A Strange Day

There was a palpable feeling of uneasiness on the House floor this morning in the minutes before the wedding ceremony for Rep. Mary Denny (R-Aubrey) began. Several House members, lingering in the chamber after the House adjourned ,remarked what a strange day it was and how unsettling it all felt: the sudden death of Houston Rep. Joe Moreno paired with Denny's wedding.

Despite the tragic news, Denny decided to go ahead with her wedding. Houston Democrat and reverend Al Edwards led a prayer before the ceremony. The death and the wedding "show that [God] give[s] life and you take it away," Edwards said. The ceremony, ministered by Rep. Joe Crabb, lasted about 15 minutes before roughly 50 guests, including Speaker Tom Craddick. After the ceremony, Barry White's "My Everything" blared over the chamber's sound system. Some guests nodded their heads to the beat, while, a few feet away, Moreno's desk remained adorned with memorial yellow flowers.

A strange day, indeed.