Our Maine Street's Aroostook Issue 18 : Fall 2013 | Page 11
Lessons
from a
County
Wedding
By Catherine Shaw Bowker
I always thought my daughter,
Gabrielle, would want a lavish wedding with
an extravagant gown, men in tuxedos and
bridesmaids in long flowing dresses. It would
be a summer wedding in a remarkable location,
the sun shining, birds singing, and people on
the street watching in awe. After all, this is
the wedding she described to me when she was
young. After seeing the movie, It Takes Two,
she told me she wanted to be married in Saint
Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City. Then,
after espying a wedding at Walt Disney World,
she was determined to have a wedding in front
of Cinderella’s castle.. Recently wed, Gabrielle
chose neither of these options.
As many County kids do, Gabrielle
“went away” to college, got her Bachelor’s
degree and found a good job in Portland. Her
husband, Rhon, also from The County, did
the same. Working first in Boston, he found
his way back to Maine. When Rhon proposed
marriage in December 2012, we all thought the
wedding would be somewhere in the Portland
area, maybe the cathedral where her cousin was
married, or perhaps on a beach. After all, there
are so many more choices in Southern Maine.
But, they surprised us and held their wedding
back home, in The County. We assumed they
chose to come home because of the numerous
elderly relatives up here who would find it
difficult to travel downstate for the wedding.
While this was certainly a consideration, it was
not the only reason.
It turns out they miss The County.
Naturally, they miss their families, but they
also long for open spaces, sitting on the front
porch and hearing nothing but nature and
the occasional neighbor calling his dog. They
miss driving from point A to point B without
fighting traffic. And, I think most of all, they
miss being able to call on a neighbor for help.
While they do love the many options they have
in Portland – getting fish fresh from the docks,
walking on the beach on a crisp fall morning
and numerous entertainment options, they
don’t like driving two hours to find a remote
camping site, a mountain to climb or a river to
kayak. I