This has been a blur of a season. If I didn't have a calendar, I would have sworn September didn't happen at all.
I had about 8 weddings since September 1st and that included two last minute elopements this very week. There just happens to be a Blood Red moon and if that has anything to do with this, bring on more of them!
Life is strange, with it's twists and turns. We don't know what each day will bring, but it would be nice to have a heads up once in a while. I make plans, then God laughs and turns the day all around. I am pretty flexible and try to live in the moment. My friend, Barbara and I, went on a workshop a few years ago at Omega given by Jon Kabat-Zin. We were taught what most Buddhists do to keep the focus on the moment. Eat with purpose, walk gently and slowly across the earth, wash dishes and relish the clean water and suds and mind your mind!
Mindfulness is a wonderful thing to remember to do. I know I am off when I race from one venue to the other, catching up with the couples who need me to be at a place on time. I breathe as I race, but sometimes, it's too stressful and I have to remember I am human and will be there when I get there.
I do ask them, when I finally get them in front of me at the ceremony, to take a moment to breathe and be present. It helps me, too. I need that pause to be mindful of the enormity of the task, the love in the space and remember that Spirit is ever present.
Thursday, October 9, 2014
Wednesday, August 13, 2014
Mountain Wedding
The summer started off with a wimper. All was calm, relaxed and looked like the weather was going to be the three H's for the duration.
Rain made it wonderful to see the grass green up nicely. Hydrangas popped out on time as well as the beautiful trailing mini roses along our fence.
The weekend of July 11-12 was exciting. I was asked to officiate a wedding for the daughter of an old high school buddy of mine. The couple are based in New York City but wanted a different kind of place, something so unique that their guests and family would all love. They love the mountains and found a quarry in Saugerties, New York for the event.
The quarry, called Opus 40, was bought by a man named Harvey Fite in 1938. He was a sculptor who taught at Bard. The quarry was his life's work. He fashioned sculptures with rudimentary tools. A 9 ton pillar, called "Flame" is the first thing you see when you enter the space. Other sculptures are in various places around the property, many fashioned after Mayan ruins in Honduras, where he had worked.
The wedding ceremony was set down into the quarry, with a background of raw bluestone. Rustic benches were set for the guests. The footing to walk down the rocks was unsteady, so flat shoes were a must. The couple had requested their guests to all wear white, which turned out to be a beautiful sea of white amid the black rocks.
As our couple has been in the music business, sound was well thought out and beautiful. The bride and her parents walked down into the quarry to her waiting groom to the song by Elbow "Beautiful Day". After the ceremony, which had the crowd in tears, a bagpiper piped them up and out of the space.
The next day, I drove home to Long Island via Hyde Park and had a long visit with an aunt that I haven't had a relationship with for many years. She was my mother's sister, her only surviving sibling. We had a great talk and she asked me when I was coming back up to visit!
I am reflecting on how, when you take a risk, like going out of town to do a wedding for some special people, or gathering all your courage to give an estranged-relative a hug, that you are given the grace/strength to rise to any occasion. The rewards? I sang all the way home on the NY Thruway!
Rain made it wonderful to see the grass green up nicely. Hydrangas popped out on time as well as the beautiful trailing mini roses along our fence.
The weekend of July 11-12 was exciting. I was asked to officiate a wedding for the daughter of an old high school buddy of mine. The couple are based in New York City but wanted a different kind of place, something so unique that their guests and family would all love. They love the mountains and found a quarry in Saugerties, New York for the event.
The quarry, called Opus 40, was bought by a man named Harvey Fite in 1938. He was a sculptor who taught at Bard. The quarry was his life's work. He fashioned sculptures with rudimentary tools. A 9 ton pillar, called "Flame" is the first thing you see when you enter the space. Other sculptures are in various places around the property, many fashioned after Mayan ruins in Honduras, where he had worked.
The wedding ceremony was set down into the quarry, with a background of raw bluestone. Rustic benches were set for the guests. The footing to walk down the rocks was unsteady, so flat shoes were a must. The couple had requested their guests to all wear white, which turned out to be a beautiful sea of white amid the black rocks.
As our couple has been in the music business, sound was well thought out and beautiful. The bride and her parents walked down into the quarry to her waiting groom to the song by Elbow "Beautiful Day". After the ceremony, which had the crowd in tears, a bagpiper piped them up and out of the space.
The next day, I drove home to Long Island via Hyde Park and had a long visit with an aunt that I haven't had a relationship with for many years. She was my mother's sister, her only surviving sibling. We had a great talk and she asked me when I was coming back up to visit!
I am reflecting on how, when you take a risk, like going out of town to do a wedding for some special people, or gathering all your courage to give an estranged-relative a hug, that you are given the grace/strength to rise to any occasion. The rewards? I sang all the way home on the NY Thruway!
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