3: That’s the magic number🎵

On the way home at the end of our (third and final!) wedding day, Ahmad said, “In Creole, we say we “assisted” a wedding rather than attended one-and I really felt that today!”… and in that moment I realised that the true abundance was in the JOY of community.

Our journey to our big day wasn’t without its challenges. When a friend quoted us £37,500 for her beach restaurant (and confirmed the decimal point was indeed in the right place 🙈), I began to wonder if having the wedding of my dreams was possible on our budget… or even worth it…

About 66% of newlyweds take on debt to pay for weddings, and studies show a correlation between higher wedding expenses and increased divorce rates… it felt to me like this completely defeated the point of celebrating love…

But instead of letting the psychological tension win, we continued flowing, trusting that the right path would become obvious and holding the vision of this event being full of magical synergy, beautiful connections and flow in nature.

We created using intuition.

Early on we knew we wanted to have a ceremony in nature, with our teacher marrying us, and we kept on seeing this group of our friends helping us coordinate… which became team JOY!

The Art of Divine Timing

I believe that sometimes what may seem like obstacles are just redirections towards something way better…

After more months of searching, checking out venues, and sitting in the tension of not knowing (when our wedding was fast approaching!), a friend sent us details of a restaurant that was just one beach bar down from our original choice. The venue was beautiful, the price was about 3% of the original one, the food was delicious and the people made us feel so welcomed that the decision felt effortless.

But the real magic wasn’t in the savings; it was in what unfolded from there…

Holding the Tension Creates Miracles

The weekend before our celebration there were still so many unknowns.

We had been awaiting the opening of a new sourdough bakery on the corner of the park where we planned to hold our morning ceremony.

That weekend, we attended their grand opening, met the owners, ate their birthday cake, asked questions, and made connections.

They became the providers of 30 delicious vegan pastries (even gifting us extra) and coffees (mazagran and iced coffee on account of the hot day)!

What had felt like another logistical challenge transformed into a delightful piece of the puzzle delivered with warmth and generosity.

That same day, we decided we wanted to check out our chosen restaurant, leaving from the park at the exact time we would make our journey the following weekend.

But the taxi ride that should have taken 30 minutes took 1 hour and 30, and we arrived to a packed beach, a full restaurant, a host of festival goers on a kind of pilgrimage to the beach bar we originally enquired at (complete with amazing outfits and loads of glitter) and really loud music not ideal for eating to 😳

Again, we could have let fear dictate our choices but we hung with the tension of what we would love and “recalibrated” accordingly…

The Power of Tension

On the day itself, everything aligned beautifully.

The ceremony in the park was literally a dream come true. Everyone looked amazing in pink, blue and green: so well coordinated with the beautiful botanical nature.

There were surprise bubbles, games, poems, gifts, and it was a joy to dance a wedding dance choreographed and taught to us in an hour on zoom by one of my besties.

We had an amazing violinist who literally plays his soul into his music as we walked up this incredible aisle in nature, and the ceremony led by our teacher was absolutely stunning.

Team JOY members staying across the river arrived early to the restaurant in the evening to set up an amazing spread. We took the wedding party on a boat adventure, which missed all the traffic (plus it was fun!), and when we arrived, the beach was peaceful, completely different from the party vibes of the week before.

At 9 pm, just before dessert, we watched the sun properly disappear into the sea: massive and magnificent: it was such a beautiful backdrop to our celebration, and being able then close everything (after dessert) by putting our toes in the sea and offering prayers and the flowers from the bouquet was just perfect. 🌊🧜🏾‍♀️

Hearts That Hold Space

What struck me most profoundly was the quality of the community surrounding us.

I found myself surrounded by loving hearts who made me feel incredibly supported. Every person there created a space that felt expansive, warm, and deeply caring.

Maya Angelou once said, “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but they will never forget how you made them feel.”

This truth resonates deeply through every magical moment created in community on the day of our wedding.

“Team JOY” and all of our guests didn’t just attend our wedding; they “assisted” in creating something magical.

They held space, offered solutions, showed up early, adapted when needed, and filled every moment with genuine care and celebration, and I am so grateful! 💖💙

In a world that often feels fractured, our wedding reminded me of the profound power of community. When people come together with open hearts, free from judgment, holding vision over tension and focused on love over logistics, miracles unfold naturally.

The amusing thing was, when we totalled up all of the costs of our day, the final bill came to the cost that I thought my friend who owns a beach bar had meant to write (£3750) (3 really is the magic number!)

But the true wealth wasn’t in the costs… it was in the abundance of love, support and friendship in the space… and JOY! It felt like the joy was ever expanding.

The Invitation

As I reflected on this creation, I realised that we all have opportunities to be part of someone’s “Team JOY.” Whether it’s a wedding, a challenging project, or simply someone’s difficult day, we can choose to assist rather than merely “attend” and to add joy into the creation: We can show up with warmth, create solutions, hold space and make the kind of memories that people carry in their hearts long after the details of what people said or did.

The most beautiful experiences aren’t created by perfect circumstances, but by people who pour love into the experience.

JOY is always here, ready for the big hearts with the courage to show up to create it…