My brother Chris married my now sister-in-law Rebecca on Saturday, January 16, 2021 in Sebastopol, California in our parents’ backyard. In Sydney, Australia their marriage took place on Sunday, January 17, 2021 via live feed. Rebecca’s family and fellow Australians bore witness and shared in a toast–among friends and family all across the globe. It turns out that a backyard Covid wedding is really quite special.
A friend officiated, my daughter was the flower girl, and my boyfriend performed solo violin. Photography by me. The venue: a lovely backyard lawn courtesy of mom and dad. By chance, a nearby mariachi band began playing a wedding march for, we suppose, another neighborhood wedding just as the ceremony began.
Despite a year of widespread suffering and sadness, the pandemic has offered some silver linings. Rebecca and Chris were mildly ashamed to say it, but they had to admit that this crazy Covid year, for them, has been the best year of their lives.
Rebecca made strawberry cream-filled cupcakes and she fashioned her bouquet, hair accessories and Chris’s boutonnière from wildflowers collected from the Pacific Northwest, Northern California and New South Wales – all places that the couple call home.
Wakeford Gong performed solo violin for the ceremony and the couple’s first dance. The weather was amazing to boot. Simply an amazing day for a backyard Covid wedding!