Friday, May 12, 2017

Wedding Ceremony - an extravagant affair

Wedding ceremonies, especially the traditional Chinese wedding banquet are so overrated and outdated. No offence, but if you have had a wedding ceremony recently, I totally respect your personal decision. I acknowledge the fact that it is probably a mandatory tradition in some families. For me, I am so glad that my dad agrees that wedding ceremony is something additional that we could get rid of. He is totally cool with not having a ceremony if I ever get married in the future (I believe he feels the same for his son and not just daughter). 

As for my mum, she totally hates the idea of the traditional Chinese wedding. I listened to her old wedding story which she described as "putting on a show for strangers you have never met before". She was so close to turning into a bridezilla being rushed here and there and being demanded to get things done. That night, the guests yumseng all the way and finished countless bottles of liquor. And then that was the end of it. Hard-earned cash spent for nothing. Meaningless. Funny that was the most memorable thing she could recall about the wedding wtf. There is no doubt that she is still feeling bitter about it after all these years. And ironically we all thought wedding is supposed to be a happy moment shared by 2 individuals who devote their lives to each other.

Wedding day is never about the guests, but rather, the husband and wife. It is a beautiful day when the couple share their vows and proclaim their love for one another. It is the day when they promise to stay by each other through thick and thin, health and sickness, joy and sorrow, good and bad. It is the beginning of an eternal life living together as one new unit.

In the past, people often have their wedding banquet in hopes of earning some profits from the ang pow. I never knew this was possible! They actually still gained after deducting all relevant costs. But times are no longer the same, A decent wedding banquet in the city these days costs a minimum of RM2k per table. Considering that your guest gives you ang pow of RM200 each on average, you could still cover your table cost, But how about your liquor, deco, emcee etc? Those costs make up a significant amount and chances are there is no way you will be able to break even at the end of the day. 

As millennials, we can barely afford to buy a house. Why should we be splurging our life-time savings for a wedding and invite family's friends, distant relatives, strangers, most of whom we can't even tell the names, and some of whom we are actually meeting for the very first time? We don't need an unnecessary ceremony to prove our love. After all, wedding does not guarantee our lifetime happiness. 


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