The wedding day is perhaps one of the most formal occasions a person can have in a lifetime. The days leading up to it are nerve-wracking due to the intense planning or the event. Everything needs to go according to plan, from the moment it starts until everybody goes to sleep — or else, a huge amount of money will be put to waste.
Traditionally, too, everything is laid out. The flow is the same: entourage, the husband waits by the altar, the bride walks down the aisle, they say “I do,” kiss, and then the reception. Everyone is in their best selves.
It’s only normal that people wonder: What if they want to loosen up a bit? Sure, they can have a party, but what if the best friends say things parents — and the public — should never hear? Luckily, a little creativity and privacy can solve the problem.
Set Up a Second Reception
If this were prom, this would be the after-party. It also depends on what time the reception is going to end.
Some conservative families and couples would probably end before midnight. When the program ends, people disperse and go back to their homes. This can be good news for the couple because they can set up another gathering exclusive for their closest friends.
A lot of weddings would end late, too, and it is understandable given the music, booze, and dancing. It’s a happy occasion after all. If this is the case, it would be best to postpone the post-reception reception until the next day.
The good thing about this is you won’t need a professional event planner to gather your closest friends. You can just agree with them to meet at a particular time, venue, and ask them to prepare a speech without inhibitions. This would be great at night by the beach around an outdoor fire pit. It’s intimate with a mix of relaxation. After all, a beach bonfire has always been great for conversations, laughter, and a few drinks.
Ask Your Friends to Prepare a Speech
This speech is far different from the one in the formal reception. First, it’s not toned down and edited to fit everyone’s liking. This one is all-out, including things you did in college or high school. This speech contains things you would rather forget and things you wouldn’t want your new spouse to know. This is what makes it fun.
Second, you’ll never know what to expect — both you and your friends. At one point, it’s all laughs. The next thing you know is you’re crying. Nostalgia is fun that way.
Prepare a Speech for Your Spouse, Too
Perhaps, it’s not only your friends who edited their speeches. Out of all the time you’ve spent with your spouse, there are probably funny — but not palatable to the public — things you would like to say. They can be little but intimate things, like how they don’t turn their laundry outside-in or take up too much of the bed you end up on the floor.
You could also pour your heart out into this. Maybe you went through so much before finally meeting him. It could be the uncut version of how you knew they were the love of your life. There are pieces of personal information that only your closest friends know, mostly because they were the ones who walked with you through those hard times. Thus, getting deep and personal in this speech is welcome.
Have Fun
The purpose of this activity is for you and your friends to loosen up and enjoy the wedding. It’s a lot like the beach bonfire you had a few years back where everyone ended up talking about things they usually avoid in normal conversation.
Remember that this is a major milestone in life, and it’s great that there are people to celebrate it with. As life goes by, moments as precious as this can become rare due to increasing responsibilities in adulthood.
Take this break to contemplate, receive love from people who matter a lot to you, and hear out what they want to say. Even though you no longer like your college self, these memories made you the person your spouse loves.
If anything, friendships teach people how to love and give love to others. Although platonically, it cultivates the behavior of giving and taking. It teaches people the value of relationships and how to keep them going. So, as you enter a different kind of relationship, this second reception serves as a reminder of how everyone has grown to become people capable of a commitment as big as marriage.
