Falling For You: I Say A Little Prayer For You (Ceremony, part 3)

Hive, I do apologize for my absence in the last few days. Unfortunately, my health issues are still very much a problem and my illness had quite a severe flair-up last week, which ultimately landed me in the ER, but don't you worry, I promise that will finish my recaps come hell or high water!

Anyway, some of you are probably getting fed up of my ceremony posts by now, but this is the last one, I promise! And I truly hope that they will be useful to some other bees down the line, which is why I've been so thorough. After Father C declared us husband and wife, everyone cheered and our little flower girls walked up to the altar; it was time for the rose ceremony. 

This is another element that we really wanted to incorporate into our ceremony, but we weren't sure our priest would be on board. Luckily, he agreed! That said, I really hope that my posts will inspire catholic brides to think outside the box a little bit when it comes to crafting their ceremony. So many people complain that catholic ceremonies are very cookie cutter and lack customization, but you never know what your celebrant will be willing to change unless you ask! 

Your gift to each other for your wedding today has been your wedding rings - which shall always be an outward demonstration of your vows of love and respect; and a public showing of your commitment to each other. You now have what remains the most honorable title which may exist between a man and a woman -- the tile of husband and wife. For your first gift as husband and wife, that gift will be a single rose. In the past, the rose was considered a symbol of love and a single rose always meant only one thing – it meant the words “I love you.” So it is appropriate that for your first gift – as husband and wife – that gift would be a single rose. Please exchange your first gift as husband and wife. 

In some ways it seems like you have not done anything at all. Just a moment ago you were holding one small rose – and now you are holding one small rose. In some ways, a marriage ceremony is like this. In some ways, tomorrow is going to seem no different than yesterday. But in fact today, just now, you both have given and received one of the most valuable and precious gifts of life – one I hope you always remember – the gift of true and abiding love within the devotion of marriage. Mr. Waterfall and Miss Waterfall, I would ask that wherever you make your home in the future – whether it be a large and elegant home – or a small and graceful one – that you both pick one very special location for roses; so that on each anniversary of this truly wonderful occasion you both may take a rose to that spot both as a recommitment to your marriage – and a recommitment that THIS will be a marriage based upon love. In every marriage there are times where it is difficult to find the right words. It is easiest to hurt who we most love. It is easiest to be most hurt by who we most love. It might be difficult some time to words to say “I am sorry” or “I forgive you”; “I need you” or “I am hurting”. If this should happen, if you simply can not find these words, leave a rose at that spot which both of you have selected – for that rose than says what matters most of all and should overpower all other things and all other words. That rose says the words: “I still love you.” The other should accept this rose for the words which cannot be found, and remember the love and hope that you both share today. Mr. Waterfall and Miss Waterfall, if there is anything you remember of this marriage ceremony, it is that it was love that brought you here today, it is only love which can make it a glorious union, and it is by love which your marriage shall endure.”

Somewhere in the middle of our rose ceremony, a cellphone went off, which was hilarious because I had joked that I would kick some ass if that happened. But in the moment, all we could do was laugh, because really, what else are you going to do? Obviously, the person didn't do it out of malice and I'm sure they felt horribly embarrassed. The point of this little anecdote is that things will go wrong on your wedding day, no matter how much you plan ahead. You won't have any control over the mishaps, but what you do have control over is how gracefully you handle them, so smile, and roll with the punches!
 
At this point, we returned to our seats and Father C prepared the Eucharist while the soloist belted out Ave Maria. I've mentioned before how I didn't have very strong preferences when it came to our ceremony music, but the Ave Maria was the one piece I was really adamant about having because it was one of Nanny Waterfall's favourites. 

Papi and Grandma Waterfall had also arranged to have a small replica of La Virgen de la Caridad del Cobre (Our Lady of Charity), the patron saint of Cuba, brought in (seen to the left).

While the Ave Maria was being sung, I prayed to the Virgin Mary for our marriage, for my health and for my deceased grandparents. And I cried. A lot. Mr. W held my hand and helped me get it together. Thankfully, our photographers captured the beauty of the moment, amidst my ugly cry. 

