From Sunburns to Sunflowers

Some love stories start with a spark; others begin with a sunburn.

Daniel grew up in Northeast Ohio. Samantha grew up in Kansas but was living in Texas. Their paths crossed in Austin, where Samantha was attending a wedding. Two boat parties happened to be on the same lake, and the guys on Daniel’s boat drifted over to say hello.

Daniel, who is bald, underestimated just how intense the Texas sun can be. He ended up with a severe sunburn, but it did not stop him from walking up to Samantha and her friends.

He said, “Hey.”

She took one look at him, with his bright red skin, and said, “Wow.”

Somewhere between attraction and compassion, Samantha helped him put on sunscreen. That act of kindness deserved a thank-you, so Daniel bought her a drink, and they struck up a conversation. He got her number and called her a few days later.

They set a date, and she stood him up. The timing just was not right. She was still in wedding mode with her friends. Daniel returned to the forgiving, SPF-optional skies of Ohio, and you might think the story would end there. But it did not.

They reconnected, started a conversation, and that conversation led to Samantha visiting Cleveland. On their second date, they went to the Ohio State-Notre Dame game. For an Ohio native, that pretty much sealed the deal. Long-distance dating continued until Samantha made the big decision to move to Ohio. Daniel proposed at Hocking Hills, and they began planning their wedding.

They chose Mooreland Mansion for the ceremony and reception, a historic turn-of-the-century estate on the campus of Lakeland Community College in Kirtland, Ohio. Surrounded by family and friends, they exchanged vows behind the mansion in one of its three distinctive gardens.

During their ceremony, they included an incredibly meaningful unity ceremony. Unity ceremonies are the ceremony within the ceremony. They are a symbolic way for couples to add a personal, creative, and memorable touch to the wedding. A good unity ceremony becomes a pivotal moment. It can break up the ceremony, allow the couple to move, acknowledge family and friends, and create a moment that feels deeply connected to the couple’s story.

You can take a look at my post on Unity Ceremonies here.

Daniel and Samantha chose a bouquet ceremony. I had never seen this before. Any time I see something new and creative, I pay attention. Each of their mothers carried a small bouquet representing their family heritage.

Samantha’s flowers were sunflowers and wheat from Kansas, where she grew up. The sunflower is the state flower of Kansas. Sunflowers symbolize joy, positivity, loyalty, adoration, and strength because they follow the sun. Culturally, sunflowers can also represent good fortune, spiritual enlightenment, and resilience. Wheat symbolizes abundance, fertility, prosperity, and the cycle of life, death, and resurrection. In Christianity, wheat often represents Christ’s body and the Eucharist.

Daniel grew up in Ohio, but his family is from Croatia. His flowers were carnations from Ohio and irises. The iris is the national flower of Croatia and symbolizes faith, hope, courage, wisdom, and admiration. Carnations symbolize love and adoration. Pink carnations especially say, “I will never forget you.” I figured, since Daniel is from Ohio, he might sneak a buckeye into his bouquet, but tossing tree nuts into a floral arrangement did not seem like the right move.

During the unity ceremony, the mothers came forward and handed their flowers to the bride and groom. Daniel and Samantha then combined them into a single, beautiful bouquet. In the weeks that followed, the flowers were preserved as a lasting reminder of the families, cultures, and faith that shaped them.

It was a beautiful, thoughtful day from beginning to end. Congratulations to the new Mr. and Mrs. Matic.

Each chapter of a good love story is a flower that eventually forms a wedding bouquet.

Each chapter of a good love story is a flower that eventually forms a wedding bouquet.

Photos courtesy of Eighty Eight Photo