Hacienda Cusin

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Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

Spooky. Romantic. Big Fireplaces. Flowers. $10 litres of vino tinto. extra nice staff. very funny people. long naps. Andrea´s wedding dress. large exit bill. comfy bed. very good friends. so absoultely beautiful. somewhat magic.

Engaged in a discussion

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Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

So, these folks, in my opinion, are pretty damn engaged, but according to Wendy, they are only engaged in a discussion about marriage, but they sure are cute.

A Quaker wedding in Ecuador

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Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

John and Andrea had a Quaker wedding in which they married themselves, no officiant. Much of the ceremony was silent, but people spoke when moved. The whole thing was quite emotional, and I was a basket case by the end. People said such beautiful things, and there was time to really revel in their commitment, this rite of passage, the way we are growing older. I felt so much joy in watching my old friend make such a profound public commitment.

Walking on Rose Petals

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Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

Finger Puppet Party Favors

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Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

Unfortunately they sort of disappeared as the night wore on, but Sarah had this idea that we should do a dance where each person strides down the center in a dramatic interpretation of their particular puppet.

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Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

Wedding Camp

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Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

By the end of our time at Hacienda Cusin for John and Andrea´s wedding in Ecuador, we had been blessed with a scrumptious share of late nights talking, evenings dancing, delicious meals, and many stories with some of their all too terrific friends.

Amanda and Andy Bramble

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Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

A-manda-la

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Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

Megan and I spent the week before Amanda and Andy´s wedding working a mandala for the ceremony. It was a circle created from rocks with a path going through the center, however as the week evolved and people brough or sent items to be placed in the mandala, it grew to be a beautiful work of art. Duriong this week i camped in the desert and was able to develop my own relationship with the landscape, as well as the friends and family of the couple who filtered in as the week progressed.

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Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

The ceremony began with the sisters of the bride and groom circling the entire space with sage, holding a red cloth.

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Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

This was followed by the bride and groom having their hands washed before walking through the mandala to their marriage spot. The ceremony also included calling the four directions, a meditaion, the song tis a gift to be simple. Amanda and Andy splashed all the guests with water as a thank-you for our part in their life. The ceremony ended with Josh and Megan wrapping the two up in a red cloth coccoon, then unraveling them as they spun and leading them away into their married life. It was beautiful.