Ah, summer. The living is easy and the wedding bells are ringing. Over the past weekend we were privileged to attend our niece’s wedding. The thing about a niece, as opposed to say a son or daughter, is that one gets to simply show up at the wedding and have all the fun without any of the stress or work. Sure can’t complain about that.

Maranda and Jon chose a British Columbia Provincial Park right on the Pacific Ocean as the place to exchange their vows. Couldn’t have been a better choice for the photographers in the crowd.

And lucky us – we got to see three other nieces all prettied up as part of the wedding party.

I distinctly heard the bride say to my brother, Rick – Okay, let’s do this!

Maranda and Jon wrote their own vows and I’m telling you, there was hardly a dry eye on the beach.

Looks like this little guy wasn’t happy with the lengthy photo session. Hang in there, Malachi. Congratulations Jon and Maranda – we wish you many, many wonderful years ahead.

Two of the prettiest flower girls any wedding could boast of.

Now, to be sure, the pictures of the wedding are stunning. But this wouldn’t be much of a post if it weren’t about something more than my summer social calendar. I would like to share with you something special about our niece and highlight an important cause at the same time. Maranda is a strong, young woman with a social conscience that has made us very proud.

Maranda, is part of a dance troupe called Butterflies in Spirit. This troupe was originally formed for a one-time only performance on a downtown street in Vancouver. It was a way for several young women to raise awareness about the outrageous and systematic victimization of Aboriginal Women in Canada. Check out Amnesty International’s Report entitled – Stolen Sisters – for more information on the plight of Aboriginal women in Canada.

The founding member of the dance troupe, Lorelei Williams, spoke at Maranda’s wedding reception. She told us how she put out a call for others to join her as part of Butterflies in Spirit and Maranda showed up the first night. She praised our niece’s dedication to the group. She told of a performance in Edmonton where Maranda insisted on being part of the dance even though she was very pregnant with Malachi. Check out the YouTube video  Now, that’s dedication! 

Let us not forget the missing women, their families and friends. Let us always thirst for justice in this cause. Let us search and search for as long as it takes until the world knows what happened to each and every one of these missing women.

Ghost Dance

You don’t stand a chance

Against my prayers

You don’t stand a chance

Against my love

They outlawed the ghost dance

But we shall live again.

(Robbie Robertson/Jim Wilson)