Bringing star-crossed lovers down to earth (2)

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“The work is sort of mechanical, but I’m still passionate about it as I meet different people every day,” she said.

She recalled a middle-aged couple, one a divorcee, the other widowed, who hosted a small ceremony after drawing their marriage certificate at the center.

“They exchanged vows solemnly, and the woman was in tears, which left a deep impression on me,” she said.

Guo said couples were very casual in the past, some even wearing slippers and pajamas when visiting the center at its previous location.

Now they dress more formally for the occasion, she said.

While the job has many happy and touching moments, there are difficult moments too.

Guo said some people behave rudely, even throwing things when told that they cannot get a certificate.

And sometimes, couples are unhappy with the computer-generated number on their marriage certificates — such as 444, which means “die” in Chinese — Guo said.

“At first, I felt sad, but now I’m used to it,” she said.

Guo’s colleague, 25-year-old Xu Renfei, is the only man in marriage registration at the center. “Sometimes, I don’t even want to talk after work because I talk the whole day,” he said.

The center received 62 couples yesterday, about double its normal figure.

“We first thought about applying for our marriage certificate just a few days ago and chose today because it’s Qixi,” said newlywed groom Zhang Haotian who was with his bride Huang Zhaofang dressed in red for the occasion.

“We hope we can live a steady life together,” added Zhang.

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