We hear so much about “bridezillas” and nightmare wedding planning that it feels like weddings in our culture have become a yearlong festival of complete decadence and selfishness. But one couple in Canada refuses to give in to that stereotype.
Samantha Jackson and Farzin Yousefian had their wedding entirely planned. All the details were arranged. Their friends and family were looking forward to a catered meal at a beautiful venue. They were all set to revel in tradition and get hitched the way so many other happy couples do. But then the couple thought about the amount they were spending on their wedding. They decided to cut back to a city hall wedding with a small gathering afterwards and donate all the money they would have spent to the Ryerson University Lifeline Syria Challenge.
Wow. They managed to raise $17,500 for the charity, which helps settle Syrian refugees by hooking them up with families who can sponsor them. They even asked that, in lieu of gifts, their guests give to the cause. Pretty impressive.
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This is the kind of thing that makes you realize that the wedding industry in our culture has become out of control. Bear in mind: It costs as much for two people to get married as it does for a family of four from Syria to get settled in a new country and be fed. It seems like a no-brainer, right?
When you think about what weddings are all about, it sort of makes it clear that a couple like this has a much better chance at long term happiness than a couple who spends $50,000 on a wedding they treat like the most important thing in the world. Perspective, people. It’s just a day.
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Through their generosity, a family will now be saved. An entire family. And guess what? They still get to be married. They still get all the love and joy. They just also get the warmth that comes from feeling like they did something for others to celebrate their union. That has to feel a lot better than any carving station or centerpiece.
Congratulations to this couple. They are starting off on the right foot, indeed.
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