1. It’s your choice, but respect other people’s opinions
Even though eloping is becoming more and more common as wedding costs rise, it’s still considered an untraditional route to go. Which means that even if you are comfortable taking the road less traveled, it doesn’t mean you should knock those that aren’t fully on board. This applies to two different groups of people: Those who might be hurt that you personally have chosen to elope, and those that are choosing to have their own wedding. I bring this up because I came across an article on Slate in which the author talked about why she eloped, and why “you should, too.” She mentioned how she didn’t want a large wedding because she wanted the wedding day to be about the “marriage” (somehow alluding to how other weddings aren’t). She also relayed “frantic” stories of how stressed-out her friends were who had planned a larger wedding, while she, of course, wasn’t. She added:
“Inevitably, something will go wrong at a wedding, and until science can erase bad memories, most people will always look back on the drunken fight or collapsed cake. And the more people in attendance, the better the chance that disaster—minor or major—will strike…Instead, I remember an utterly calm, peaceful day.”
As someone who planned and had a wedding of 125, I too remember a peaceful, calm, and FUN day. I remember walking arm-in-arm with my parents down the aisle, laughing with my now husband after our “first kiss,” dancing to “Fly Me to the Moon” with my dad, dancing AGAIN until my feet hurt, being way too embarrassed by my friends speeches, and collapsing into bed at the end of the night feeling like I just experienced one of the best times of my life. I look back at our wedding photos and wish I could transport myself back to the day where I remember NOTHING going wrong. Not because everything was perfect, but because I was having too much fun to care.
