It is a union between two spirits.” ~Frederick William Robertson 

Exactly one year ago today, my Angel and I became husband and wife.

Flashing back to our engagement three years ago: my Angel asked me to marry him on the top of the tallest pyramid in Tikal, Guatemala. As my Angel was asking me, we were sweating profusely from our hike to the top, engulfed by a swarm of a rare purple and green moth, and after I said yes I was pooped on by a bird three times. The sacred three.

After rushing into two venues (neither of which felt right), we decided to take our time planning the wedding. It wasn’t until we went to the Mayan Riviera for another wedding that we completely fell in love with Mexico and the Mayan culture we had come to know so well. Since we became engaged on a Mayan pyramid, we felt that it was serendipitous for us to complete the full circle in a spiritual, Mayan ceremony in Mexico.

Three months before our wedding, I had a dream of three things going wrong. I dreamed that the make-up artist left when I needed her to finish my hair and  make up. The photographer didn’t take the photos I asked him to take. And the flowers… Instead of the fuchsia roses that I had requested (which hold sentimental value), we were given orange and brown flowers instead. I assumed this was just a stereotypical wedding jitters dream.

I had so far had excellent communication with the make-up artist and photographer, but following this dream I became concerned that my communications with the wedding planner weren’t as clear, so I sent the planner exact images of the flowers I wanted. I couldn’t have been more pro-active and specific, I even had all the descriptions translated into Spanish. I was assured that everything was understood, and everything would work out as we wished.

Despite having translated everything into Spanish and provided exact images of what we wanted, the wedding planner went rogue and gave us national flowers instead and the orange and brown flowers from my dream made their way into everything. Following the ceremony my hairstyle became mangled from the wind and my make up smudged from tears- but because I didn’t request the artist to stay for touch ups (I didn’t think it would be necessary), I was left to fend for myself. And last but not least, despite having done such a beautiful job capturing every other magical moment, the photographer failed to capture a photo of me and my family.

As my dream slowly came true, I remained calm as each mishap unfolded. I realized that we often meet our destiny on the path we chose to avoid it, and as a result, I was prepared. I was prepared so that I would act in the best way possible so that I wouldn’t ruin our sacred wedding ceremony. Because ultimately, all that mattered was our love, and the ceremony. And even with the wrong flowers it was beautiful.

Underneath a cathedral of palm trees, our Mayan ceremony was based on our connection with nature and the universe. With the help of a Shaman, the idea was to present me and my Angel to the four cardinal directions, to ask Mother Earth, and Father Sky, permission for our union to take place.

Sacred incense was lit throughout the ceremony which represented feminine energy and divine light, and was performed near the ocean to symbolize the unity of the four elements, earth, fire, water, and air. The altar was adorned with traditional Mayan gifts of prosperity and fertility, where each offerings also represented the four elements. The four elements are significant in Mayan tradition because they are embedded within our being. Fire, East, is our Spirit; Air, North is our Breath; Water, West, is our Blood; Earth, South, is our Body. Marked by flowers, North is represented by red flowers to symbolize love, East with yellow to symbolize new beginnings, South with purple to symbolize success, and West with white flowers to symbolize God and purity. Everything was symbolic, we even had four flower girls to represented each element and their divine attribute.

The ceremony started with the Shaman cleaning the energy with sacred smoke from the Copal tree, then blowing the conch shell as I entered the sacred altar space. We were brought to the four cardinal points of the altar as the Shaman asked the Gods to guide us through light and unconditional love in our spiritual union. We then prepared an offering for Mother Earth, and were brought to the ocean, away from the ceremony, to release our offering into the ocean. The Shaman then asked us to take a moment to be alone, to look into each others eyes and souls. This was my favorite part 🙂

The Shaman then brought us back to the altar, and asked us to embrace each other while our flower girls showered us with sacred rose petals. The Shaman reminded us that we have been here on Earth in so many different life forms. The fact that we have met  we on this plane as humans, and that we should find each other in this moment, now, was so sacred and beautiful. As we hugged, my Angel began crying and whispered in my ear “Ro, I am so sorry but your hair is filled with my snot.” We burst out laughing.

The ceremony ended with our kiss.

“Someday, someone is going to look at you with a light in their eyes you’ve never seen. They’ll look at you like you are everything they’ve been looking for their entire lives. Wait for it.” 

Mahekal Beach Resort & Spa, Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Photography by Martin Sedacca