Jones River Trading Wedding, Kingston MA: Naomi and Mike

Naomi and Mike are an incredible couple who have an amazing story to share. They have been planning their wedding for the past nine months organizing the event and making travel plans for family and friends to celebrate their special day from Hawaii.  Guests flew in from all over the globe. While many came in from England one cousin flew over 8,000 miles to be by their side. Everyone helped to get these two down the aisle. Michael’s Aunt Louise creatively refashioned Naomi’s mothers wedding dress into an absolutely beautiful gown. Louise tailored this dress to perfection all the way from England, every detailed measurement fit perfectly. Naomi’s first opportunity to try on the garment was only a few days before the wedding and it fit flawlessly. Michael’s parents and cousin were tasked to see that the dress arrived in the proper condition. Friends of the couple built them a beautiful birch chuppah from wood they harvested and adorned it with gorgeous flowers. Another friend, knowing Naomi’s disdain for waste, created a unique photobooth including props out of various recycled materials. The love shown for Naomi and Mike was overwhelming. The couple decided to honor some traditions and create some new ones together. They got ready at an adorable hotel off the beach in Falmouth MA, where they had a first look. Afterwards, we headed down to the water for a few portraits. When it came time for the ceremony, at Jones River Trading, they walked down the aisle arm in arm. I caught an image of Michael’s mom, wiping away a tear and Naomi’s parents with arms embraced as they watched on. Naomi and Mike were married by a close friend. They exchanged vows they prepared for each other and I thought it would be best to share the words they gave:

MIKE: When Naomi and I first met, the first thing that struck me about her was the exciting nature of the work that she was did. Naomi was involved in an underwater world of adventure that to me, only existed in movies and books, and, as it later turned out, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. I remember talking to Naomi for ages about diving, exploring, and the wild places we had been. What was equally exciting, was that she was as interested in me and what I did as I was with her. As we began dating, the excitement and enthusiasm towards each other never faded. Though I spent a significant amount of time at sea, and Naomi was frequently traveling for work, we looked forward to being reunited and eagerly set up diving dates, beach walks, and day trips around the Boston, the Cape, and the Islands. Naomi’s time away also afforded me the opportunity to bond with her “puppy” Hipo, who when I met him was a 55 lb pile of love and chaos who was only satisfied by days on end at South Cape Beach. After about a year and a half, we made a major decision and decided to travel around a bit. This stands out in my mind as our first major commitment to each other. Life since then has been a non-stop adventure. After a cross country adventure, and with each other’s love and support we landed ourselves in Hawaii, establishing a home and participating in fun and exciting projects. I am so lucky to be marrying someone that is not only self-driven, intelligent, and adventurous, but is also so supportive of my own goals and endeavors. The world no longer seems like a huge and unreachable place, and I can’t wait to see it all with Naomi.

NAOMI: I knew Mike was special the moment we met.  Not only was he so charming and a great conversationalist, when I found out that we had such similar interests and aspirations, I couldn’t help but feel like time stood still as I got to know him in our first conversation.   By the end of the night, I knew that something had profoundly changed in my life.  Over the following months he proved himself to be kind, generous, sincere, and fun-loving.  He was always up for any adventure, regardless of whether the adventure was a motorcycle ride down the Cape, a dive in a scary murky pond in Hyannis, or a lazy Sunday complete with an english breakfast (cooked by him!).  He bonded with Hipo in a flash, and soon the two were inseparable.  I love nothing more than watching the two of them rough-house at the end of the day.  He has always been unwaveringly supportive of my goals, and I of his.  He writes me incredible letters whenever we were apart; first at sea while he worked with Study Fleet and then while in training for NOAA Corps.  The letters from this correspondence are now my most treasured possessions.  Every time I look back on them and all we’ve been through so far,  I am reminded of the strength of our relationship.  Through comic mishaps, devastating disappointments, and joyful events, we have stood by each other, even when separated by physical distance.  He is my rock, my Mr. Darcy, my Captain Wentworth.   The guy that will love me without reservation till the end of the earth.  I am thankful every day that he is in my life, and I cannot imagine a life without his love and support.

During the reception they shared the surprising circumstances in which they met. Naomi, a brilliant marine Biologist, was talked into going into a local bar on valentines day to play “the dating game.” While she had no real expectations, she sat down at the bar and next to an equally wonderful and intelligent fisheries scientist  who worked for NOAA. On top of that, he had an English accent. Mike summed up their first encounter the best “In the maritime world, there’s really just one big rule. And outside of that, everything is surmountable. The one rule is don’t miss the boat. And never, ever, in my life, had I missed the boat, until the night I met Naomi. But sure enough, on Valentine’s Day at Liam Maguire’s, mesmerized by a beautiful red dress, a fascinating girl, a fair bit of alcohol, and stiff competition in a dating game from a drunken Norwegian, the next chapter of my life commenced. And it started off with so much fun, that the next  morning, I missed a boat. But if I had the opportunity to go back and live that night again and again, I would do exactly the same thing.”