According to Wikipedia, the word Polterabend comes from the German verb “poltern” (to make a racket) + German noun “abend” (evening). Now having witnessed it, I probably could have told you that without looking it up, and I don’t speak German.

The racket involves a lot of porcelain getting chucked onto the bride’s driveway, meant to bring good luck to the newly married couple. *And if you’re any good at math, you’ll know that the more broken porcelain there is, the more luck you’ll have. So there’s also a lot of sweeping for the couple while their friends and family stand around chucking even more plates, and cups, and vases.

The cleanup symbolizes the effort they must make together when facing adversity in their marriage. This message was really driven home upon the third round.

So if Saturday night was any indication, there will be much luck + love + unity in their future.

Congratulations Livia + Don.  You passed the test.

The evening started civil enough….Where porcelain comes from.  A porcelain garden of course.The first pitch.