Everyone should think their wedding is the most incredible event ever… and we can’t say we disagree! One of our friends (Audrey, you do have a way with words) called it an “urban rustic raver wedding,” which seems appropriate.
Photo Courtesy of Cory Silverman
We rented a giant space in the old Greenpoint Ferry Building which feels like an old barn planted in the middle of urban industrial Brooklyn, NY. And despite our best efforts to “not have an Indian wedding,” “not have a Jewish wedding,” and “not have a burner wedding,” we somehow ended up with hundreds of yards of bright faux-raw-silk curtains, multi-colored table cloths, 2 rounds of a horah, a shofar, LED flower centerpieces, and even light-up decorated scooters (our own mini art cars). Bottom line… it was the best wedding ever. =)
The evening started with our friends Sarah and Shaun leading a giant chanting of the Gayatri Mantra, bringing the light of the universe into the room and into each individual person, and adding a protection for our journey through life together. Alyona, who has such a bright light burning inside, welcomed and blessed the space. It’s important to let our hippie souls sing, and we were able to walk into a magical space.
Photo Courtesy of Cory Silverman
We were beckoned to enter the space by Marcie, who played a solo violin piece that warmed the heart immediately. Sandhi, a bridesmaid, led a chant of OM, gathering the wedding party into a circle around us and showering us with this great vibration.
Photo Courtesy of Cory Silverman
The ceremony was led by Eleanor, who offered words of wisdom that spanned beyond tradition and spoke to the heart, and Reverend Kyle Banjo Batman, who got our paperwork squared away and helped us smile right from the heart. We were married under a chuppah that carried the blessings of so many friends and family… but our vows to each other were the most important of all. We were told that everyone in the room laughed and cried at least once, which seems like success!
Photo Courtesy of Cory Silverman
After the ceremony, Christopher took over the mic and got everyone riled up. We offered words of thanks, and were blessed by the extraordinary talents of many friends and the most touching toasts from so many people. Big thanks to Lauren, Greg, Michael, Mayra, Squiddie, Ella, the Fine, Getz, and Hassenfeld families, Renata, Arron Dean, and Amy Dawn for their spectacular performances. And many thanks to the wonderful wishes and blessings of Amy, Michael, Karen, Jon, Lila, Hank, Roma, Reese, Steph, Dave, Sandhi, Marc, Jesse, and Tracy.
Photo Courtesy of Doug Sanford
At the end of it all, Amy Dawn captured everyone’s spirit and we found ourselves in the middle of a 300-person group hug. (If you have never been in a 300-person group hug, add it to your bucket list!) The group hug evolved into an unintentional horah, where we somehow found ourselves lifted up without being on any chairs (I want to know whose hands were on my tushi!). Then, we danced our first dance as a married couple (sweet but spicy, as it should be) before everyone started whirling with another horah, this time with us on top of chairs that were being ricocheted in every which direction.
Photo Courtesy of Cory Silverman
For the rest of the night, we had a wild dance party… the music was so good that we had grandmothers asking for the names of tracks and people realizing that they actually do like electronic music after all! DJ Sequoia came up from Washington, DC, and played one of the most phenomenal sets we have ever heard. DJ Tektite from NYC and DJ Barney Iller kept the party going (even harder, louder, and later than expected).
Photo Courtesy of Kat Mareck
It was a total whirlwind, but the most incredible experience ever. In addition to everyone whose contributions were already mentioned, we are deeply grateful to David Ziff Cooking for exceptional food, drink, advice, and guidance. And gratitude beyond words to the crew of friends who managed the set-up and break-down of our wedding. There are too many people to name here, but extra special appreciation to Patrick, George, and Erik for leading the installation, Suzahna and Marty for managing the de-installation, and an extra kudos to Adam to being one of the first people in and one of the last people out.
We feel so blessed, so incredibly lucky, to be surrounded by a community of awesome. Our wedding ran the gamut from hippie-yogi-spiritual to burner-electronic-dance-party, and everyone was willing to join us and partake in this full spectrum. The blessings, good wishes, positive energy, magic, and love, love, love surrounded us… and we could not think of a better environment in which to cement our vows to each other.
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