An Unforgettable Summer Wedding

"Where should we get married?" A question my fiancé and I pondered during the fall of 1989. We knew we wanted a summer wedding - June for sure. But where?

Living in California, we knew there could be a lot of great choices. Driving along the central coast on a rainy weekend, we stopped in at a Santa Barbara resort to use a phone and accidental found the perfect place.

Six months later, the planning was completed and the day had arrived. A wedding planner, a photographer, a florist, a baker and a caterer - all carefully chosen for our special day. Everything would be perfect.

Imagine, then, our surprise when we received a message that morning that our wedding planner wasn't going to be there. His wife had gone into premature labor the night before. Our new planner, just finding out himself, was now trying to get up to speed with all the details. Walking outside for pictures, we observed the two hundred guest chairs set up in the outdoor rotunda - facing the wrong direction. The ocean was nowhere to be seen. T-minus ninety minutes and counting.

A beautiful gazebo covered in ivy had been delivered by our florist and set up for the ceremony. While the resort staff feverishly labored to move the chairs, we watched in horror as the gazebo was ceremoniously blow down by the ocean breeze. It completely collapsed into pieces. T-minus forty five minutes and stressing!

At some point, you begin to realize that you only have so much control. That as much as you may plan for the important events in your life, sometimes you get the unplanned as well. You realize that what really matters is the journey you're sharing with the person you've chosen to spend the rest of your life with. Sometimes you just have to laugh and let go.

And so, the day turned out great. The gazebo was repaired, the guests arrived (seated with a wonderful view of the ocean), and we were married. Our journey had started with a memorable wedding story and a valuable lesson that we have never forgotten after twenty years of marriage.