Silly me, I finally weakened, got my pillow and blanket and
camped on my sofa last night to watch Prince William wed his Kate. It was 1 am
in my part of Canada. I dozed on and off during the preliminaries (some of the
Canadian networks had a THREE hour long lead-up show, and if you think it's
impossible to fill three hours of unscripted air time with anything approaching
intelligence, you're correct!)

I did indeed enjoy the wedding ceremony, though I watched
only up until the vows were complete. I was too tired to continue after that --
though my 17-year-old woke up after I went to bed, and watched the rest. As it
is, I shall have to watch the post-nuptial wildly cheering crowds and balcony
kiss in reruns and news reports. Or on YouTube. How things have changed since
1981.

Yes, it was worth the lost sleep: it was a wedding, a
celebration of love and commitment; it was in the context of a religious
ceremony (had to wonder what Sir Elton and his "husband" thought when
hearing the Dean of Westminster Abbey pronounce the reasons for God instituting
matrimony: 1. For the begetting, not “getting” of children...). When the
Archbishop wrapped the couple's hands in a stole I found myself praying that
this starry eyed young couple would be able (unlike so many of the wedded
royals that preceded them in previous decades) to fulfil the words he was
pronouncing at the time: "What God has joined, let no man put
asunder..."

As to the cost, even though the state surely had to pay some
expenses (security etc) it was also noted on TV that the royal family and the
Middletons were "footing the bill" for the wedding. It was simpler
than Charles’ and Diana’s ceremony, and gives a boost to the British economy as
well as British morale (can't put a price on that).

It did my heart good to see all those Union Jacks waving,
and to see so many Brits wildly cheering their Queen as she made her way to the
church. Yes, not "the" queen; their queen. I'm no ardent royalist
either, but I've been a bit sick of late hearing radical imams declaring that
England is a Muslim state and it's only a matter of time before they hand the
whole thing over to Allah and shariah law. I think at this point many Brits
would beg to differ. How sad that at such a joyous time, one had to worry about
the possibility of disruptions and/or terrorist attacks. Kudos to the police
and British Intelligence for keeping everything flowing smoothly.

It was billed as "the wedding of the century",
which made me a tiny bit cynical: come on, guys, isn't that claim a little
premature? There are 89 years remaining in this one, after all. But perhaps it
was the wedding to kick off the century. If it means keeping alive the nobler elements
of the England we knew in the good old days, long live the Queen.