Sifoddling Along

By Marilyn Carnell

I belong to a writing gr oup in the senior living apartment building where I now live. This week’s assignment is to write about our personal wedding (s). Unlike some of my cousins, I only had two.

Both of my wedding ceremonies were atypical. The first was conventional in form – the rite was held in the University of Missouri chapel and our families attended. My husband was Gerald Twogood, a student from Ft. Dodge Iowa. Our parents lived almost equal distances from Columbia, Missouri, but in opposite directions, so it seemed to be a good location to have the ceremony at the half-way point.

I wore a white shantung suit and a hat made of veiling – my attempt to look “bridal”. There were a total of twelve guests, and no formal reception. We had a small wedding cake at my brother’s home to celebrate.

Only one small problem occurred. Three days before the planned event, Jerry had emergency abdominal surgery. He managed to walk down the aisle with me but was in great pain. We did not have the romantic honeymoon we had anticipated.

Twenty six years later (long story omitted) I married again. Allen Williams and I met when we both worked at the Campbell’s Soup Company. This was an even smaller event. We were married by the Mayor of Haddonfield, New Jersey, and two clerks were our witnesses. We went to Boston for our honeymoon and spent most of our time in exploring historical sites.

Thinking about weddings made me curious about the average costs of such an important event. It seems that in 1962, the average cost was $700, the equivalent of $7,500 on 2025. We were much under that budget, but weddings have become an even bigger business. In 1988, when Al and I married, the average cost had risen to a little over $10,000. We spent about $100. Thrifty, middle aged, and practical. The cost in 2025 has risen to a staggering $38,000 and change.

In conclusion, I will say that I have no regrets about having had simple weddings. I had better use for the money I had at the time.