In some ways, weddings are all about tradition. There are elements of a wedding that literally get passed down from generation to generation such as a piece of jewellery. That makes a kind of sense considering that many marriages symbolize a continuation of the family line. It is suitable for there to be a physical manifestation of that continuation. If you want to celebrate continuity with the past, you should probably continue the tradition of passing down something old. On the other hand, a gift of something blue can probably be eliminated.
There are a lot of wedding traditions that could use a long, hard rethink. Many of our traditions come from a time when people had very different ideas about the world and the role played by men and women in that world. The people who came up with those anachronistic traditions wouldn’t walk comfortably in our shoes any more than we would walk comfortably in theirs. Yet we parrot their ideas as though they were gospel and pretend that everything is okay as it is. Well, not everything about weddings is okay. Here are a few things that could use a little more thought:
1. Think Differently About Diamonds
Are diamonds really a girl’s best friend? What if we said that the planet was a woman’s best friend? That opens the door to all kinds of improvements. One is that you no longer have to feel like you are missing out on something important if the rock on your hand isn’t big enough to be seen from space. You also don’t have to choose from diamonds that have caused wars and destroyed uncountable human lives, not to mention planetary resources.
Instead, you can get lab grown diamonds that will get you just as many likes on InstaApp and followers on Twitter Book. Your social graph is still going to go through the stratosphere. The difference is that you might actually spend less on the ring than you would on a trip to the International Space Station. You might even have enough left over to start a college fund for those who will be continuing the line in the future.
2. Real Dresses for Real Women
It seems the whole purpose of some wedding dresses is to make the wearer look like someone they are not. It is to hide some features and create an illusion of other features that aren’t really there. Don’t get me wrong, There is nothing wrong with choosing a dress that makes you look taller and thinner. However, you should also consider a dress that makes you look like you. Your partner saw you as you really are and decided they wanted to spend the rest of their life with you. That should be a real boost to your confidence. You don’t have to feel obligated to change how you look to feel like a princess.
3. You Don’t Have to Be Given
It is past time we rethink giving away the bride. You are not someone’s possession to give. And after the wedding, you will not be anyone’s possession to own. But understand that this tradition comes from a time when women were treated as either the possession of the father or of the new husband. What she couldn’t be was her own person. We do not live in those times and you are not that woman. You are a person wholly owned by yourself. In a time when we are just starting to clean out overt signs of toxic masculinity, it is the perfect time to find a new tradition that works for the person you want to be.
4. The Huge Price-tag
Do yourself a favour and stop associating an expensive wedding with a good wedding. People all over the world in cultures very different from yours get married on what you would consider a shoestring budget. Yet they manage to end up as happy as any upwardly mobile socialite in the Western world. Try skipping the expensive wedding and use the money to visit one of those places where people achieve even greater amounts of happiness without the unlimited credit line. You will be glad you did.
Weddings are full of tradition. You are free to make yours whatever you like. Feel free to buy whatever sparkles, wrap yourself in dresses that conceal the real you, let someone give you to someone else, and spend a year’s wage on the ceremony. Just remember that it is okay to rethink those traditions. You might even decide to make a few new ones. Marriage is not just a celebration of the past. It is a pronouncement of the future you are in the process of creating.
Article Submitted By Community Writer