You Are My Sunshine

    The ceremony is often given the least attention in all the planning, when it is actually the most meaningful and important part.

   Tradition has it place, and creating something that is your own has it's place as well. Here are a few things my husband and I did for our ceremony.

   Not for a second am I saying there is a right way to do ANY of this, except for what is right in your heart. These are just some fun and meaningful options that we did...

1 - We walked in together as opposed to him waiting for me at the end of the aisle.

Why? I wanted to make the statement that I was not being given away and that we were entering into this (literally) together and equally.

2 - After walking in we turned and faced each other and then separately walked a circle in opposite directions circling our guests, coming back together at the beginning of the aisle.

Why? We wanted to claim the space (doing so literally), make it our own, and look at our beloved friends and family and take them in. We also like the idea of saying through this symbolic gesture that we are separate, with our own separate paths, and we come together here at this point in time, and we walk this aisle to marriage as two independent people.

3 - We had a bluegrass band play for the ceremony.

Why? Bluegrass is from my roots (the South) and it is very reminiscent of Irish music (his roots). My family and friends loved it, and his family actually commented on how much they liked it and how it reminded them of Irish music.

4 - We had an interfaith celebrant marry us (Lynn Rogers).

Why? My husband grew up Catholic and I grew up Methodist and neither of us have continued with organized religion. However, we both have a strong spiritual connection with the world, each other, and within ourselves, so it was important for us to have someone who represented ministry but in an interfaith, open faith kind of way. We loved Lynn.

5 - We had a sing-a-long. Yep, we did. We sang "You Are My Sunshine".

Why you ask? I love love love the feeling of being united in voice and song. LOVE it. I love the resonance that happens in our bodies and in the room and how all of that sound is filling the room in one voice. It's also playful, and that's the way I roll.

Comments

[ann mccalley]

I admit that I am biased as I am the mother of the bride but - having been to a lot of traditional weddings - I have to say that this was the most heart warming, personalized and lots of fun wedding that I have ever attended!! Everyone there knew and loves these two - no friends of parents that the kids didn't even know - just loving family and friends. Absoloutely breath taking!!! And they did it themselves - I had no endless list of "mother of the bride" duties to preform!!