A Wedding!

First and foremost, let me say I asked, and received, permission to publish the following photos.  Now, let's move on.

Where I live is a dreamy and magical place.  The pull was enough for me to go from "guest," to "frequent guest" and finally to "owner and co-chief bottle washer."  I don't mean just the Florida Keys, nope, I mean Deer Run.  This place, the land that my home and business dwell upon is sacred.  I feel it, and I'm not the only one.  This land here provides all that is needed to sustain life, and more.  It provides what is needed to thrive.  Included in the list is air, water, and shelter for more animal and insect life than I'll ever see or understand, from the tiniest ant and lizard, to the Key deer, birds, Peri (of course!) and even humans.  I have been "visited" on occasion by animal spirits (scoff if you want, I would've too... until it happened to me), and I'm also not the only one.  I've had more than 1 animal communicator here who tells me the grounds are full of animal spirits, in a good way.

So, when I say its dreamy and magical, even for humans, I mean it. And, every now and again, people will come here to celebrate their own lives and commit to each other.  Such was it this weekend when two fabulous guests, E and T, arrived to get married.

I don't get misty too often over these types of events, despite the fact I agree commitments are beautiful.  But, I did get misty this weekend with E and T. Effervescent youth and limitless hope seemed to pour forth from them. That seemingly fleeting moment in time when anything is possible was captured within them, and I watched it all happen.  I practically had to leave the premises when I learned that E's bouquet was handcrafted by her; made of fabric (so the Key deer wouldn't eat the flowers, which would be harmful to them, thank you again E!) at the center of every lovingly created hand crafted flower was an antique button from her grandmother's collection. Seems Grammy has passed, and E wanted her at, and part of, the ceremony. Mission accomplished!

I understood all too well how she felt about her Grammy.  The point I am now at in my life.... wherein I've lost both parents, a sibling, all grandparents, some extended family and a couple of precious best friends.... makes me acutely aware of an empty feeling that can never be filled, the longing for them to return, yet they never do. There's a constant unrequited need for them to be remembered; then again how could they ever be forgotten?

Here is E's bouquet:

Probably the most beautiful and thoughtful bouquet I have ever seen!

So, these 2 young and in love people came to this dreamy and magical place called Deer Run to get married.  Standing in front of their loved ones, they recited vows and made promises to one another.  They did this to the backdrop of the Atlantic ocean, palm trees in a breeze, and lots of animals (alive and in spirit) too.

Look how beautiful they are!

I believe that both baby animals and weddings were created to keep hope alive.

Of course, Peri stopped by....

Peri, sweet Peri. He really hated that bow I put on him, he said a bow tie was not proper Keys attire.

After the ceremony, they drank champagne in our garden of Eden:

Champagne kisses and newlywed dreams in the garden!

I've been saying "this is the best time" a lot for the last 10 days or so. This IS the best time here, not quite the rainy season (I know, I know, we can get rain this time of year, but not like high summer) and not quite super hot either.  Animals are everywhere, the babies are being born (indeed, the first fawn in our herd is making herself known daily, photos to come soon), the turtles are coming to shore to nest, the end of the finch migration is still in progress, white crowned pigeons are back (yup!), roseate spoonbills have been in the Bight (holy un-cow!) and I saw those blue buntings just a couple weeks ago. This is the best time, the absolute best time. And, capping Spring at Deer Run is a wedding with lovely people who smile constantly and are living in gratitude for all that they have been blessed with.

Congratulations E and T.  We celebrate your wedding and all that it represents.  May your life together be healthy, happy and peaceful. Thank you for allowing your "moment" to be frozen in time here in our airspace.  Blessed be.