Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic, couples around the country have still found ways to publicly profess their love in new and inventive ways, despite the risk of a crowd.
At the start of the stay at home order, many couples were forced to cancel their weddings and halt preparation for an uncertain future. Downsizing wedding parties can be heart-wrenching, especially since your wedding day is the day that you get to officially profess your unyielding love in front of all your family and friends. As courts begin to reopen and restrictions are being lifted, people have found their own ways to become one in front of many. With the help of zoom, FaceTime, and other video chat platforms, many are able to share their special day with their loved ones.
While some have decided to keep the traditional church ceremonies, there are those who have chosen to play the cards they are dealt and change the way we see weddings for years to come. There has been an increase in stoop weddings, zoom weddings, garden ceremonies, and backyard weddings that flood my news feed. Who could’ve predicted this? The intimate nature of weddings today is the most beautiful part. The world may be in turmoil, but love still conquers all.
One of my friends from high school moved to a different state with her husband, with the intention to return to New York for their wedding. With state restrictions and the inability to leave their homes, they found a pastor and witnesses and were married in front of hundreds of their family and friends who participated via zoom. The high school sweethearts waited for this day to come for years and couldn’t put a hold on that dream. It proves that grandeur doesn’t equate to love and happiness.
In addition, I recently attended a wedding of a family member who thankfully succeeded in keeping their dream wedding on a smaller scale. The guests were required to take mandatory COVID-tests and remain socially distant if possible until the ceremony. Anyone who did not want to comply with their requests was asked not to come. Their guest list of two hundred was drastically downsized to thirty people due to regulations. “ I was worried for months that my wedding would be canceled. When we had to cut the guest list it was hard, yet easy to pick the ones who had to be there” Said the bride, Ebony Williams of Queens, New York. Guests were required to remain masked at all times, except while eating, and dancing was prohibited in the establishment due to social distancing regulations.
COVID has placed a greater value on the meaning of life, family, and love. Those who have proceeded with marriage during the pandemic have put aside all of the unnecessary things and society’s expectations of the perfect wedding. Your wedding day can still happen, even if it isn’t grand. Focus on the things that matter and proceed from there. You make the day, not the location or the money that is spent.
