By Tara Woods
Truly, I understand why people look at me weird when I tell them about last night’s dream where I’m walking down the aisle at St George’s Chapel towards Prince Harry, but I’m not Meghan Markle. I’m a bridesmaid, crying as my best friend gets ready to marry royalty. Of course after that things get weird and ice cream is flying, but the point is, this royal wedding has taken over my life.
I live, eat, and breathe the Cinderella story that Markel is living like I’m Blair Waldorf.
Truly this is monumental for most Brits, but because Markle is American this is a special day for both sides of the pond.
Our soon-to-be American Princess is breaking many royal expectations and rules as she makes her way towards the crown. In fact, Markle was previously married and divorced, which is a big no-no in royalty, but Harry has always been a bit of a rebel anyways.
Markle also had to give up her acting career to be with Harry, and although that goes against every feminist bone in my body (which is all of them), Rome wasn’t built in a day and the British Monarchy traditions will not change in a day either.
I also want to bring up the fact that Markel isn’t the traditional choice of bride for the royal family because she is mixed-race. Her mother, Doria Ragland, is black and her father, Thomas Markle, is white. Full disclosure: I am white, so I can’t even begin to understand what this means to minority communities.
In 2015, Markle spoke about her racial identity to Elle UK.
“My dad is Caucasian and my mom is African American. I’m half black and half white,” Markle explained. “I have come to embrace this and say who I am, to share where I’m from, to voice my pride in being a strong, confident, mixed-race woman.”
After her engagement announcement, people immediately started talking about what this means to them.
On twitter, @GirlTyler posted “We got us a Black princess ya’ll. You really can’t tell me a damn thing for the rest of the day because it won’t matter. Shout out to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. Their wedding will be my Super Bowl.”
Bless.
As the wedding approaches, here’s what we know about the splendid affair so far.
There are going to be 600 guests in attendance at St George’s Chapel on the grounds of Windsor Castle followed by a reception held by the Queen for all 600 guests to attend in St George’s Hall. Of those 600 guests, 200 have been invited to the afterparty at Frogmore House, Windsor.
The couple decided not to invite political leaders to the wedding at all, which means neither Prime Minister Theresa May nor U.S. President Donald Trump will be going, and former U.S. President Barack Obama has also missed out. Honestly, the Obama’s not being in attendance has contributed to my tears because of Barack and Harry’s amazing friendship.
As far as bridesmaids and groomsmen go, Harry has decided his best man be the Duke of Cambridge (his brother William), who is missing the FIFA World Cup to be at his brother’s side. That is some real brotherly love.
William and Kate’s eldest children, Princess Charlotte and Prince George, will likely be the flower girl and the page boy for the wedding. It’s a role they know well considering they did it for Kate’s sister’s wedding in May last year.
Kensington Palace announced that Markle has decided not to have any adult bridesmaids because “she is unable to choose between her friends.” Instead, she will be surrounded by children as page boys and flowergirls.
The wedding will begin at noon in England, which is 7 a.m. here in America. When I was in 8th grade I got up at 4 a.m. to watch William and Kate get married, so you bet I’m going to be up at 6 a.m. to watch Harry and Meghan.
Some movie theaters are even hosting viewing parties for die-hard fans like me to go to and cry with everyone else.
In Grand Rapids, 20 Monroe Live is hosting an event to watch the royal wedding. Doors open at 6 a.m. You will be served Mimosas to cry into and breakfast to keep up your strength while the sobs rip through your body.
The party will also include wedding favors, photo ops and flowers. Tickets are set at $40, and decorative hats are encouraged.
This royal wedding means so much to me that when it’s over you probably won’t see me for a while because I’ll be watching reruns of it for at least four days.
What are your plans for the royal wedding? Are you living for it? Do you not care? Who am I kidding? Of course you care. So, I’ll see you cry babies Saturday morning.
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