
The
tradition started as far back as the time of the Roman Empire, with a festival
that honored Juno—wife of Jupiter and goddess of marriage and childbirth. The
first of June had couples recovering from the auspicious month of May, which
was also called the month of the unhappy dead for the Romans. June signaled
rebirth, union, fertility and all the same facets we celebrate in weddings to
this day.
Celtic
tradition also may have had a hand in this June tradition. June 21st
is the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere—it marks the onset of summer
and is the longest day of the year. What we know now as the honeymoon is the
first moon after the solstice and was first called the “honey moon.” Honeymoon
babies are born in the springtime the following year and are born into a time
of good weather, falling perfectly into the turning of the wheel of the year,
skipping the challenging winter and moving right on along with the fall harvest
(the busiest time of the year).
With
the seasons and even ancient beliefs differing over on the other side of the
world, the Philippines has practices separate from what the West espouses. In
the tropics, June typically marks the arrival of typhoon season and the start
of the school year rather than summer and weddings. The most celebratory time
for our culture comes in December. With the Christmas and New Year rush, the
arrival of balikbayans and slews of
family reunions and parties, this month is filled to the brim with weddings for
many reasons. The weather is cool and quite chilly during this time of year, it
is an ideal time to get the entire family together (family attendance is key,
after all, to the Pinoy wedding!).
Regardless
of what time of year you get married, weddings are a wonderful way to dig a
little deeper into cultural cues and how we allow traditions to change with us
in meaningful ways.
Photo courtesy of: www.limedoodledesign.com