PLANET DT: Congratulations, Dan Au & Fayette!

My friends, Fayette & Dan Au, had their wedding ceremony & reception yesterday (Saturday 6/12/2008). They were actually married last Saturday in Sydney, where Dan was from. Today was the Brisbane leg of their marriage, & the ceremony was held at the Sunnybank District Baptist Church.

I have only met Dan maybe 2-3 times, so I don't know him all that well. But he seems like a really nice, cool guy. I look forward to building up my friendship with him over the coming years. It is Fayette through whom I know Dan. I have known Fayette for 7 years now, & I can say that it is a great joy & privilege to be able to count her as one of my friends. I first met her at the Youth Fellowship (YF) group at CCCB in Brisbane, years before Fayette would go to Sydney for Bible college. Fayette, perhaps more than anyone else, always encouraged & followed me up with my Christian walk. She’s constantly hounding me for my applications, showing love & genuine sisterly concern. She often never forgets what my applications are & always reminds me of the things I promise to do (but often neglect) in my Christian walk. Above all, she really loves God. I will always love Fayette for being a wonderful, God-fearing sister in Christ, for the fact that she actually remembers my applications & hounds me over them, for our enduring friendship & for the love & friendliness that she shows to everyone. With Fayette being who she is, it is little wonder that she is very popular. Dan himself is also very popular. (Fayette & Dan each have more than 1,000 Facebook friends).

Fayette’s bridesmaids were my sister Val & Alice. When Val got married last year, Fayette & Alice were Val’s bridesmaids. So I guess it would be reasonable to predict that Val & Fayette might be Alice’s bridesmaids when it’s Alice’s turn to be married. We shall see in the future, eh….. Anyway, the wedding ceremony was fairly short & sweet. There was no exchanging of rings, because that had already taken place in Sydney the previous week. Nevertheless, that did not detract from the wonderful ceremony. Val looked superb as a bridesmaid, likewise Alice. I didn't take much photos, because I was seated far at the back. The ceremony was followed by some light refreshments. I was surprised to bump into my work colleague Ann. Ann, it turns out, has been attending the Chinese congregation CCCB Southside for 14 years. So she knows Fayette & her family. What a small world! I told her that I attend CCCB St Lucia English congregation, & I never saw her before in the few times I visited the CCCB Southside English congregation. Ann made the curry puffs, which were all gone so quickly. No surprise there – I have tasted them before as Ann had previously made curry puffs for morning tea at work.

The reception was held at Tavernetta, somewhere in Northside. I arrived there early as I was head usher at the reception, with the other ushers being Alvin, Mag & Mei Shan. Fayette approached me for the head usher role a few months ago, & it was such a privilege (I had jokingly asked her if she is really sure about choosing me). But I didn't get off to the best of starts. First, on arrival, I discovered that I left the red packet back home, so I had to ring BT to bring it (fortunately, BT was still home when I rang). Then, there was a bit of a hoo-ha about the arrangements for the guest books & wedding gifts, & how to co-ordinate the arriving guests so that they can sign & drop off their presents. We had to use the guest books from the wedding ceremony while waiting for the reception guest book to come. It never came! Fayette later told me she realised she had it all along & forgot to arrange for someone to bring - she had wrongly assumed that one of her relatives would bring it. Aaaahh, the topsy turvyness of weddings. One day, I might experience it myself should I ever get married!

The tables were all cramped together; I don't remember attending such a cramped reception. There was a birthday party at the room next door, so we could hear the loud music, especially when the Tavernetta staff from one room to the next. And the food service was very slow, but that was (if I heard correctly) due to the sheer numbers which placed stress on the kitchen staff. But despite all this, I really liked the reception. It was simple, & there was much to savour & enjoy: the violin performance from Fayette's youngest brother Caleb (Fayette played together with Caleb); the speech from Fayette's other brother Ivan (which included some funny video clips from years gone by); all the other speeches (from both dads, the best man & the bridesmaids). Did I miss anything? Ohh yeah, there's the usual bridal dance (Latin), & thereafter the night concluded with quite a few people joining in the dance. Well, it was a very very good night - & I'm sure many people enjoyed themselves thoroughly.

Anyway, to Fayette & Dan, very well done. What a pleasure it was to witness your union. May God richly bless your future together as He surely will!