Sometime near the end of 2016 my Dad went golfing and met a gregarious fella who was recently engaged. They talked about lots of things that day. Golf, the weather, and in the most manly exchange possible, they discussed wedding florals. My Dad said, “My daughter is a florist.” and he instructed Josh to reach out and to tell me that “Papa Schnapps” sent them.
Unaware of this exchange I received an email from Kacie, the extremely sweet Bride-to-be, who awkwardly mentioned Papa Schnapps in her email. Seeing the nickname I gave Dad when I was little brought dozens of questions to mind but mostly I wondered about the exchange that took place. My Dad, a giggly man, takes few things seriously and has been accused of insulting people for the sake of good fun. I hoped Kacie hadn’t met Papa Schnapps.
Kacie and I met a few times and came up with a soft and romantic display for her wedding day. She was calm and polite and made it so easy to be excited for her wedding. Sometimes you meet someone and right away you know you’ll be rooting for them forever.
For a number of reasons, my Dad came with me to help pack up at the end of the wedding. We slipped through a side door while the guests were in another room dancing and we began gathering vases.
“You know Dad, this is Josh’s wedding.”
“Really?” he said, like I’d told a child he was going to Disney World.
“Uh huh.” And with that, Dad put down his vases and wandered off towards the dance floor in a pair of blue jeans. He ignored my objections and went off in search of his friend. I reminded myself that I know better than to take Dad anywhere and I wondered if the florist’s father crashing a wedding in his yard-work pants was against a protocol somewhere.
Maybe no one will notice.
“Papa Schnapps!” I hear a loud voice declare. I turned my head to find Dad and Josh bounding towards each other for a hearty man-hug. They talked and laughed and smacked each other around and then Josh shouts, “Fellas, come here. You have to meet Papa Schnapps!” and so a gaggle of giggling groomsmen came and met my Dad and they slung jokes at each other like old friends.
How embarrassing.
*Dad has not been invited back to any wedding tear downs (except one that involved a giant tree and a really long ladder.)
Photographer – Katie Timbers / Venue – The Rice Mill / Catering – Good Food / Music and Day of Coordinator – Pinnacle Charleston / Cake – The Cake Stand / Officiant – Kasey King / Transportation – Coastal Limo