After all the intense preparation and emotions which go with arranging a wedding and finally getting through the event, you are now able to take a break and be together without being the center of a whirlwind and attention. The time from the gift of an engagement ring to the exchange of wedding rings is a trying and stressful time. The honeymoon is the reward for enduring the trauma of a wedding; once you have married and gone through the ceremony you will understand that though it is “Your Day”, in practice it is anything but!
The word “honeymoon” is derived from the Vikings and their practice of the newlyweds retreating to a cave or hut and remaining, undisturbed, for the one lunar cycle, or about one calendar month. It was believed that after the extended retreat, the newlyweds would be expecting a child, and given the energy levels required, honey formed a staple of their diet – hence, “honeymoon”.
Now honeymoons are not without incident, some humorous and some not so funny, but nevertheless it is the matrimonial start of your life together and you’ll have to deal with it, as with everything else in your lives from now on – together!
One couple honeymooned in Las Vegas after a huge wedding which kept them on their feet for the whole day. The wedding went without a hitch, but because they were both so very busy they didn’t get a chance to eat anything at the reception and so it came to pass, that the very first meal they had as a married couple was in a KFC just off the strip.
Another couple finally made it from the wedding reception and were on the way to the airport. Nothing to worry about, they were there in good time and all ready for a spot of relaxation after the intense activity of the day until it came time to go through security. It was only then that the groom realized that he didn’t have his passport – from now on his wife knows better than to trust him with this kind of stuff!
One 82 year old lady recalled her wedding night 61 years previously. It was a different age and there was to be no “hanky panky” before marriage, so it was with some trepidation that she finally went to bed alone with her husband. When he emerged from the bathroom wearing his pajamas, she burst into uncontrollable laughter – his mother had packed his clothes for the honeymoon and the pajamas were complete with Pooh Bear and friends. Something he had to grow out of very rapidly thereafter!
Finally, on a more sober note, a bride recalls how during the wedding reception a messenger arrived. Her husband was in the military and the country was at war; the messenger was not bearing good news – the groom was given 24 hours to report to base on the other side of the country.
In World War 2, this was common enough for thousands of newlyweds but in 2003 these newlyweds found that it still happens. She reminisces about how they spent the evening on the road back to Fort Benning, Georgia, and how the first year of their marriage was spent so far apart. Today, they have three children and she recalls it was the most intimate night she had ever had with her husband because all they did was hold hands and talk through the miles.