I chose

Yes I’d said yes, no ring, no plan just yes. My parents did not approve, I still had a year of school to finish, and this had not been part of my 5 year plan but I didn’t care. No one would understand but this is what I wanted. We would figure it out together and somehow I knew he would be there to take care of me no matter what.

Standing in my wedding dress it was all becoming real. On the car ride I thought how it would be so easy to phone my parents to have them there but fear that they would ruin my happy day had overcome me. This was about me and him. It was our day and no one had the right to challenge that.

The sky was clearing and the beach seemed more beautiful than I remember. His greeting smile made it hard to focus on anything else. It was always like that for me. Even when I thought he was a goofy boy trying to impress me, something about him lead me to text the number he gave me. It only took one date to make me start falling for him. We didn’t do anything particularly special that day. Just drove and walked and talked. During the recount of his life he changed in my eyes to a mature, caring, funny man. It was the beginning of our love story and now we had a new chapter of our life ahead walking on that same beach we’d visited before. It was the craziest thing I’d ever done and people would most definitely call me crazy for it, but not choosing to be with this man forever seemed like the craziest idea of all to me.

We walked together to the covered picnic table. There were things to be done and prepare. Our officiator, witnesses, and photographers were ready and waiting. The rest of the world faded away and time seemed to stop on that beach. With the sun peaking through the clouds and the water reflecting the green trees and sunshine everything seemed perfect.

Endless pictures in the sunshine followed the sweet vows spoken. Our two photographers followed as we walked and posed. The stillness of the world around us contrasted the excitement I felt inside. I didn’t think I could get any happier. Nothing else mattered but the two of us on that beach.

How it continued…

The summer ended quickly and I returned to school. We hadn’t told our families we were married yet and I wasn’t ready to face them. The happy memory of that day on the beach was drastically different to the semester I spent without my new husband. If I had known how hard it would be I wouldn’t have gone. Amidst that struggle my parents still tried to convince me to reconsider things with whom they thought was still my fiancé. That’s when I learned heartbreak comes in many ways. It was around Christmas that we finally shared the news to our families and then to the rest of the world. No one understood but many were supportive.

When I return to that beach in my mind I smile at how focused and determined I was. Logic didn’t matter and for once I didn’t want anyone else’s opinion. I chose my life and am happy with it. My family soon all got over their shock and accepted my decision. Being a perfectionist I think maybe I would change this or that about what happened that day but really it was a perfectly picturesque elopement. That beautiful day on the beach was a dream come true.