Father of the bride Tomorrow, I will do something I never imagined I'd do.
I will walk a young woman down the aisle to give her hand in marriage.
God, that sounds so quaint, the way I've worded it. How are you supposed to say it? "Give the bride away"? Sounds like he won her in a raffle. Anyway, pardon my loss of words. This is something I'm unaccustomed to.
Here's the story: A young woman who has attended our church since she was in grade school grew up without a father. She never knew her father, and he died when she was very young. Through her junior high and high school years, she was a member of the youth group I help facilitate. Now she's about to get married. A few weeks ago, she asked me if I would "give her away." I was dumstruck for a moment, and then I said, "Of course! I'd be honored to."
And I am honored. And humbled. I've presided over one wedding (for another young woman who is an alumna of our youth group), and I've been a best man, a groomsman, an usher and, one time, a groom. But I've never thought about this role in the wedding ceremony.