The British tabloids have dubbed her “Waity Katie” for sticking around for eight long years for Prince William to propose. And pop the question he did.
As Shakespeare wrote in his A Midsummer Night’s Dream: “The course of true love never did run smooth.” Why fault Kate Middleton for exercising such perseverance, resilience and, indeed, the patience of Job?
Surely these are qualities that will stand her in good stead in her future role as a princess and in being able to deal with the vicissitudes of public life?
It’s not as if she could jolly well ask herself to get married; neither could anyone expect her, realistically, even in this era of women’s emancipation, to be the one to ask the man who is second in line to the British throne for his hand in marriage. She waited and she was chosen.
Now we are poised for the biggest wedding spectacle in the past few decades. It is uncool in some circles to voice excitement about these pending nuptuals, but I’m of the sentimental and voyeuristic sort who simply can’t wait. Bring it on. Who will design her dress? How many people will attend? What will they be wearing?
The British press, as it is wont, is having a field day looking for absolutely every minuscule and inscrutable detail that it will, no doubt, pass on to us with relish in the next five months. Domestically, it must be a wonderful diversion from the cuts in social spending recently announced by that milquetoast, baby-faced prime minister, David Cameron.
The forgotten one
All this attention given to Wills and Kate does somehow overshadow the happy event of our own Charlene Wittstock, who will be tying the knot across the channel to Monaco’s Prince Albert.
They, too, are set to wed next spring or summer. She must be somewhat miffed that Kate has stolen her thunder, given that every girl or princess-to-be wants her day to be special and the talk of the town.
Besides our fascination with royals, what is it about this wedding that has most of us enthralled? The inescapable truth is that we love love.
A wedding is the most public display and affirmation of our belief in it. A spectacle of this nature gives us hope and inspiration that, yes, romance is not dead.
We get to live it vicariously through others. Around the globe, countless women are thinking “that could be me” not necessarily in regard to marrying a man who might one day be king, but marrying a man who is their king. The king of their heart.
Biblical analysis
The excruciating business of waiting is not new. Rewind to biblical times in the Gospel of Matthew, where Jesus tells the parable of the 10 virgins or young maidens.
It’s a lengthy tale, but an online encyclopaedia gives us this brief version: the five virgins who are prepared for the bridegroom’s arrival are rewarded and the five who are not prepared are excluded. The parable has a clear eschatological theme: be prepared for the day of reckoning.
Each of the 10 virgins is carrying a lamp as she awaits the coming of the bridegroom, whom the virgins expect some time during the night. Five of the virgins are wise and have brought sufficient oil for their lamps. Five are foolish and have not.
The bridegroom is delayed until late into the night. When he arrives, the foolish virgins ask the wise ones for oil, but they refuse, saying that there will certainly not be enough. They advise them to go and buy their own.
While the foolish virgins are away trying to get more oil, the bridegroom arrives. The wise virgins are there to welcome him and the foolish ones arrive too late and are excluded.
Of course, this is a parable about the church’s preparedness for Jesus’ return. People ought to be ready for the second coming, whatever ready means. But it’s always been delicious for me to think of this story in its most literal sense.
I’m sure theologians will take offence at the liberties I’m taking, but The Word is for all of us to make of it as we wish. In essence, we all need to be prepared for when the prospective groom emerges.
It might not be in the daytime when it’s clear for you to see or when and where you expect to find him. It might, quite eerily, be in the dark, late at night, where you least expect to find him.
So, don’t be one of the foolish virgins and be caught ill prepared. Make sure you have enough oil.
In keeping with biblical references: “Many are called, but few are chosen.” Keep your torch burning.