11 Emotional Things A Bride Did After Her Maid Of Honor Passed Away 2 Months Before Her Wedding
She honored her best friend's memory beautifully.
Pixabay / Pexels For brides-to-be, their wedding is the culmination of all their plans for a magical celebration, representing the love they share with their spouse and their hopes for the future.
Yet the best-laid plans can be upended by tragedy, as one bride discovered when she lost her best friend, who was also her maid of honor, just two months before the wedding.
A bride shared the 11 ways she honored her best friend, who passed away before her wedding:
Sophia Miner considered canceling her wedding because her best friend and maid of honor died two months before she was set to get married. Instead of calling it off, Miner gathered her community around her and restructured the wedding to include her best friend.
The bride shared how she kept her maid of honor's memory alive during her wedding.
1. She repurposed her maid-of-honor dress
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She turned the maid of honor dress into ribbons that she used to wrap the flowers with, a sweet and tangible memorial to her best friend.
2. She didn't care about the details
"I stopped caring about details, but my family stepped up to help," Miner said, illustrating how powerful grief can be.
Losing someone we love is an earth-shaking event, leaving our lives completely changed. The sorrow breaks us apart, realigning what we believe to be important.
After her best friend's death, Miner's inner landscape shifted. In the depths of her mourning, she didn't care about planning the details of her wedding day, which is a completely natural reaction to have.
Her relatives took on the mental and practical labor of minding the details, showing the value of relying on a community in hard times.
3. She surrounded herself with loved ones
"I wanted a lot of people around me before the ceremony, so I didn't feel who was missing as much," Miner explained.
In times of mourning, it's incredibly important to be each other's witnesses, to show up and say, "I see that you're hurting. I'm here to hold you."
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Miner's best friend can't be replaced. Her absence was acutely felt, yet Miner shared that having people surround her served as a balm for the pain she felt.
4. She didn't have a bachelorette party
Traditionally, the maid of honor, along with the rest of the bridal party, plans the bachelorette party.
Miner revealed that she skipped that part of her wedding celebration altogether, ostensibly as a way to show respect for her best friend's passing.
It's possible Miner didn't want to have that particular party without her maid of honor. It's possible that hiding her sadness and faking a smile to drink champagne in matching outfits felt like too much to handle in the midst of mourning.
It's always okay to take a step back, to decide that the plans you made no longer fit the person you've become.
5. She put her best friend's picture in her bouquet
Miner crafted another thoughtful memorial for her maid of honor by carrying her with her as she walked down the aisle.
She pinned a charm that held a photo of her best friend onto her bouquet so she could hold her close to her heart and see her beautiful face.
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6. She carried her best friend's favorite flowers
On her wedding day, Miner's florist surprised her with a very special token to memorialize her maid of honor.
The florist brought her a bouquet of her best friend's favorite flowers to carry. It was a generous gesture that served as a way to celebrate something her best friend loved while she was living.
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7. She asked her best friend's mom to hold her bouquet
During the ceremony, the maid of honor traditionally holds the bride's bouquet. It's likely that Miner missed her best friend deeply in that moment, yet she found a way to stay connected to her by having her best friend's mother hold her flowers.
Including her maid of honor's mom was a heart-wrenching and lovely action, one that shows how deeply caring Miner is.
8. She and the groom stood alone at the ceremony
"We decided to 'stand alone' because there would always be a 'hole,'" Miner said, explaining why there were no bridesmaids or groomsmen beside them as they said their vows.
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9. She wore her best friend's jewelry
Miner accentuated the ethereal gown she wore with jewelry that belonged to her best friend.
By wearing the jewelry that her maid of honor left behind, Miner gave new, resonant meaning to the practice of wearing something borrowed on her big day.
10. She had a second father-daughter dance with her best friend's dad.
Not only did Miner include her best friend's mom in her wedding ritual, she made sure that her best friend's dad was included, as well.
After the father-daughter, she danced with her best friend's dad, offering him the opportunity to take part in a tradition he wouldn't be able to otherwise.
It's doubtful there was a dry eye on that dance floor as wedding guests watched the bride and her best friend's father together.
11. Her best friend signed the marriage license
"The most important part to me is she was the one to sign our marriage license," Miner said.
She'll forever have her best friend's signature, along with the memory of her, acting as an observer of the love between her and her husband.
While the day couldn't have been easy for the grieving bride, Miner did everything she could to keep her best friend beside her.
"There was not a single moment you walked alone," someone said in the comment section. "She was with you and always will be."
Research has shown that even in the midst of raw grief and pain, there is room for joy. Miner's wedding celebration ultimately proved that.
Psychotherapist Lia Avellino, LCSW, said it best in an article for Well+Good, "Feeling alive does not mean feeling consistently happy or joyful, but rather creating room for everything that exists within you."
Alexandra Blogier is a writer on YourTango's news and entertainment team. She covers social issues, pop culture analysis and all things to do with the entertainment industry.