Live Our Path Together

Saturday evening, I officiated Sam and Beau’s wedding ceremony at the Pine Creek Cookhouse in Aspen, Colorado. Here are the remarks I shared with them and their guests:

I always ask every person I officiate for to write their life story. Most do not get into the details of their birth. Interestingly, both of these individuals did. Listen to Beau, first: "I was six weeks premature and needed to be in an incubator. The same day I was born, a nurse walked by my incubator and realized I was not breathing. She resuscitated me and I remained strong from that point on. Because I was so premature, a nurse who had worked with me from the day I was born, took me to live at her home with her husband as a foster child so that she could make sure I was well taken care of, and had the direct attention of a health professional. The nurse fell in love with me, and fought to become my mother."
 
Now Sam's birth, while less medically perilous was no less, shall we say, interesting: "Having put my parents through three fake labors, I finally came into this world upside down and backwards. It was definitely a dramatic night, and a sign for the future."
 
Sam ties this to her path in life, when she says, "Thus began my journey… of unfolding and discovering my truths, choosing and creating my fate, connecting to my higher Self." And, Beau too has embraced the perfection and imperfections that life has lead him through, to arrive here today. Together, as a couple, as well as each of them individually, they have embraced a simple sentence that guides their lives, "We each have our own journey."
 
And, what a journey each of them has had, and they, as a couple, have had together. Their stories are fascinating and inspiring, specifically, because it has NOT been one long uninterrupted fairy tale. They have led interesting and complicated lives, and have taken the time to reflect on and learn from their experiences.
 
And these led them to that wonderful, elusive, messy thing – love. Listen to Beau, reflecting on a difficult yet pivotal point in his life, and in what brought him back to hope in and for the future: "I came across a drawing... It was Guanyin, the Tibetan goddess of love and compassion. At that point, I deeply lacked love and compassion for myself, and therefore had nothing to spare for those around me. I realized that this was a sign... and had the drawing of Guanyin tattooed on my left arm to remind me that I along with everyone in the world need and deserve love and compassion no matter their story or situation..."
 
And, Sam speaks of an evolution towards love and compassion in a very similar way: "I slowly left the dogma of structured religion and focused more on my own personal connection to a higher power and life lived fully in right action and attitude. My heart exploded with love and compassion and desire for adventure and new experiences."
 
And, Sam sums up beautifully how this love for everyone and each other guides their next steps together, in a few short words that Beau could have written too: "So, through my... messy journey of heartache, perseverance, strength, will, love, and gratitude... my personal and spiritual journeys define big parts of who I am and who I strive to be. They have not only gotten me where I am, but they have lead me to Beau and allow me to fully experience and live our path together."