Happiness

Today I was a witness to the civil partnership of our lovely friends Yvonne and Henny in London. Our day started at 9 a.m. with breakfast ; it progressed, via a bus (gloriously named "Empress of London") to Hackney Town Hall; and ended up with a llllllllooooonnnnnngggggg and absurdly good lunch at the Zetter Townhouse.

Two abiding memories for me amongst many, many from today:-

1) Alex Mac's confetti bag of red split peas which, remarkably, conformed to all Hackney Council's stipulations (biodegradable, non-staining, outside (not inside) the building.) The reddies were celebratorily chucked, tossed and instantly gobbled up by the borough of Hackney's pigeons. How cool is that?

2). The real warmth and sweetness of the registrar and officiator who led H and Y through the red tape and then their vows. Their genuine pleasure in the event and the unexpectedly emotional language of the official words of commitment which had us all scrabbling for hankies as tears simply poured down girls' and boys' cheeks.



P.S. the brides are the girls with red roses in their hair.