A Goodluck Wish
Stephanie, Oliver and I would like to offer our heartfelt best wishes to Will and Olivia, whom celebrate their marriage on Saturday at Christchurch, followed by a reception at Turkey Mill, Maidstone.
I mentioned previously in a blog posting when Will and Olivia got engaged that these two people had a certain destiny together and that their marriage was long ago conceived to be part of a life long journey between them.
Like Stephanie and I, Will and Olivia met at a young age. In fact, they were both younger than ourselves, and so the formative experiences that Stephanie and I have experienced are certain to have been felt by them.
What sets Will and Olivia apart, however, is not only there continued devotion to their relationship but the way in which they have handled and managed their individual aspirations.
For many, and I would probably include myself in this had I followed the same path, leaving home and going off to university is not only an educational experience, but a social experiment in which young people "find themselves" in life, including of course experiences with the opposite sex. To have gone through four years of university and still intact is no mean feat, and I feel needs to be applauded. I don't have any statistics to hand here, but I would have thought the figures would have been pretty low when looking at similar circumstances!
Will was at first a mutual friend of Gareth's and Stuarts through the golf club, along with Dan and Reaso. How we all became part of the same social circle is a little hazy, but I believe on one occasion at Zen's nightclub in Dartford, Will introduced me to a rather young looking Olivia. Apparently, and I tend to believe Olivia's account of the story, my first words to her were rather lewd and full of innuendo. She was, as I understand it rather taken back at such a young age and exercised caution whenever our paths crossed again... for the next ten years!
Will and I may lead very different careers, but we shared the same employment infancy when we worked together at Safeway's. Whilst I was rather happy with enjoying weekly paychecks and spending it all on the weekends Will was earning for reason. A way to save up for his university course. He had a dream, a plan and there was no way anyone or anything was going to stop him.
Whilst at Colchester University, James Holman and I went to visit Will for a weekend away. Olivia travelled over from Guilford and enjoyed the weekend with us. I will always remember the exact date as this was the very day that David Beckham curled in "that" goal against Greece to secure our spot at the 2002 world cup in Japan! That night, Olivia gained my eternal respect as she fault like a gladiator in keeping up with us boys all night long in the drinking stakes, beers, vodka, sambuca, whatever we could get our hands on, until about 11.30 she couldn't keep up any more and collapsed drunkenly in the middle of the university campus! Will had to take her back home and as I understand it - she was ill for most of the night!
If I have lots of good memories of nights out with Will and Olivia, they all pale into insignificance when you compare them to the memories they themselves must have from their excursion around the world. In 2004, worn down by the stresses of final examinations and the extended break from each other what better way to rekindled your relationship and relax your brain that by trekking through Thailand, the Far East, Australia, New Zealand and the US?
The experiences they enjoyed whilst in Australia started another fire burning in Will's belly and just as determined he was to succeed in his desire profession, he will one day I am sure fulfil another dream by spending a working sabbatical in Sydney, enjoying the lifestyle and culture that he fell in love with whilst there.
Having a desire to do something is easy, having the determination and the balls to succeed is what sets people apart. Having Oliver gave me a certain sense of determination to get the things I want in life, however long they take. But all the time that Steph and I have friends like Will and Olivia, people who are role models for Oliver when he grows up and starts to develop his own ideas. We can encourage him and show him Will and Olivia as examples in how to do things the right way, that whatever you want is out there, just don't be afraid to work at it and to stick to you what you believe in.
The two of them have come a long way, but they have done it together, all great partnerships are about teamwork, and they are one hell of a team! We would love to wish them all the very best in their marriage and success in their plans for the future - wherever that make take them!
Stephanie and I would also like to take this opportunity in thanking them very much for inviting Oliver to be part of their big day as pageboy, we hope that he is slightly quieter than the rehearsal!
I mentioned previously in a blog posting when Will and Olivia got engaged that these two people had a certain destiny together and that their marriage was long ago conceived to be part of a life long journey between them.
Like Stephanie and I, Will and Olivia met at a young age. In fact, they were both younger than ourselves, and so the formative experiences that Stephanie and I have experienced are certain to have been felt by them.
What sets Will and Olivia apart, however, is not only there continued devotion to their relationship but the way in which they have handled and managed their individual aspirations.
For many, and I would probably include myself in this had I followed the same path, leaving home and going off to university is not only an educational experience, but a social experiment in which young people "find themselves" in life, including of course experiences with the opposite sex. To have gone through four years of university and still intact is no mean feat, and I feel needs to be applauded. I don't have any statistics to hand here, but I would have thought the figures would have been pretty low when looking at similar circumstances!
Will was at first a mutual friend of Gareth's and Stuarts through the golf club, along with Dan and Reaso. How we all became part of the same social circle is a little hazy, but I believe on one occasion at Zen's nightclub in Dartford, Will introduced me to a rather young looking Olivia. Apparently, and I tend to believe Olivia's account of the story, my first words to her were rather lewd and full of innuendo. She was, as I understand it rather taken back at such a young age and exercised caution whenever our paths crossed again... for the next ten years!
Will and I may lead very different careers, but we shared the same employment infancy when we worked together at Safeway's. Whilst I was rather happy with enjoying weekly paychecks and spending it all on the weekends Will was earning for reason. A way to save up for his university course. He had a dream, a plan and there was no way anyone or anything was going to stop him.
Whilst at Colchester University, James Holman and I went to visit Will for a weekend away. Olivia travelled over from Guilford and enjoyed the weekend with us. I will always remember the exact date as this was the very day that David Beckham curled in "that" goal against Greece to secure our spot at the 2002 world cup in Japan! That night, Olivia gained my eternal respect as she fault like a gladiator in keeping up with us boys all night long in the drinking stakes, beers, vodka, sambuca, whatever we could get our hands on, until about 11.30 she couldn't keep up any more and collapsed drunkenly in the middle of the university campus! Will had to take her back home and as I understand it - she was ill for most of the night!
If I have lots of good memories of nights out with Will and Olivia, they all pale into insignificance when you compare them to the memories they themselves must have from their excursion around the world. In 2004, worn down by the stresses of final examinations and the extended break from each other what better way to rekindled your relationship and relax your brain that by trekking through Thailand, the Far East, Australia, New Zealand and the US?
The experiences they enjoyed whilst in Australia started another fire burning in Will's belly and just as determined he was to succeed in his desire profession, he will one day I am sure fulfil another dream by spending a working sabbatical in Sydney, enjoying the lifestyle and culture that he fell in love with whilst there.
Having a desire to do something is easy, having the determination and the balls to succeed is what sets people apart. Having Oliver gave me a certain sense of determination to get the things I want in life, however long they take. But all the time that Steph and I have friends like Will and Olivia, people who are role models for Oliver when he grows up and starts to develop his own ideas. We can encourage him and show him Will and Olivia as examples in how to do things the right way, that whatever you want is out there, just don't be afraid to work at it and to stick to you what you believe in.
The two of them have come a long way, but they have done it together, all great partnerships are about teamwork, and they are one hell of a team! We would love to wish them all the very best in their marriage and success in their plans for the future - wherever that make take them!
Stephanie and I would also like to take this opportunity in thanking them very much for inviting Oliver to be part of their big day as pageboy, we hope that he is slightly quieter than the rehearsal!
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