Matt and Phoebe’s Wedding, Part 2: The Drive-In Ceremony

(For Part 1: Preparation, click here)

The day of the wedding dawned, not bright and clear, but not stormy and rainy either. A sort-of in-between, with gray, shifting clouds, and patches of sun. The wedding was scheduled for 11:00 am, but Amy, Jenny and I arrived at 9:30 for family pictures.

Matt and Phoebe had chosen not to see each other before the ceremony, so there was a limit to the pictures we could get. We took some sibling pictures, some family photos without Phoebe, and a picture with Matt and his sisters.

After that, we did the last-minute preparations. You know, removing the plastic bags from the parking markers, putting tablecloths on the welcome tables, etc.

About 45 minutes before the ceremony was supposed to start, we realized that some guests were arriving, and we fell into formation. Jenny and I handed out programs and water and took gifts. The parking attendants directed them to their parking spot. Amy took pictures of them.

It was very strange, because I was seeing all these people I’ve known my whole life. And it took me a bit to understand why that felt so strange. Oh, yeah. It’s been Corona times for three months. I haven’t seen these people for three months. It is weird.

Essentially, there were 25-ish people who were out of their cars doing all the work, and everyone else was supposed to stay in their cars. I think technically Oregon is now at a phase where more people out of their cars would have been okay, but they’d planned the whole thing at a time when restrictions were tougher, and they were trying very hard to create a healthy and safe environment.

Those of us who were allowed out of our cars parked in a different place, along the edge of the field, and sat in folding chairs during the ceremony. The chairs were arranged in family groupings so that we could still properly social distance. There were also extra chairs, so that the members of the bridal party could use them as a place to eat after the ceremony.

Everything was going without a hitch. The musicians were in their musician’s tent, playing soft prelude music, as people one by one got ushered to their places. I was pleasantly surprised by how smooth that process was. We could have used one more parking attendant, but my cousin Randy ran back and forth between the welcome tents, and we made it work. I was afraid everyone would show up at once and it would be a tedious process with lots of waiting, but no. People for the most part showed up early and it all went super smoothly.

By 10:55 or so, most of the cars seemed to have arrived. Randy told us that he could give water and programs to any last minute guests, so Jenny and I headed up front. Jenny went onto the platform with her ukulele and played a short song she’d written called “Love in the Time of Corona.” (If you want to hear the song, you can find it on my Instagram under my story highlights.)

Then the musicians took to their instruments again, and all the proper wedding stuff started. Matt ushered Mom in, and then Dad and the groomsmen entered as well, and stood up front in their proper, socially distant, groomsman formation.

That’s when the first hitch in the plan occurred. We all craned our necks to see the bridesmaids, and the bride behind them, but they weren’t there. They were nowhere to be seen.

Huh?

The musicians kept playing pretty music. The groomsmen just stood there. We waited and waited and waited.

Eventually, one of the bridesmaids stuck her head out the back door and told the musicians what was going on. The musicians then announced to the rest of us that the wedding was slightly delayed because of technical difficulties. Since many people still were unable to come to the wedding because of Corona, it was important to have the service live-streamed. But the live-stream was just not working.

So we just sat there. And Matt and the groomsmen stood there. And we waited.

The musicians were just playing music to pass the time. They started on “Oh Danny Boy.”

Jenny turned to me. “That’s such a sad song!” she said. Then she paused. “That’s what they should play if Phoebe really does leave Matt at the alter.”

We laughed and laughed. It was weird…with everything outdoors, socially distant, in cars, etc, it felt like you could talk and laugh out loud in a way you just don’t at most weddings.

Finally, Phoebe’s brother-in-law came along with a cell phone and started live-streaming on Phoebe’s Facebook page. You can watch the whole thing here, but I’ll warn you, it unfortunately got switched sideways in the process.

Anyway, the live-stream started at 11:13 am, so I guess that’s when things properly got underway. We saw a car drive from the house around to the back of the field. The wedding coordinator waved her arms to signal the musicians, and the song changed. The bridesmaids walked up the aisle, one by one.

The next hitch was so small that I wonder if anyone, besides those of us on the chairs, even noticed.

