitchen tea. Considered I said, as I still really do not know the correct answers. Like many traditions, often the reasoning behind the ritual is no longer recalled. Sometimes, it is no longer applicable. 

This reminds me of a story of a woman who would cut a joint of meat a certain way in order to roast it in the oven.  One day when questioned about her practice she shrugged and said ‘that’s the way my mother always did it!’  Her mother when questioned said the same.  When Grandma was finally questioned, she explained that her roasting pan was very small and that was the only way she could fit a whole joint into the oven in her pan.  In the meantime, two generations had followed her practice assuming it a tradition of significance. 

It seems as if many wedding traditions are based on pragmatic reasons-just like grandma’s roast. Others seem to be based on outdated superstition. 

Take for example the tradition of the groom standing to the right of the bride.  Apparently, this was so he could then tuck her safely into his left-hand side, freeing his right arm to wield a sword to protect her. How many grooms today carry a sword or need to defend off attackers?  What about a left-handed groomsman? 

I have been to a wedding where tin cans and toilet paper were surreptitiously tied to the groom’s car for a laugh. No one would have thought or believed for one moment that there were any evil spirits that needed to be warded off! 

Is all of this tradition wedding weirdness; is it comforting folklore or is it just a bit of fun?  What do you think? 

Mark Twain said “The less there is to justify a traditional custom, the harder it is to get rid of it.” 

Perhaps that is why so many wedding customs remain.

photo by Morgan McDonald on Unsplash.com