From Wayne Saroyan

Clairdee,

Most of the people I know were convinced that my "ordination" was the seventh sign of the apocalypse, but I was nonetheless honored and deeply moved when my son Ian and his fiancee Rebecca asked me to serve as the officiant for their Oct. 15, 2008 wedding at a beautiful winery just north of Cincinnati. So I went online to the Universal Life Church Ministries website and ... -- presto! -- five minutes later I was an ordained minister, legally empowered to perform wedding ceremonies!

It was a magical and very romantic experience for me (as I'm sure it was for the bride and groom as well). I spent weeks struggling to write the ceremony, trying to hit the right tone for their intimate (60+ people) outdoor wedding. Not too cosmic, not to sappy. Lots of tears (the joyful kind), lots of smiles, and everyone seemed pleased with how the ceremony turned out.

And the world didn't end. In fact, for Ian and Rebecca, it signaled the beginning of a new world... Together.

Wayne
www.jazzwest.com