Usually in weddings, when the bride walks down the aisle, the congregation stands for her. Then the preacher prays, and then instructs everyone to be seated.

Of course most people were in their cars and didn’t stand, but those of us in chairs did. Only, I don’t know if Dad didn’t get the memo, or if he didn’t think of it since he was mostly talking to cars, or what. But he never told us to sit down. So we were all just standing there awkwardly, waiting, and finally some of us just sat down, and then others did, and finally everyone did because no one wants to stand for an entire ceremony. Unless you’re in the bridal party, I guess.

You know how in weddings and movies, the preacher always says “Should anyone present know of any reason that this couple should not be joined in holy matrimony, speak now or forever hold your peace”? And it creates this dramatic moment for someone to leap out and say, “I object?”

Well, I’ve attended a lot of weddings in my life, but I’ve never been to one where the preacher actually said that. But at Matt and Phoebe’s wedding, Dad said, “Should anyone present know of any reason that this couple should not be joined in holy matrimony, honk your horn three times.”

Ha. Such a Matt joke. Later, I heard several relatives talking about it. “Ha ha, I was just about to honk my horn twice.”

“Well I almost honked my horn four times.”

But no horns actually honked, and the ceremony continued.

I thought Dad’s sermon was extremely good. One of the best wedding sermons I’ve ever heard. (I feel like I could do a whole blog post on cringy wedding sermons sometime.) He framed the sermon by telling Matt and Phoebe’s love story, which was so special. I love hearing people’s love stories. (If you’re unfamiliar with their story, and you don’t feel like watching the whole wedding ceremony video, Mom blogged about it here.)

Then came the fun stuff. The vows. The “I now pronounce you husband and wife.” The kiss. The “Mr and Mrs Matthew Smucker.”

I was hoping so badly that people would honk their horns, and they did! First at the kiss, and then when they walked back up the aisle.

The bridesmaids and groomsmen then filed out, and went back to the food tent, which was right next to the welcome tent. The caterers had arrived, and were pulling out containers of pulled pork and beef stew.

Everyone who RSVP’d to the wedding had to note their food preferences. Phoebe and her friends had taken a stack of paper bags and marked each one with the parking number, the family name, and the food preferences of each car that was coming. So now, the bridesmaids, groomsman, and the others who were seated in chairs instead of cars took charge of handing out food. They would take a bag, put in “two pulled porks and one beef stew” or whatever it said, and deliver it to the correct car.

While they started this process, Dad got up and explained what the food situation would look like. (In the live-stream, you can hear him in the background.) Then he explained that Matt and Phoebe would go around greeting guests, and my parents and Phoebe’s parents would go around greeting guests and handing out cookies. Jenny and I were laughing because he was asking people to know ahead of time what kind of cookies they wanted so that the whole thing could go smoothly and efficiently. Dad is obsessed with efficiency at weddings. Literally after every wedding we go to, Dad rates its efficiency. Mostly in relation to the food lines. When you give people choices, Dad says, it takes forever for everyone to get through the line.

My siblings and I were slated to help hand out food, but we were also going to do some entertainment while people ate. Ben, Amy, and Jenny were singing, and I was giving a toast. A few days before the wedding, Phoebe decided that we should do these things directly after the ceremony, so that it would be in the live-stream. But I guess the memo never got to the brother-in-law, because he didn’t live-stream that part, haha.

So anyway. After Dad discussed the efficiency, my siblings sang several songs, and then I gave my toast:

Hello everyone. I’m Emily Smucker, Matt’s sister. He is the oldest in my family, and I’m the 3’d oldest. He is four years older than me.

Matt is a goofy guy, extremely creative, and willing to try anything. I can’t count how many times in my life I’ve said, “Matt, I can’t wait for the open mic at your wedding.” 

But now that Matt’s wedding is here, and I’m reflecting on what it was like to be Matt’s sister, I’m realizing that behind Matt’s goofy demeanor he is an unbelievably kind person. Of course he teased me a lot growing up, and tried to catch me in elaborate booby traps inspired by Calvin and Hobbes comics. But I don’t remember him ever saying anything mean-spirited or unkind to me. 

Big brothers have a lot of power to shape how their younger sisters feel about themselves. But Matt never made me feel stupid, never made me feel ugly, and never made me feel like my opinions didn’t matter. 

