17-19 June 2016
Roxbury, New York
During her night-before-the-wedding-speech, Patty’s best friend from college, Shira, shared the words most used to describe Patty by her friends (she polled all of us!): Hilarious, loyal, thoughtful, loving and silly. And Patty’s friend since childhood, Allie, proclaimed that while she watched Patty have the time of her life at her bachelorette, she thought: I just love Patty so much. In summary: Patty’s really great.
During our New York City days together, Patty was looking for love in all the wrong places. And (she will admit this) she wasn’t looking very hard. She didn’t care too much about the (generic) advice we offered up:
You just have to put yourself out there.
Don’t just go out with the guys you think are your type.
Let us write your profile page.
I would have ignored us to.
But then it happened, in that way you hope happens for all your friends looking for love:
She met George.
She worried that he wasn’t a mirror image of her self-proclaimed type.
Her heart took over because George is really wonderful.
They fell in love. Really in love.
And Patty was happier than I have ever seen her.
Really happy.
Patty’s brother, Peter, said it best during his wedding speech: George did more than make Patty happy, he brought parts of Patty back that had gone missing since her father passed away. Together, Patty and George found a new kind of bliss. My heart leaps for them (even still) as I write this.
In June, Patty and George tied the knot in Roxbury, New York. The Stone Tavern Farm served up a picturesque backdrop for the wedding weekend — but the real magic for me were the thoughtful moments of openness, tenderness and love that Patty and George planned.
On Friday night, after the most amazing wood fired pizza and just before the sun set, Patty and George hosted a Japanese Lantern Ceremony for Love and Remembrance. Patty wrote the ceremony in remembrance of her Dad and Grandmother. Friends, EB, Amy and Kendra shared it with all of us.
A passage from the Lantern Ceremony:
“Grief can often feel quite isolating, and this ceremony is meant to counter those feelings of loss and seclusion by uniting us in our shared experience. One particular quote…captures the significance of this ceremony:
‘So when you put your lantern out it’s still sort of light. And then very quickly it becomes dark. And then very quickly, you’re aware of the fact that there are hundreds of lanterns on the water, and that hundreds of people are mourning their loved ones…and that your loss is one of many, many losses. And it sort of puts into perspective.’
I see this lantern ceremony as a unifying gesture…My hope is that the feelings this ceremony evokes will stay with us throughout the weekend and long after.”
Perhaps my favorite moment of the weekend was during the wedding ceremony: Patty’s mom walked her down the grassy aisle. When they reached the half-way point, George and Peter walked towards them. Peter took his mother’s arm and George stood with Patty. They walked the rest of the way together. (It took my breath away.)
During the reception, George took Patty’s breath away when he surprised her by singing Frankie Valli’s, Can’t Take My Eyes Off You. The song he sang at Karaoke on their first date! The rest of the night, when I looked for Patty, I always found Patty and George, together, dancing, stealing kisses, laughing with friends or just smiling as they looked on at all of their friends carrying on.
Patty put a lot of time and worry into all the wedding planning. And she did all the little stuff to set the scene: found the perfect wild flowers, commissioned Harry to create a clever guest book, found the dress that fit her style, crafted the food menu, came up with the a great hashtag (#EatDrinkandBeMorano), rented chandeliers and so much more. (George spent his time supporting Patty and keeping her calm!)
All of this + the sunny weather made the weekend beautiful, but what filled the weekend with heart and soul was the real love we all felt between these two lovebirds. Cheers and love Patty and George! Thank you so much for including me in your blissful day. It was an honor.
Photo Credit for Hero Image: Max Flatow (via Facebook)
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