August 28, 2009
We had a commitment ceremony at Sweetheart Abby near Dumfries, Scotland.
Mark had been to Scotland for work but had always wanted to really see the country so we planned a vacation there. He then got the idea of making the trip our honeymoon. Since the trip was already in the works and we didn't have time to plan a wedding before we left I started looking into getting married over there. Well time and money made this process prohibitive so we started looking for alternatives.
Mark had asked my sister, Ellen, to join us (after all who wouldn't invite there sister-in-law to be on their honeymoon) so I started looking into having her become ordained over the Internet and preside over our ceremony. While that's all well and good, it's not legal in Scotland.
Our plans progressed and Ellen's husband, Dennis, decided to join us too. Woo Hoo! Now we had a photographer and a best man. Things were looking up.
Well we finally gave up on any legal ceremony but continued our plans for a commitment ceremony. Mark, having some Scottish heritage, decided he wanted to wear kilts so when we arrived in Scotland we spent time a various tartan shops until we found proper kilts. Then we just had to pick a place.
Our original idea was to have the ceremony on the top of a mountain but the rainy weather thwarted that plan. Early in our trip we were introduced to this marvelous rune, Sweetheart Abby. It was so beautiful, and the name so appropriate, that we returned to it near the end of our trip and had our ceremony there. Ellen presided over the ceremony and Denny took pictures.
It was a wonderful day.
