Yesterday at the Retarded Children’s Home, there was a wedding ceremony which we have never witnessed before. More than one hundred Mentally Handicapped and Disabled children accompanied by volunteers and their parents of these children witnessed the wedding ceremony of Jianlong and Shu-Ming. The wedding ceremony was honorable and dignified.

During the ceremony, the children in the institute enjoyed to their hearts’ content without worrying about keeping the rules. The happy children sang “The Moon Represents My Heart,” and “You Have To Mary Me Today” and some others. These loveable children were quite impressive. The bride Shu-Ming, a nurse of health education in the hospital, was assigned to Taitung to help give talks on how to help diabetics two years ago. Originally she worked in Taipei. Of course, her boy friend was her first volunteer helper. His contribution as a volunteer is the main reason s for why St. Mary’s Hospital has been changed in to a well-known hospice. He is a patient of Type I diabetes. He got acquainted with Shu-Ming when he joined in a Diabetes Health Instruction activity in his youth. They fell in love with each other many years before they got married. Shu-Ming’s beloved family members were concerned and worried about her marrying Jian-Long. A person of type I diabetes has the possibility of passing diabetes down to his next generations. But they were too much affected by those cute and childlike and innocent boys and girls. And this year their love affair blossomed into a happy ending and they have become an enviable couple
now. So far as they are concerned, a wedding at the Holy Savior Education and Nursing Institute is a fulfillment of their dreams.

At the conclusion of the wedding ceremony, the hilarious boys and girls welcomed the bride and the bridegroom with a love song “The Truth of Love.” And then the Priests blessed the newly-married couple. From time to time, the boys and girls rushed in to begin taking photos of the couple. Their amusing antics caused many to break out into loud laughter. Those adorable boys and girls each presented to the newlyweds blessing cards. During the moving wedding ceremony they also sang moving love songs. Their singing abilities were unexpectedly and surprisingly right on and sometimes even unbelievable and quite pleasant the ear. They sang the simple but moving and meaningful love songs: “Hand in hand, come along with me and trust me with your whole life. May yesterday no longer turn back! May tomorrow go on to the end of life! And today you are to marry me.” This is the best proclamation of true love. And the climax came when the bridegroom kissed the bride affectionately. I can hardly imagine what the children might think when they saw such a sight. What was the most expected was
the banquet. The hilarious children enjoyed the feast with the help of the adults. They struggled to reach for the microphone to sing Teresa Teng’s famous love song “The Moon Represents My Heart.” We were all too happy and fond-hearted. I wonder how many memories are left in the depths of the children’s hearts until now. As for us, I do not think we will forget the moving atmosphere of this evening.

The bridegroom wrote down his prayers the first time he visited Our Retarded Children’s Home:

“Oh! Dear Lord! Many thanks for Your love.
You give us mental nourishment. You give us power to run. You support me all the way. The world becomes beautiful because of You and because You are with us. Thank You. We have to give our thanks to You. Thank You for helping us to get to know each other become very closer.” No wonder I saw God’s portrait on you. Thank you all. Thanks to all of you, we finally get together. (2006.11.22)