A WEDDING At Last!

If the idea of speaking their wedding vows to one another on the Serengeti was a dream, the accomplishment of the same was an adventure, to be sure.

When booking the safari, Alex and Kevin discussed their plans with the contact person, who assured them that it would be no problem to make time in the schedule to fulfill their desire in that regard, and the team would do everything in their power to help them accomplish the deed.  And so somehow Alex fit a folded and vacuum-sealed wedding dress in her backpack of essentials for the week, and Kevin miraculously managed to fit a suit, a shirt, tie and extra belt as well as a pair of dress shoes into his! And then we went on with the safari and waited for the right moment to appear.

Days passed, however, and we saw all manner of incredible things, as detailed in the posts before this one… but no wedding. We were nearing the end of our week-long trip when Kevin one morning pulled our guide aside and asked him if he could think of any suitable location we would encounter that day where we could stop for a few minutes so Kevin and Alex could speak a few words to each other and pose for a few photos. Being photographers, they knew that early or late in the day would have the best sun position for photos, if that were possible. Kevin promised they would make it quick, knowing that Lazarus had a schedule he had to adhere to, and the latter promised to think about it and find such a place.

And so the day began and was filled with all manner of wondrous sights! We saw a flock of vultures picking a zebra carcass clean… a herd of zebra on the plain, so many moving at once that the sight of so many stripes in motion made one a little dizzy!... a gold mine of hippos in a stream… the wildebeest crossing!!!... TWICE!!!... and took our pictures by the monument marking the border of Kenya and Tanzania. We even encountered a swarm of bees that had us pulling the top down on the Land Rover and slamming the windows shut in a hurry!

But by now it was getting on into the afternoon… and there were ominous-looking clouds appearing in the distance. Giving up on the idea of perfect lighting for the photo shoot, Kevin tapped Lazarus on the shoulder from the seat behind and said, “Even if you could just find us a nice-looking acacia tree to stand under, that would be fine.” But Lazarus said nothing and simply drove on.

We passed lots of suitable-looking trees… but the Land Rover didn’t stop by any of them. We were getting increasingly edgy when suddenly Lazarus pulled up to a stone building set in the middle of nowhere! Amazingly it had restrooms for Kevin and Alex to change in, a couple of benches a distance away to pose on… even zebras grazing in the background for added scenic effect! It was perfect! Quickly we all jumped out, and Alex and Kevin changed their clothes while the rest of us debated which view would make the best backdrop for the pictures! The next twenty minutes or so were a flurry of words, smiles, kisses, poses and camera clicks… until Alex called, “Enough! We’ve got to get moving!” She quickly changed back into her khakis.

I had been wandering around looking at the scenery while Alex changed again, when her father called me back, reminding me not to go too far alone… a reminder I appreciated, especially when we had just gotten back on the road and came across a lioness sleeping just feet off the dirt track we were traveling on! That sight still fresh in our minds, it was more than a little frightening to suddenly pop a tire, just a little bit farther along! At the same time, the clouds that had been gathering started to spit rain. We heard the sound of thunder in the distance, and knew that a storm was quickly advancing upon us. Lazarus warned us that lightning strikes are a huge danger in the Serengeti, so we had to hustle. The men, with Kevin still in his suit, all worked in the dirt of the road trying to change the tire in a hurry, crawling under the truck to find a level place to set the jack and keep it from slipping off the rocks. Meanwhile Alex, her mom, her sister and I were on lion sentry duty…keeping watch that no predator would sneak up on us while we were focusing on getting the truck going again! The rain fell harder, and we huddled in our slickers, eyes constantly on the move, and shuddering with every boom of thunder. It seemed to take forever, but truly was just a matter of minutes before we were on our way again, and then not very much longer after that that we pulled into our camp for the night.

The rain was falling hard by this time, but our spirits were high as we headed into the mess tent to eat the hot supper that was waiting for us, surrounded by the laughter and conversation of so many other people groups enjoying the end of a great day, as well… the rain drumming heavily on the roof above us!  Soon Lazarus arrived with a couple of bottles of champagne to join us for the meal and to celebrate the newlyweds, and a happier wedding day couldn’t have been planned! No one knows what lies ahead for Kevin and Alex, but if the start of their marriage is any indication, this will be a union marked by unimaginable fun and continued adventure!”

“Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone.? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves…”

(Ecclesiastes 4: 9-12 NIV)