Far and wide

Rumours reached me tonight that some friends, or more like surrogate family, may be prepared to travel thousands of miles from Tasmania to be at our wedding. The fact that people are prepared to make such a journey is incredibly humbling. Should they come they will make up a contingent of people traveling from foreign climes  to attend. 

Both James and I have uncles who live abroad and both have already decided to come. James' will be coming from Adelaide, Australia, while mine will be coming from slightly nearer as he only lives in fuertaventura. In general, James' family and some of his friends will have further to travel as a large number will be coming down from Scotland. My family and friends are largely clustered in the south of England and as such will have a slightly easier time of things. 

A small number of my family are located within just a few miles of our wedding venue and reception so they get off lightly. Even I will be travelling further on the morning of the wedding than they will, although our new house in Banbury is less than half an hour from the venue. 

No matter how far each of our guests travels or how long it takes, we will be grateful to each and every one who attends and helps make our special day extra special. That people are prepared to put themselves to the time, and with a weekday wedding, the inconvenience, of attending is a marvel. The people who are being invited to the wedding are individually special to me and to James. We will miss any who cannot attend, but will celebrate the presence of those who can and be immensely touched at the effort they have made. I for one cannot wait to gather my nearest and dearest around me on such a special occasion. 

There are a few people who cannot attend, because they are no longer with us. I will keenly feel the absence of my beloved grandad, my playmate for my entire childhood, my grandmother, whose legacy helped purchase our house and who funded my education, and Alison, friend and mentor. RIP.