Four years is a large age gap when you’re young, but as Matt and I grew older, we became genuine friends. I began to wish that Matt would find a good wife, but I didn’t know how he would ever find the right person in the big city of Washington DC. But God knew what he was doing, and brought Phoebe into Matt’s life.

Like Matt, Phoebe is kindhearted, generous, and smart. She appreciates Matt’s goofy sense of humor, and is rather goofy at times herself. She enters happily into Matt’s strange fun world, buying him his favorite snack of mealworms, and acquiring her own hoverboard to match his. But Phoebe is also sensitive and kind. She understand people’s feelings, and she balances out Matt’s logical nature.

Matt and Phoebe, I love you both, and I am so grateful to God that you are part of my family.

After giving my toast, I reminded everyone that they could go watch the slideshow on their phones while they waited for their food. Although Matt had emailed it to all the guests, no one had mentioned it at the wedding, and I didn’t want my hard work to go to waste, haha.

By the time I walked back to the food tents, most of the food had been handed out already. It was an extremely efficient process. Dad was proud, I’m sure. I helped with the last of it, and then I just kind-of hung out, eating my food, being goofy with my siblings, and chatting with various guests.

Somehow, Jenny managed to be part of the cool crowd that decorated the getaway car. Not sure how she snagged that gig. I didn’t even know it was happening.

It’s so funny to me that they used our old family Kia as the getaway car. We’ve had that thing for ages. But Matt’s car is back in Houston, where his job/apartment are, and he’s been using the Kia since he’s been in Oregon.

This whole time, of course, Matt and Phoebe were greeting all the cars.

But then, suddenly we realized that we’d never gotten the rest of the family pictures and such. So we hastily assembled. The photographer snapped away, and I grabbed a few photos on my own camera.

Once people had eaten, watched the slideshow, greeted the bride, groom, and parents, and chatted with each other through open windows and such, they began to leave.

It had been an extremely successful wedding, all in all. Matt had put tons of engineering work into that parking diagram, arranging things so that everyone would be able to see. And he’d hooked up some sort of radio transmitter so that everyone could hear the ceremony through their car radio. Everyone I talked to seemed to have been able to see and hear quite well.

I helped with the cleanup some, but again, there wasn’t a lot to do. Comparing this wedding to other weddings I’ve helped with, I’ll say that by not having a traditional reception, with all those tables, chairs, and decorations, they saved themselves a LOT of work.

I really just wanted to go home, because I was exhausted to my bones. I was kind-of embarrassed by how tired and spacey I was, so I explained to people that I’d been up really late making the slideshow. Only I repeated that story multiple times, so that was even more embarrassing.

Looking back, though, I don’t think it was the loss of a couple hours of sleep that made me so tired. I think it was being thrust into so much activity and socializing after three months of Covid lockdown.

I went home and rested for several hours, but I was too tired to really even sleep. Finally I got enough of a second wind to go back outside, where a number of my relatives were socializing in our yard, roasting hot dogs for supper.

Thank God, we had nice-ish weather that day at least. Once I’d felt a slight sprinkle of rain, but most of the time it was nice enough that I was comfortable in short sleeves. And Jenny got sunburned. The slight coolness and periods of cloudiness were nice for those in their cars, who would have been quite warm if the sun had shone with its usual summer brightness.

And it was nice to be able to have an after-party of sorts, outside, where it’s much safer to be during Covid times.

My Smucker relatives were there, as well as the five Yoder relatives who’d managed to come. The two families know each other, although my Aunt Rosie (Smucker side) saw one of my Yoder-side uncles in the dark and called him by the wrong name, which she was embarrassed about.

“Isn’t it funny?” Amy said to me. “Some day, Matt and Phoebe’s children will be getting married, and we’ll come to their house and hang out with the Penix family. And we’ll see one of the brothers-in-law in the dark, and accidentally call him by the wrong name.”

It was so odd to think about.

But at last, the air took on a proper frigid chill, and the relatives one-by-one betook themselves back to their homes or motel rooms.

But it was the end of this wedding day. The day Matt and Phoebe got married. The very first ever wedding in my family.