Matt and Billie @ The Fearrington Inn This Summer

 Billie and Matt were both from out of town, choosing The Fearrington Inn, and me, on short notice because they each had just a short leave before shipping out to Afghanistan.  They are both helicopter pilots in the army who love their work and love each other.  I'm so glad that our fabulous photographer, K C Ramsay of Craige & van Roden Photography in Raleigh got these radiant shots of their wedding day.

Arioso Strings provided the music and were also very generous in playing outside in the very damp weather.  I love working with good professionals like Mary Page Block of Arioso Strings and her staff and Gilda.  You can trust their experience and it shows.

It was a rainy day and we waited for the rain to clear and it did!  Whew!  Thanks to Gilda McDaniel at The Fearrington Inn who always always does a fabulous job coordinating a wedding.  She made sure that her staff wiped off all the chairs and covered all the puddles so Billie and Matt could have the wedding they really wanted outside.

Billie and I worked long distance to create a ceremony that honored her Wiccan beliefs and Matt's Catholic faith and we created a ceremony that they both loved.

One element we incorporated was the Celtic Handfasting ceremony where I bind their hands in marriage, asking them vows they make to each other.  With each vow made another knot is tied in the cord.  This is where the sayings 'tying the knot' and 'giving ones hand in marriage' come from.  Billie made the cord they used by braiding three different color ribbons and adding small charms into the weave.  It  was beautiful.

After this ceremony, honoring that they can't be bound together physically at all times, they exchange rings as symbols of the vows and the binding they have made.

They are both laid back easy going people who simply wanted to celebrate their love for each other.  And that we did!

Billie sent me this note later:  'Thank you so much for doing such an amazing job officiating our ceremony. I can't even imagine a more perfect wedding! The amount of time, attention, and care you put into our ceremony made it an event our family and friends will remember forever... I am so thankful to have found you and that you were able to help us on such short notice.'

I heard from KC yesterday that the disc that KC had given them of pictures was damaged in the move.  Matt contacted KC to see what she could do and sent them another disc.  She also passed on their news.  

Matt is in Bagram and Billie is at a smaller bases named Sharona.  They only get to see each other about once a month but Matt is going to where Billie is for Thanksgiving and she is coming his way for Christmas.  I send love to them both and prayers to keep them safe from harm.

They were one of those blessings in my life that don't stay for long but you remember them, and feel blessed, after they pass.