wedding why's

I have attended enough weddings in the past two years that will last me a lifetime. The more I attend weddings the more I find the idea of a "wedding" silly. I'm not saying marriage is silly, I'm strictly talking about the wedding. When you've attended dozens of weddings you begin to ask WHY?

WHY do we all stand around watching the bride and groom have their first dance? That must be awkward for the bride and groom, having all eyes one them during a very intimate moment. I don't know about you, but having an audience while I dance is the last thing I want.

WHY does every married couple at the wedding insist that every single woman and man participate in the bouquet/garter toss? I have never caught the bouquet before and was always terrified of catching it. I am usually the one who stands in the back because some annoying married person dragged me out to the floor. The idea behind the bouquet toss is that whoever catches the bouquet will be the lucky one who gets married next. What if you don't want to be married next? The bouquet toss is essentially to see what desperate single girl is out there stupid enough to believe that catching the bouquet will land her a husband. I know that's harsh, but think about it. That is what the bouquet toss promotes.

Most of all, WHY do people spend tens of thousands of dollars (millions for celebs) on weddings? Not to mention the amount of time and effort put into the wedding and the politics of who should be invited and who shouldn't be. Don't get me wrong, I have attended some really fun and beautiful weddings and am grateful for being a part of such an important event, but I think I also would've had a great time at a normal backyard bbq celebrating the couple. Unfortunately, the problem with that is people look down on cheap weddings, so couples struggle to save money for a "fancy" wedding. I don't know why we snub cheaper weddings. Perhaps it's because we are saturated with stories about million dollar celebrity weddings (whose marriages by the way only lasts about two years at best).  Well, whatever the reason, this is the culture we have created. This is the society we live in.

WHY isn't everyone else just as cynical as I am?