One of the life lessons that I have tried to teach my children is to strive for excellence instead of striving for perfection since perfection is nearly impossible to achieve. Regardless of how hard one tries to get every detail right, there seems to always be a way to improve the next time. If perfection is by definition, “something that cannot be improved,” then disappointment awaits anyone who typically expects perfection. It is understandable that most brides dream of the perfect wedding. However, I have heard very few brides say that their day was perfect. There is a good chance though that a recent wedding was the dream come true for one bride. The ceremony and reception were one for the storybooks. Her only request of us was that the music be appropriate for the occasion.

Of course every bride requests that the music be appropriate for the occasion, but this bride was particularly concerned because of her father’s position in the community. Her dad was a pastor of a conservative congregation and she wanted to make sure that no song was played that was even slightly suggestive. Even her father reminded me during the setup that we needed to be sensitive to the lyrics and message of the songs so that no one would be upset or embarrassed by the music played.  Fortunately, my background and Christian faith was identical to theirs, so I knew the criteria they were wanted me to adhere to and had planned the music list accordingly.

A brief description of the reception area needs to be portrayed to give you a mental picture of the perfect setting for this event. The bride wanted to get married in a traditional country church.  Though her father was a pastor, the church she got married in was not the one he led, but in a beautiful church over 100 years old, located in a tiny town several miles away from Charleston, S.C.  On one side of the church was an open field that had been converted into the reception area that looked like it could have been straight out of the late 1800s due to its simplicity and charm.  Dozens of tables were set up in the center of the field, strings of lights had been erected overhead, and the dance floor had been hand-built by the couple the day before. Several couches had been constructed by draping cloths over arranged bales of hay. A large mirror was hanging from an oak branch directly behind the cake table to give a reflection of the wedding cake. Tables that were set up with family pictures of the parents, grandparents, and other relatives were enhanced with charming birdhouses shaped like miniature churches. It was sixty degrees and only blue skies could be seen on this fall day.

After I set up our equipment, the pastor of this particular church further explained the significance of this plot of land. The area for the reception was the same spot that Easter Sunrise service was held each year.  That is why there was a permanent cross at the far end of the property. In front of the cross was the table where the bride and groom would enjoy their first meal as husband and wife. Beyond the cross was nothing but the marshland of coastal Carolina. The scene was perfect, one that man alone could never create.

For the social hour, the couple had friends play guitar and sing for the hour the wedding party was busy taking pictures. After I introduced the wedding party with Chariots of Fire in the background, they went right into their first dance, followed by the bride-father and then groom-mother dances. During the bride-father dance, we invited all other fathers who were there with their daughter to join them on the dance floor.  It was amazing how many dads were there to take their daughter to the dance floor, including Mom dancing with the bride’s grandfather.  After the special dances, the father of the bride gave a short welcome and blessed the food.

Next, during the meal, the music that I had selected was contemporary Christian music (see this issue’s list for the ordered playlist). The playlist was actually fairly easy to compile. We have had several events where the first dance was by a Christian artist and have had couples who requested Christian music for their event in the past. This couple only requested the genre, not specific requests. The bride and her father were extremely pleased with the songs played. Several guests also complemented the playlist and one gentlemen asked for our card for his daughter’s upcoming wedding. After 34 years in the mobile disc jockey business, I never get tired of someone asking for our card.

The biggest surprise of the night was that after the toasts and cake cutting, when the dance phase started, people flocked to the dance floor. Many times at an event, one expects that alcohol is required to give people the “liquid” courage needed to entice them to the dance floor. Not a drop of beer, wine, or liquor was in sight for miles, but none was needed. From the moment the first guest set foot on the floor until the end of the night, the dance floor always had dancers stomping their feet in time to the beat of the music. Best of all, no one even had to come to the DJ booth and yell, “Play Something We Can Dance To!”