The Point of It All
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Monday August 21st, 2006
I just arrived in Maine last night after a few days of party and celebration in Philly. I was the best man for the wedding of two of my closest friends, Burchard Tang and Priscilla Lee, a.k.a. Byurps and Pilala or simply Bursilla. It was a smash, from the Madden tournament (which I was prouder to win than any violin competition in the world) to the golf tournament (which I would never be able to win in ten lifetimes) to the Chinatown dress rehearsal dinner to the ceremony and reception complete with meter-long sparklers, Priscilla’s aunt decked out in a Korean hahn-bohk (traditional costume) getting down with the dancers, and the newly-married couple belting out “A Whole New World.” There was even Chinese dimsum and a tea ceremony the following day which I had to miss because Mendelssohn beckoned me.
It is definitely the wedding season of my life. My brother-in-law, my three other closest guy friends and I all got married in 2004-2005, and I was invited to seven weddings (making it to four) this summer. It is one of the pivotal moments in life, a moment to reflect on what has been lived and what is to be lived. My own wedding and the wedding of close friends like Bursilla gave me that same glow that a great performance of the greatest music gives me, whether I am performing or listening. Best friends and family all gathered together to share the hopes and dreams of a new family - it is a moment that seems to be one of the best reasons to be alive.
Extraordinary talent has an allure. Most of us admire or are even in awe of superhuman ability. Bursilla is one of the most talented couples on earth. Never mind that Byurpard got into the Philly Orchestra on the Five-Week Practice Plan (details to come in a future entry) or that Pila is an Avery Fisher Career Grant winner. Byurps breaks 80 and Pila beats me (which means barely breaking 100) on the golf course; Pila plays Tetris until the score flips (meaning a higher score than the screen can display so that it resets to 0); Byurps is master of about 100 video games (he can be found in Call of Duty rooms as Colonel Bustard); both have their own bowling balls; she is a composer of countless jingles; he has his own foosball table; she can dance with anybody on Dance Dance Revolution; both are formidable card players; and while we always knew she has the Disney voice (she sang the national anthem at an Angels’ game) he demonstrated at the wedding that he’s got game too. Byurps even stayed up with me (not an easy feat) for three nights in a row on our way to completing seven consecutive seasons of Madden. I was impressed even if he took naps and I didn’t.
My point? My kid will beat their kid in any of the above. Any day.
Congrats Bursilla!