Ripple Effect
The stone blessing ritual
By Meghan Russell
Tying the knot on the beach? Consider uniting your guests with adding a stone blessing to your wedding.
Distribute the stones as your guests arrive. Then, during or after the ceremony, have your officiant instruct the guests to make a silent or spoken wish for you and your partner and toss the stones into the water. The ripples symbolize the joined families—and the kids will have a blast.
Many beach wedding packages also offer polished blessing stones so your guests can write down their sentiments on a card, attach it to a stone and place it in a keepsake bowl you can cherish forever.