The ceremony started with an adorable page boy and flower girl walking down the aisle and scattering petals along the way. The couple then followed, walking in together to their chosen song, “The Wind” by Cat Stevens, and then straight into their love story and the proposal, with readings on both sides by Sohila and Nick’s sisters.
The couple chose to include a sand ceremony, where friends brought sand from special places and poured it into the glass vessel, and then the couple together placed the cork stopper on and took it home as a keepsake.
The next ritual was Handfasting, and Sohila’s aunty crocheted a handfasting cord in green, blue and gold, symbolising:
- Green: Represents growth, fertility, balance, connection to nature, and prosperity.
- Blue: Symbolises trust, loyalty, devotion, patience, and peace.
- Gold: Often associated with wealth, wisdom, prosperity, intelligence, and longevity.
The cord was placed over the couple’s wrist, a knot was tied, and then the couple pulled the ends of the cord, creating the infinity knot. This was very special for them and all who attended.
The ring exchange and personal vows were next, and as they read their vows to each other, the room filled with love and tears of joy for the couple.
Garlands were exchanged, and then the Infinity Candle Ritual was performed: the mums lit the slim candles, handed them to the couple, who lit the infinity candle. As they lit the middle candle together, they demonstrated their unity, becoming one.
My final blessing included the poem “A Tapestry of Hearts”, and then the couple went to Sohila’s grandmother to allow her to feed them some Mithai, Indian Sweets and then the couple walked back up the aisle to “Between the Days” by Siddhartha Khosla. The guests were then given some mithai as they left. Feeding Mithai during a ceremony adds sweetness to the ceremony and to those who eat it.
