It's been a lot of weddings this year and I've made some observations in the last couple months that I wanted to capture.

1. It's a celebration of the people they have become up to this point. And that means a celebration of who they are as individuals (as they invite people from different aspects of their lives) as well as them as a couple.
2. The weddings that bring me the most joy are the ones where the couple gets to do it the way they want. This sounds pretty silly and basic but having seen the wedding industry, brown parents, and social pressure, I love when a couple gets exactly what they want in the way they want it. Examples: boba at a formal reception, Chipotle catered during one of the events, etc.
3. Maybe because it's friends I see getting married and we may not necessarily live in the same city, the amount of pure raw unalterated happiness that I see excuded from them gives me reassurance that the partner they chose is the right one (not that there needs to be a "right one", or even one your entire life). I've never seen my friends so happy than when they're getting married to the loves of their lives. It brings me so much pure joy to see someone that I care about so goshdang happy.

As a single person, weddings are difficult. They're filled with social pressure, money, guilt, amongst a lot of other emotions. Maybe because I've been through many (yay desensitization!), or maybe it's just gaining perspective as I'm getting older, these observations have led me to appreciate them in a different light.