Filling the First Pew

The other day I was talking to someone about the fact that both my parents are deceased and won't be at my wedding in a few weeks. She instantly said, "Well, you know what to do: put flowers on their chairs."

When my fiancé and I first got engaged this had been my plan: I was going to have flowers set in the first pew for my parents and for my sister. However, as time went on, I realized it was more important for me to fill the pew with people in my life rather than leave it empty.

I refuse to go through my life constantly thinking about what I don't have. Instead, life is about being grateful for who is still in our lives and acknowledging them. My parents will be noted in the program but that first row will have several people that might not be my blood family but are people I consider family. 

My parents will be there in spirit, my dad probably happy he doesn't have to dress up. It's not the way I wished my life to be but I'm not going to let it get me down either. A wedding is about a new journey and many times that day is filled with loss because none of our lives is perfect. Instead, we should celebrate what we have and the more we do that, the more that will come our way.