i was once invited to a marriage function, they said that i didn't have to participate but my friends still wanted me to come in and check it out and see how i feel, there was free food and drink plus a notable speaker was going to be present. so after we prayed we ate and listened to a short lecture regarding marriage just to go over the rules and regulations and to you know give some encouraging advice. it was a very clean safe healthy regulated pleasant community mixed chaperoned family gathering event, some families knew other families at the masjid there for years so everything was cool i was enjoying myself. thereafter all the single people participating in the event gathered in the main dining hall and my friends signed me up for a seat even though i was really shy about the whole thing and in all honesty just wanted to observe... some people had their whole family there with them and some of us just came with friends and some others came by themselves. very quickly all the expensively dressed intimidating upper class educated affluent gifted beautiful single peoples started pairing off, naturally. whenever a connection was made they announced the success to the function administrator and he announced a takbir and we all bashfully smiled and laughed and clapped responding in kind to let everyone know of another great successful connection... as the night went on more and more people kept making connections and went upstairs to the main office to register and book wedding dates leaving the rest of us to sit and stare awkwardly at each other in silence with nothing really to say, we knew our place... when i went home i couldn't help it i locked myself in the bathroom looked in the mirror for a long while and cried softly. that was some deep stuff.