A Wedding Miracle: Straight Line Winds, Selfless Friends, and the Ruach

My family and I spent the day at the lake yesterday. Several other family members met up with us for a day in the water since the temperature was in the 90’s with high humidity. We all agreed that the only reprieve from the oppressing heat of the day was to be in the water. Swimming, paddle boarding, fishing, and socializing filled our time at the lake. As my daughter would say, “It was a good day!” Later on in the evening, two of my mother-in-law’s friends joined us at the lake for a glass of wine and conversation. As the kids played in the water and fished at the end of the dock, the adults kept watch over them while conversing about wine, camping trips, Arizona, among other things. But, for the last half hour or so, we discussed the eventful wedding day.

Twelve Years Of Marriage

Twelve years ago, on this very lake and property, my husband and I were married. We had decided to have an outdoor wedding on the lake because we both had grown up around this lake, love the beauty of the lake with her crystal-clear waters, and we love the history that surrounds the lake. Our wedding day had started perfectly. The sun was shining, the temperature was in the 80’s, the lake was as smooth as glass, and the wedding set-up was near completion.

Preparation

Family and friends had helped to prepare for the wedding the entire week before the big day. Small, smooth Lake Superior stones were written on and used as place-setting markers while larger rocks were used to number the tables. My father drilled holes through limestone pieces, and floral frog pin holders were attached to make beautiful flower vases to use as center pieces. A  large tent (covered 300+ people) was set up on the property and draped with tulle and white lights, while a dance floor was set up so we could dance under the stars. Three hundred and fifty chairs were set up in front of an alter that was adorned with a Christian-based runner my mother had made for the wedding. The make-shift aisle consisted of green grass sandwiched between yards of white tulle that lay like hammocks between the chairs. My mother-in-law and her friend constructed beautiful floral arrangements for the centerpieces that made the whole wedding site smell as though you were sitting in the middle of a garden. Everything was just beautiful. All we had to do was wait for the wedding to start at 4pm.

The Storm

Everyone had left the lake property by noon to go get ready for the wedding. I was at the salon with my best friend getting our hair done, my husband was with his groomsmen on the way to lunch, and the rest of the family had headed to their homes to get ready. As I was sitting in the salon chair, I noticed that the sun had disappeared, and a strong wind had started to blow in. The ladies in the salon started to chatter about the sudden change of weather. Within minutes of the sun disappearing, large raindrops started to fall, the sky turned a sickly-green color, and the wind picked up with a vengeance. As we sat and watched the amazing spectacle out the large windows of the salon, the rain started to fall in sheets, but it wasn’t falling straight down, it was blowing straight sideways. Garden pinwheels that a merchant was selling across the street, were pulled out of the ground and were carried down the street by the gusts of wind, and wood sculptures were tipped over. In less than an hour, the storm had ended. At that moment, we had no idea that the angry winds and rain had left the wedding set-up in shambles.

Here we were, less than four hours before the wedding was scheduled to start, and everything had been blown apart. Straight line winds had torn across the lake, meeting the wedding set-up head-on. The large steel I-beams that held up the 300-person tent had literally been snapped in half, just like the tree behind the tent. All 350 chairs were scattered on the property, with the tulle laying in disarray around them. The tent canopy had blown on top of the small cottage on the property, and all 35 tables were overturned. White linen tablecloths lay scattered on the lawn, dirty and wet. Rocks and candles were strewn about, and the printing on the typed-out wine list at the bar had bled down the page, making it look like it was crying.

My mother-in-law remembers arriving at the property and sinking down to her knees as she viewed the damage, feeling defeated. I remember my brother calling me shortly after the storm came through to tell me of the damage. My mother got on the phone at this time and said “Erin, what do you want to do? If you want to call it off and re-schedule, we can do that. If you want the wedding to go on, we will just make the best of it.” I replied, “Mom, I just want to get married. I don’t care about what it looks like, I just want to get married.” She simply said “I figured you would say that. Good, we will make it happen!”

A Wedding Miracle

My mother got on the phone and called as many family members and friends as she could, while my husband’s cousin got on the phone and called as many family and friends from my husband’s side of the family as she could. The great clean-up had begun. Within an hour, there were about 60 people who showed up to help. Parents, siblings, cousins, aunts and uncles, grandparents, neighbors, and friends dropped everything and hurried over to the wedding site. Linens were brought to and from a dry-cleaner, tables and chairs were turned upright and re-organized, and tulle was re-strung.  The tent company brought Penske moving trucks to remove the large, brand new tent that was literally torn apart in the storm. Two smaller tents were set up in it’s place. The tablecloths were returned to the tables, while others organized the stone place settings and candles once again. The centerpieces with all the flowers in them were thankfully left inside during the storm, so they were brought out and set on the tables. Tea candles were lit, and the alter was set-up again with the homemade runner gracing the top. The caterers were able to ready their tables, and the DJ set-up his speakers and table next to the dance floor. The tree that had been broken in half was left where it was and decorated with white lights. A symbolic representation of the day’s events. Everything was ready.

EVERYTHING WAS READY! These 60 people, these wonderful, selfless people who came to help, had accomplished more in just a few hours than we had accomplished in a whole week. I’ll never forget seeing my aunt, who is never late to anything, running down the hill to get to the wedding (shoes in hand) as I prepared to walk down the aisle. My sweet grandmother never had a chance to do her hair after helping with the emergency clean-up, but looked beautiful in her coral-colored dress and red cheeks. I remember feeling overwhelmed with amazement and gratitude as I looked over the wedding grounds before I headed down the aisle. They had done it. It was a miracle. I would never be able to thank them enough.

At 4 o’clock on July 23, 2005, I walked down the aisle with my father on one side of me and my mother on the other. The sky was overcast, the air was dripping with a dew point of 80 degrees, and the hauntingly beautiful songs from the bagpipe player were echoing across the lake. I couldn’t stop the tears as I made my way down the aisle, thinking about the events of the day, the people who came together today to make a miracle happen, my wonderful parents who walked with me, and the love of my life waiting for me at the end of the aisle.

Ruach

While we stood with our pastor, butterflies were fluttering around us as he explained that the wind we had experienced that day was the Ruach. Ruach is a Hebrew word for wind or spirit. It is the name used to refer to the Spirit of God, or Holy Spirit in the Old Testament of the Bible. Our pastor said that the wind was a sign that God was with us, and that he was blessing our marriage. What a special message on this very day.

The rest of the evening was spent reliving the day’s events, eating, dancing, and socializing. Everyone was happy, relaxed, and enjoying the lakeside. Guests danced until the DJ played the very last song around midnight. I wouldn’t have changed one thing about that special day.

Reminiscing about our wedding by the side of the lake was the perfect anniversary gift. Our wedding day was, I have to say, a miracle. A day that many still talk about (hence our conversation at the lake last evening). One of my mother-in-law’s friends who was with us last evening was the one who brought the tablecloths to the dry cleaner and had them cleaned, pressed, and back on the tables the day of the wedding. Last evening, she told me that during the wedding she was talking to some guests that were in from California and they had said that if this had happened on the West Coast, the whole event would have been cancelled. We agreed that there really is something to the saying Minnesota-nice. For so many people to selflessly come together, work hard, and make the unthinkable happen, this was definitely the most special wedding gift of all.

Here we are, twelve years later, even more in love today than we were on that special day. The powerful Ruach came in with a vengeance, but left us with a wedding miracle, and a blessed marriage.