Then, cousin M. walked up to the podium for the prayer of the faithful:

For Mr. and Mrs. Waterfall, on this day of great joy: for the grace to persevere in love, cherish each other in all things, and share their love generously with all those whom they encounter. We pray to the Lord. (Lord hear our prayer). For all married couples, called to show to the world God's faithfulness in their love and tenderness for each other.and for couples who are struggling to love eachother. We pray to the Lord. (Lord hear our prayer). For God's holy people, that through this celebration we may grow in our desire to serve and love the world: let us pray (Lord hear our prayer). For a world of peace and justice for all, the best gift we can give to our children. We pray to the Lord. (Lord hear our prayer). For the members of Mr. and Mrs. Waterfall's families who have died, and for those who feel their absence most keenly at this time of joy. We pray to the Lord. (Lord hear our prayer).

After this, came the Lord's Prayer, and the rite of peace, which has always been one of my favourite parts of mass. It was especially great to see our families and friends hugging on our wedding day!

Then, it was finally time to receive communion. Since it was our wedding day, we got to have wine. Mr. Waterfall was very happy about this part!

While our guests lined up to receive the Eucharist behind us, we prayed some more...

 and we also got to have a private moment to relish in the fact that we had just gotten married!

As a last formality, we went up the altar one last time to sign the marriage register along with our witnesses.

And then, Mendelsohn's "Bridal March"started playing, signalling the end of our ceremony. Our adorable flower girls came back out and started scattering rose petals on our way out of the church, since they didn't get to use them during the processional. It was precious!

It felt so great to finally be married, hive! Next up, the portraits and the reception!

Did something go wrong during your ceremony?

All photos courtesy of the amazing Bachmann Photography unless otherwise specified

Miss a recap?

• We get it started with our wedding trailer
• We had a really intense wedding week
• We handle some last minute drama and get our nails did
• We practice getting married
• We eat all the French food
• We stuff our faces with chocolate
• The girls get pretty, oh so pretty
• The men suit up
• I put on my wedding dress
• I put on my veil and my entourage loses their sh*t
• I show you all my somethings
• We ride a vintage limo to the church
• The bridal party walks the walk
• We have a tearful “first look” on our walk down the aisle
• The ceremony begins with some lovely readings
• We exchange our vows and rings and have a blessing of the hands

Falling For You: I Wanna Hold Your Hand (Ceremony, part 2)

After Father C delivered the homily, he invited us to join him on the altar, along with our two witnesses, MOH Long Legs and Best Man Tequila. 

"My dear friends, Miss Waterfall and Mr. Waterfall, you have come together in this chapel, so that the Lord may seal and strengthen your love in the presence of your family, your friends, and the Church. Christ abundantly blesses this love. He has already consecrated you in baptism and now, he enriches and strengthens you by a special sacrament so that you may assume the duties of marriage in mutual and lasting fidelity, And so, in the presence of your families, your friends, and God, I ask you to state your intentions." 

- Miss Waterfall and Mr. Waterfall, have you come here freely and without reservation to give yourselves to each other in marriage? 
- We have.
- Will you love and honour each other as man and wife for the rest of your lives? 
- We will.
- Will you accept children lovingly from God, and bring them up according to the law of Christ and his church? 
- We will. 

"Since it is your intention to enter into marriage, join your hands and declare your consent before God and his Church. But before you do, we will pray for you and bless your hands". 

"These are the hands of your best friend, young and strong and full of love for you, that are holding yours on your wedding day, as you promise to love each other today, tomorrow, and forever. These are the hands that will work alongside yours, as together you build your future. These are the hands that will passionately love you and cherish you through the years, and with the slightest touch, will comfort you like no other. These are the hands that will hold you when fear or grief fills your mind. These are the hands that will countless times wipe the tears from your eyes; tears of sorrow, and tears of joy. These are the hands that will tenderly hold your children. These are the hands that will help you to hold your family as one. These are the hands that will give you strength when you need it. And lastly, these are the hands that even when wrinkled and aged, will still be reaching for yours, still giving you the same unspoken tenderness with just a touch." 

