I Followed My Heart... Not the Norm
In less than three months, my husband and I will be celebrating our marriage with our family and friends from all over. When we got engaged in December, we jumped right into planning our wedding. We set a date in November, picked a venue, decided on colors, picked out a bakery for our cake and I started looking for the perfect dress. As I'm writing this, I'm heading to Atlanta to pick up the gown I tried on in February to wear on the special day. But In the midst of the planning, I realized it's not the wedding that I wanted. In fact, I've never had a dream wedding or a dream wedding dress. I didn't even want a big wedding; yet here I was planning one because that's what you're supposed to do... right?
After making a downpayment on the venue and my dress, it was becoming more real, but it wasn't the reality I wanted. I was planning a wedding for everyone else. What I really wanted was a different kind of wedding. I wanted to celebrate our union in a more intimate way. I wanted a wedding that focused on the sanctity of marriage, the meaningful vows we were taking and the commitment we are making to each other and Jehovah because this is something we'd both waited and prayed for.
But... how could we just change everything? We’d already made large financial commitments. We'd already printed save-the-dates and mailed them out. And how would our family and friends feel? This was the part that literally had me crying crocodile tears because I knew the decision I was considering would be met with some adversity, but it was something I felt strongly about doing. I didn’t know what to do. Seeing my angst and wiping my tears, my soon-to-be husband reminded me-- this will be OUR marriage and we have to do what is right for us. And with that he set out on making sure I had the wedding I wanted.
Before we moved forward, we spoke to my parents, told them our intentions and got their blessing. Then we did premarital counseling to ensure there weren't some things we were neglecting to discuss or consider. Then we set our on planning the wedding we dreamed of together. We picked a date and Birk even helped me pick out a dress for the occasion. We invited 10 people, and they all met us under an oak tree at City Park. It was the most beautiful, perfect and memorable day!
Through this experience I've also learned the importance of following my heart in every situation and doing what brings me peace. We/you/I can't live for they. What they want, what they expect, what they think or what they say. What's good or right for the masses, may not be what's right for you. So listen to your heart and let it lead you!
Through this experience I've also learned the importance of following my heart in every situation and doing what brings me peace. We/you/I can't live for they. What they want, what they expect, what they think or what they say. What's good or right for the masses, may not be what's right for you. So listen to your heart and let it lead you!
Here's a look at some of my favorite moments from our special day in May!