36-year-old Nadine Schweigert from Fargo, North Dakota, got married last month. She had a beautiful wedding. Nadine was dressed in a peacock blue satin dress and carried a bouquet of white roses. There was also a lovely white wedding cake covered in peacock blue fondant. So far, there seems to be nothing unusual about this affair; it’s not different from any other run-of-the-mill wedding in the US. But if you paid attention, you probably noticed there was no mention of a groom. It’s not that he didn’t show up, it’s just that there wasn’t a groom to begin with. Nadine just happened to marry herself.

Self-marriage can be a confusing concept to those who don’t know what it’s all about. Nadine isn’t alone, however, many others have done it before. It was even portrayed on the popular TV show Glee, where ‘Sue Sylvester’ ties the knot with herself. These ceremonies are considered secular and purely symbolic. New Age websites such as Encouraging Priestess even share ideas on how to perform self-marriage ceremonies. The idea behind these marriages is to help a person realize that they do not need anybody else to feel complete.

Photo: Inforum

So when Nadine stood up in front of the 45 guests at her wedding, she took the following vow: “I, Nadine promise to enjoy inhabiting my own life and to relish a lifelong love affair with my beautiful self.” Later in the ceremony, she presented herself with a ring. When it was time for the traditional first kiss, she asked guests to blow kisses to the whole world. Soon after the ceremony, Nadine even took off on a honeymoon at New Orleans, all by herself, of course.

Nadine says that after three children and a divorce, she spent several years just waiting for someone to come along and make her happy. She has struggled for years with self-acceptance, attending group therapy in an attempt to feel better. One day, when a friend said to her, “Why do you need someone to marry you to be happy? Marry yourself,” the idea took root in Nadine’s mind. At first her friends thought that it was too weird for her to be marrying herself. Her 11-year-old son refused to come if she went through with it. But a few months later, she just knew that she had to do it. This time, her friends and her son supported her wish. Her parents also attended the ceremony, even though they had never heard of self-marriage before.

Photo: Inforum

When asked about her experience, Nadine says, “I’m very proud of it, and I feel very good about it. I’m so glad I did it.” She doesn’t seem to be worrying too much about what other people think of her. “I’m just a unique, awesome person who doesn’t fit anyone’s mold or ideal, and I hope you’re OK with that. And if you’re not, that’s okay too.” Well, the concept of self-marriage is hard to digest, but then if a beautiful ceremony is what people need to feel complete, who am I to argue with that!

via Inforum