âBut just four days before the wedding, a call came. âSorry, we have to observe state mourning and there can be no celebrations here next weekend.â Vicky has lived abroad all her adult life but is now retired from working for UNICEF. She now lives with her husband, who is Iranian, in Oxford and says theyâre finding it fascinating living in England again. They have 3 children â 2 of whom live in the US so they keep the airlines in business! âWeddings are a milestone in anyoneâs life but mine had so many unexpected twists and turns that I thought it might be entertaining for others!â ******************** âKennedyâs been shot!â Like almost everyone, I can remember exactly where I was when I first heard the news.
I felt it as an almost personal blow, but it didnât occur to me then that the Presidentâs death would really change my life. My fiancĂ© and I were due to be married 10 daysâ later in the military officersâ club in San Francisco. The setting was perfect for a wedding â a miniature country house nestled among the woods in the Presidio above the bay. So that weekend as all the drama of Jack Ruby shooting Oswald played out on television, we went to make the final arrangements. The mess officer assured us that Kennedyâs assassination would not affect our wedding plans. But just four days before the wedding, a call came. âSorry, we have to observe state mourning and there can be no celebrations here next weekend.â Now what?
My father and sister were coming from England, my fianceâs sister was flying in from Denmark, and at least 60 guests had already accepted the invitation. We were on student incomes, so our options were limited. With the yellow pages open, we drove up and down the San Francisco hills, searching desperately for a possible venue that was (a) available and (b) affordable. Three of my fiancĂ©âs family were with us in the car, everyone giving different conflicting advice. Eventually we fetched up outside a catering firm that had a large room for hire. My fiancĂ© said âGo in and settle on it if itâs at all possible. Youâd better not come out and discuss it or there'll be more arguments.â So there and then I ordered the cake and other food, worked out the timings, arranged for the seating, discussed flowers and hoped I'd thought of everything! Luckily, the staff were very helpful and took everything in their stride. On the day, however, Murphyâs law prevailed. My sister-in-law got lost parking her car so we had to hold up the ceremony until she was found. My brother-in-law, who'd offered to arrange the music, had problems in the new venue and so wasn't watching what was going on...A loud blast of âHere comes the brideâ came just as we were about to say âI doâ. O, and I was married in bare feet. Someone had gone off with the key of the room where my wedding shoes were stored. Of course in the end it turned out to be a happy day with plenty of fun and laughter but there are no photographs to remember it by - My fianceâs friend, who claimed to be an expert photographer, took several rolls, but all the heads were missing. (Apparently he didnât see the frame in the viewfinder of the borrowed camera.) And political events also had an impact on wedding plans in the next generation.
Our son was married thousands of feet up in the air flying between Dubai and Kabul⊠âŠbut thatâs another story. | 
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