Written by: Georgia O'Keefe, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
I never wanted to have a wedding. However, 8 months after getting engaged, and 1 month into a cross country road trip, my now husband and I decided that having a giant party to celebrate our love with all of our favorite people would be something we would remember forever.
But, we wanted it to be different, so after looking into a few options, we decided to get married on a boat in Boston Harbor! We proceeded to get all the details and set a date: we’d be having our boat wedding in just 6 months on September 16.
And so, we continued our cross country road trip, driving clockwise around the US, working remotely, exploring, planning a wedding, and trying to be present on the trip of a lifetime. We traveled in our camper van, Florence, “Flo” for short, with the motto of “going with the Flo” and trusting our unique and unconventional journey.
Flash forward to the week of September 11: We are back in the Boston area, heading into the week of our wedding, everything planned, the final details about to take place, the excitement setting in. And then mother nature intervenes:
Hurricane Lee was set to arrive in Boston on September 16 at the exact start time of our boat wedding (you can’t make this up).
It was as if the great Universe I believe in so much said to me: so you trust me? You want to go with the flow? Okay, prove it.
And as much as I know I am always being guided and taken care of, there were a couple days when all I could do was cry and worry. I may be a positive and optimistic person, but that by no means means to disregard unpleasant feelings. I had to feel upset before I could be ready to take action.
There were so many unknowns: would the hurricane actually come? Could we still have the wedding? Would people back out? Would it ruin the day? Would we have to cancel?!
Not only was it stressful, but my late grandmother is named Lee and I couldn’t believe she’d allow a hurricane with her name to ruin our wedding…
Well, she didn’t. In fact, this hurricane turned out to give us the best wedding that we never knew we wanted. With the help of friends and family we were able to get in touch with the wonderful Seaport Hotel where many guests were already staying for the boat wedding, and by some miracle they had space available for us to host our wedding in two days. And the cherry on top: they had the most incredible wedding planner and staff to help us plan and execute a dream wedding in 48 hours.
When my dad walked me down the aisle on September 16, in a location we never planned for, with a blue sky outside we did not expect to see, he turned to me and said “savor it.” The night was a blur of incredible moments, but I sure did my best to savor it all.
It’s easy to look back on something difficult and say “it all happened for a reason!” It’s also easy to tell yourself, “I’m going to be present for all the moments of my life, good and bad.” In the moment, it’s HARD to be grateful. In the moment, it’s HARD to be present.
But if I’ve learned one thing from this experience, it’s that my belief in a power bigger than me is stronger than ever. We make plans all the time, but truly we never know what’s going to happen and the only thing we have control over is savoring every moment of this precious life we live:
The road trips.
The wedding planning. Alone time.
Time with loved ones.
Flowers from friends when we’re sad. Hugs and sweet texts from family.
The simple moments. The exciting moments.
The hard moments that make us stronger in the end.
I’m in a transition period right now: I am extremely grateful for my travels, for my dream wedding I didn’t know I wanted, for my family, friends, husband, dog. For my health. But I also don’t know what’s next, and that feels a little scary. At the same time, I know I’ll never get this exact moment in time back, and for that reason I’m going to savor it, the scary feelings and all.
For those of you reading and thinking this all may be easier said than done, you’re right! But here are some words I read recently that have shifted my perspective a lot and I hope they can do the same for you:
“Maybe the amount of extraordinary things that happen in your life...
... depends on what you notice.”
If you liked this short story, I’d love to hear one of yours! Better yet, I am here to help you tell your story, too. Learn more about working together at joywithgeorgia.com.
Georgia O'Keefe, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
I am a former educator who left the field to follow my intuition and my curiosities and start my own creative design business, and I am currently traveling the US full time in my home on wheels. I help teachers and small business owners make space for what lights them up in life, and feel empowered to share their journey through beautiful content and website stories.
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