I'm so glad that Father C agreed to incorporate the blessing of the hands into our ceremony. I can't remember the first time I saw it (probably right here on Weddingbee), but after that moment, I just knew it was perfect for our ceremony! In the months leading up to the wedding, I read the blessing to Mr. W so often (and sobbed every single time) that I was afraid that it wouldn't make me emotional on our actual wedding day. Clearly, I was wrong.

After the blessing of the hands, it was time for our vows. Mr. Waterfall and I decided to go the traditional route for a number of reasons. For starters, he was afraid that our vows wouldn't have the same tone, or that he would go too sappy with his, and I just knew that there was no way that I could recite long, elaborate vows without crying my eyes out. In the end, going the traditional route was perfect for us, and there was something really beautiful in making the same promises to my husband as my grandparents had made before me. The one little thing I tweaked was having our vows be bilingual. The idea of saying the vows back and forth and Spanish and English just came to me one night, while we prepared our ceremony, but it worked beautifully. In our relationship, we have blended both of our cultures very seamlessly, and it seemed fitting to do the same with our vows. It was one of the only things that we did exclusively "for us", but many of our guests commented on how much they liked that little touch. 

"I, Mr. Waterfall, take you, Miss Waterfall to be my wife. Prometo serte fiel en las alegrias y en las penas, in sickness and in health. Amarte y respetarte todos los dias de mi vida."

"Yo, Miss Waterfall, te tomo a ti, Mr. Waterfall como mi esposo. I promise to be true to you in good times and in bad, en la salud y en la enfermedad. I will love you and honour you, all the days of my life". 

After our vows, Father C blessed the rings: "Lord, bless and consecrate Miss Waterfall and Mr. Waterfall in their love for each other. May these rings be a symbol of true faith in each other and always remind them of their love. We ask this through your son, Jesus Christ". Funny story, Best Man Tequila was terrified of dropping the rings the whole time; and when Father C sprinkled them with holy water, all BM Teq could think was "Great... pour water on the rings, that won't make them more slippery!". I think his face says it all...

I had also switched my engagement ring to my right hand before the ceremony, unbeknownst to Mr. W, so he initially tried to place my wedding band on the wrong hand. Oops!

As he placed the ring on my finger, he said, "Miss Waterfall, take this ring as a sign of my love and fidelity. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." and I repeated back to him, "Mr. Waterfall, take this ring as a sign of my love and fidelity. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit."  

After the rings, Father C blessed the arras: "Dios todo poderoso, bendice estas arras, que son signo de la preocupacion y de la dedicacion que Mr. Waterfall va a tener por Miss Waterfall. (God almighty, bless these coins which are a sign of the care and dedication that Mr. Waterfall will take for Miss Waterfall)". Since this is a Spanish custom, we decided it to do it in Spanish. I also don't have any pictures to show you, but you can see a close up of the arras at 3:26 of our wedding trailer! 

Victoria&Mathieu trailer from elio castello on Vimeo.

Mr. W then placed the thirteen coins in my hands and said, "Miss Waterfall, recibe estas arras como un signo de mi amor y dedicacion por ti. (Miss Waterfall, receive these coins as a symbol of my love and dedication for you)". 

"Mr. and Miss Waterfall, you have declared your consent before God, your family, your friends, and myself. May the Lord in his goodness strengthen your consent and fill you both with his blessings. What God has joined, men must not divide. And now, I declare you husband and wife for the rest of your lives. Mr. Waterfall, you may kiss your wife!"

Everyone started cheering and clapping, and Mr. W and I high-fived right on the altar! We were officially married! Our amazing photographers really did an amazing job of capturing the joy in the room.

But of course, since it was a full catholic mass, there was still some more kneeling and praying to be done. Stay tuned for the conclusion of our ceremony!

Did you have any special "ceremonies" in your wedding?

All photos courtesy of the amazing Bachmann Photography unless otherwise specified

Miss a recap?

• We get it started with our wedding trailer
• We had a really intense wedding week
• We handle some last minute drama and get our nails did
• We practice getting married
• We eat all the French food
• We stuff our faces with chocolate
• The girls get pretty, oh so pretty
• The men suit up
• I put on my wedding dress
• I put on my veil and my entourage loses their sh*t
• I show you all my somethings
• We ride a vintage limo to the church
• The bridal party walks the walk
• We have a tearful “first look” on our walk down the aisle