So Little Thyme ...

In my first blog, I wrote of how this blog was to be my thoughts of how I do (or don't) cope with managing four weddings within three months. You are probably thinking by my lack of blogging, that I'm not coping well. On the contrary, despite many set-backs and issues that we as a family have had to deal with in recent months (which I will hopefully share about in future blogs) I'm managing to cope quite well ... except of course, getting down to blogging about it all.

Now in case you’re wondering about the title of this blog and thinking that either I can’t spell, or you’re in for a cost saving Italian recipe, let me assure you that you’re wrong on both accounts. My choice for this particular spelling of time (which as you’ve seen in the first paragraph I seem plagued, as most people are, with having very little of) has nothing to do with food, and everything to do with my play on words for My Wedding Belles blog.

I’ve been thinking a lot about it and finally decided to change the title (but not the URL address) of My Wedding Belles to My Wedding Belles (and Beaus). The reason for this change is that this blog will not only be about the beautiful women who have come into my life  and each one’s special day, but I will have much to say about two of the future grooms, my sons.

And in case you’re thinking this blog should have been titled My Wedding Bells and Bows, let me offer the Encarta World English Dictionary explanation for my choice of words.

-  Belle: Early 17th century from French ‘beautiful’, meaning a beautiful girl or woman; a woman considered to be the most conspicuously attractive of all those living in a particular place or attending a particular social event

-  Beau: Late 17th century from French, from beau ‘beautiful’, from Latin bellus meaning a boyfriend or male admirer (dated); a man who is always smartly dressed in the most fashionable clothes (archaic).

Thinking about the title of this particular blog got me thinking of (and singing) an old English ballad, made popular in our time by the famous duo, Simon and Garfunkel.

 

Are you going to Scarborough Fair?
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme;
Remember me to one who lives there,
for once she was a true love of mine

The song tells the tale of a young man, who tells the listener to ask his former lover to perform for him a series of impossible tasks, such as making him a shirt without a seam and then washing it in a dry well, adding that if she completes these tasks he will take her back. Often the song is sung as a duet, with the woman then giving her lover a series of equally impossible tasks, promising to give him his seamless shirt once he has finished.

Do you think they were perhaps testing each other to see if they were marriage material?  With their impossible lists of demands, no wonder they had to throw in a little Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme, apparently the main ingredients for a love spell. 

But, jokes aside, it seems these herbs, like many others, have a symbolic meaning that goes back centuries :

•         Parsley has been used as a digestant, which should take the bitterness out of certain comestibles.  Some medieval physicians used this herb in a spiritual manner.

•         Sage is renowned as a symbol of power.

•         Rosemary represents fidelity, love and remembrance and is therefore often used in traditional wedding customs.

•         Thyme symbolizes courage and thus found its way into heraldry.

Both man and woman in this ballad invoke said powers in naming these herbs: mildness to soothe the bitterness of their relationship, spiritual strength to endure being apart from each other, faithfulness and lastly encouragement, to fulfill the impossible tasks given.

Thankfully, with marriages that will be based on the foundation of Jesus Christ, Ryan and Amy, Kyle and Tiia, and Satja and Rikesh will not require any of these plants to be added to their wedding day bouquets. Why? There is no bitterness brewing in their relationships; they have the power of the Holy Spirit to give them strength for each day of marriage; fidelity is core to each of their relationships; and with God as the central part of their marriages, they will have the courage to face whatever the future holds for them.

Note to self: Stick to roses!

Ecclesiastes 4v12: “Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.”