I Wore Horns to My Wedding

and other things I never thought I'd say.

I won’t bury the lede: a lot has happened in recent days. I got married. I ran a marathon. Common wisdom tells me this should naturally lend itself to “content.” Two big events, with built-in photo ops. Posts for days. And yet. I’ve been stuck on how to share and what to say.

We are not obligated to broadcast our lives, but when I succumb to that societal pressure — to cast ourselves as the reality stars of our own digital experience — I believe in being as authentic as possible, mindful to not just share the highlight reel. The larger truth is, as these events happened, other challenges unfolded (some I’ve written about, others I haven’t, as they are not my stories to tell). It felt disingenuous to focus solely on the good.

As I prepared today’s post, I was reminded of the many photos, videos, and life updates I’ve scrutinized over the years, like so many tea leaves, trying to discern what wisdom they might shed on my own life. Was there a hidden recipe I could adapt? If I did this or wore that, might it yield similar results? Though I know better, I never fully grasped that there were likely other dynamics playing somewhere outside the frame.

Presented alone, these photos paint a somewhat idyllic picture of what was indeed a lovely afternoon. But they are simply one facet of life.

With that disclaimer out of the way, here is a glimpse of our City Hall Halloween elopement — AKA Hallowedding — a day my younger self never could’ve predicted.

(Because today’s post is a departure from the usual, and of a more personal nature, I am reserving it for paid subscribers.)