Monica & MArco
Let it be known throughout the land that weddings in a pandemic are possible!!
Monica and Marco were supposed to be married in May of this year...but, of course, they postponed, thinking surely by September things would be back to normal...like all of us thought, I'm sure! But when September rolled around and "normal" still wasn't in anyone's vocabulary, they decided they really just didn't want to wait anymore...they wanted to be married! So they downsized their guest list to only family, cancelled some venues and booked others, made a few sacrifices and made it happen. And I'm happy to report, as a non-family member, I felt perfectly safe! They did an absolutely fantastic job of making just the right adjustments and changes to make their wedding day happen.
One of those sacrifices made was the requirement that their ceremony venue put in place: everyone, including the Bride and Groom, needed to wear masks during the ceremony. They were married at the beautiful and historic San Buenaventura Mission in their outside courtyard. And while it was peaceful and beautiful, I'll be honest...I was bummed. Why? Because Monica and Marco opted not to do a "first look"...which is totally fine! But. That meant that the photos I'd have of Marco seeing his beautiful Bride for the first time would be of him with a mask on. And so, I was bummed. But! If you scroll down this post and look at that photo...I didn't have anything to be worried about. You can see the emotions in his eyes so clearly that seeing the rest of his face his almost unnecessary. It's still a beautiful photo that they'll be able to look at later and see both the emotions Marco felt seeing his Bride and also have a clear reminder of the times they were married in and what they overcame to get there.
This wedding gave me so much hope...hope that even in these crazy times we can still experience immense joy. Just like Monica and Marco, we can adapt and make changes and still move forward. Is it different? Yes. But does different have to be bad? No. Monica and Marco are living proof!
Monica and Marco, capturing and witnessing your wedding day was an absolute honor. Witnessing your joy and happiness was not only good for my soul, it's boosted my faith that things can move forward and we can still find joy. Congratulations, friends!
