Canadian Welcome

These days, when someone is getting married or having a baby, they often go to a large department store and start a gift registry. What this means is that the person walks through the store and chooses items they would like to have. Then those products are listed in a computer at the store (and often on the store’s website).

When a bridal or baby shower is held for the person, or when a wedding gift needs to be purchased, friends and family are told to check that store’s gift registry. Then by looking at the wish list, a suitable gift can be chosen and there is no worry about duplicate presents. A gift registry makes shopping for that special something much faster and easier, although there is no longer any surprise waiting to be opened.

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Here in Canada, when a couple are getting married, the bride-to-be has a bridal shower held in her honour. I’m not sure why it’s called a shower, although it could be because the future bride is showered with gifts. Usually a member of the wedding party or a close friend hosts the shower and invites female friends and family. The bridal shower is often a surprise and gifts are usually smaller than those that will be given at the wedding.

Last week, I attended a bridal shower for my niece Jenn. Since Jenn was arriving from out of town, she already knew about the shower, but some of the women who came were a surprise. Relatives who lived a distance away and friends she hadn’t seen for a long time.

Bridal showers usually consist of gifts, good food, and silly games and Jenn’s shower was no exception. Each guest chose a length of string when they arrived. A good ice breaker, the game involved wrapping the string around your wrist as you talked about your relationship with the future bride – the length of string determined how long you had to speak. A prize went to the lady with the longest string and the one with the shortest. By the end of the game, we all knew a little bit more about one another.

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