Fields of love
Congratulations to newly weds, Anna and Jon, wed on a stunning day at the Maroochy Bushland Botanic Gardens. Their wedding was a true love story, simply full of love and care. Anna and Jon chose to wed, almost exactly five years from their first date. Five years and one day to be precise! The photos by Luke Going tell the tale of their wedding day.
Today’s story is about married names. Anna and Jon came up with a new solution to the traditional bride’s change of name…. they considered how much love abounded in their family union; bucket loads, fields in fact… fields of love.
But allow me to first set the scene for a wedding….
The Wedding location
The Maroochy Bushland Botanic Gardens are one of the most delightful natural places for a wedding on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland. It’s not quite a set of fields…. However, natural bush is all around, yet there are sculpted gardens for ceremony locations. A glade of stone sculptures is divine for a wedding backdrop. The grassy areas are perfect for a wedding picnic or for wedding photos. During the wedding ceremony there is no traffic or humdrum noise, but simply the sounds of the bush surrounding you. It is an exquisite retreat from life for a special occasion. On a more practical level, there is plenty of car parking, amenities and access to a pavilion for wet weather options.
Focus on Love
A great deal of thought and love and attention to detail goes into every wedding day. Anna and Jon focused on love, as the defining theme around which all the details were designed. It was a joy to witness their attention to the details of how each special guest would feel, and how their role in the day could be made perfect. Every family member was considered, thought was given to each child or friend and what to do to make them feel comfortable with the wedding day and the combining of two people’s lives in marriage. Extra special consideration was given to Jon’s daughter; how to make sure she felt comfortable with the marriage of her Dad to Anna. Standing beside her Dad, she was proud to be the official “groomsmaid”. Bless these two for their deep thought and care for others on their wedding day.
Weddings are often about more than two people; bringing two or more families together, a community of friends and a wider circle of acquaintances and colleagues. The way these two negotiated the path towards their wedding day was a delight to behold. For example, hanging in the trees, a string of bunting created from photos of loved ones who could not be there. Consider the role of a daughter, the groomsmaid, who strolled with the gals, then stood by her Dad’s side.
Fields of love
It is a western tradition for a bride to celebrate her marriage, by taking a new name, the surname of her husband. And the law gives modern brides a few options for how she can negotiate this tradition. Ask me how.
In fact, it is a tradition of many cultures to celebrate many of life’s milestones with a new name, not just in marriage.
On their wedding day both Anna and Jon, chose to celebrate their union by both taking a new surname, in a kind of acknowledgement of equality and indeed in celebration of a new beginning together, and a new future to plan.
The name they chose? Fields; fields of love, fields of natural beauty, fields of possibilities stretching out before them. Congratulations Mr and Mrs Fields, you are a great example to us all.
As a marriage celebrant I can guide you through the minefield of name changes and give you the options… plus an extra something to make it even easier. To follow in Anna and Jon’s footsteps, there is an easy way, if you organise for it early in the wedding planning. Ask me how.
And they said:
Thank you Kari, for the most beautiful ceremony! You were there for us every step of the way – providing guidance with a warmth, depth and spirituality that fit with us perfectly. We could not have asked for more … Jon & Anna Fields xo
Thank you to photographer Luke Going for the story in pictures. He manages to capture the details of the wedding story, in a natural non intrusive fashion.
Here is a glimpse:
