To plan and execute a beautiful, thoughtful wedding takes a great deal of energy. And even when all of the details have been organized to perfection, it takes a mindfulness to fully appreciate not just the planning of the day, but the intention of choices made, related to location, decoration, dress, ceremony, and more.
Destination or micro-weddings come with additional stressors of their own—travelling to a new city, facilitating happy holidays for those attending, dealing with marriage paper work legalities that are unfamiliar. The hope is, of course, that with a wedding of a more manageable size (even on another continent!) that there is less anxiety overall. I often say to my couples that choosing this path indicates they are focused more on the marriage, rather than the wedding.
“Mindfulness” has been a buzzword all over the media, of late. But to my way of thinking, it is simply being fully present during the wedding ceremony. It’s not worrying about mascara running if tears should fall or exactly how the train or gown are positioned for photographs. It’s about feeling the love and embrace of those attending, and hearing—really hearing—what your partner has to say about you, your love, your future together. When we are all in the flow, there is no distraction to take away from this union of hearts—not only between brides and grooms but among all gathered her.
I was reminded of one of these beautiful heart moments in a recent ceremony. Our Simply Eloped Team was serving a boisterous, blended family from the United Kingdom. The couple had been together for some time and brought with them a dozen or so family members, including their sons, to enjoy a wedding on a typically hot, summer day in the Big Apple. All went according to plan, but as the couple and guests ushered out of the gazebo to take various family portraits, the bride rushed back. The Dene Summerhouse (our so-called Treehouse for Dreaming) backs up to a set of climbing rocks, which often play host to curious folks who want to want the wedding. She grabbed her bouquet which included a charm and photo of her dear father, who’d passed in the last year. She lovingly tucked the bouquet in a crevice in the rocks and left it there for all time. It was a charming and sentimental ending to a sweet wedding.
