Blog

THE BEGINNING OF THE GOOD BEGINNING

Today, I wanted to share the beginning of The Good Beginning with all of you.

Bali

A few years ago, I had the amazing opportunity to plan an over the top wedding in Bali, Indonesia and as typically happens when I’m traveling, I work very closely with the local culture. And since often I’m traveling alone, I spend a lot of time talking to the people of the region. On this particular trip, I met a man who ended up being my driver both for this trip and my many trips to Bali over the past few years. We were talking about his life in Bali and I remember him saying he made around $3 per day and there wasn’t work every day. Because of this, I remember him saying to me, “I have three children, it costs X amount of dollars to send them to school a year and we struggle. We worry about whether it’s really going to happen.” In that moment I remember thinking, ‘My shoes cost more than his child’s education and he struggles to make it happen.’ And instead of it being a moment of fleeting guilt, which I know many of us have had, it was a moment of clarity and awareness. One that maybe you’ve experienced many times over, but I remember in that moment knowing I wanted to be a part of something different even though I had no idea what that something was.

Fast forward to a year ago and I’m having a conversation with my best friend. We were discussing and dreaming about the type of women we wanted to be, or better stated, the type of humans we wanted to be. And I remember that moment in Bali coming back to me. And I thought, “I want to be aware. I want to be someone who cares about humans, no matter where they are on the planet. I want to give back. I want my work while I’m in this world to make a difference in someone’s life.” And while that all seemed really lovely, I still had no idea what that meant or what to do, especially as a wedding planner.

But then I started talking to many of the beautiful couples I work with. And I started seeing requests come in for opportunities to give back. I found out who many of you want to be as humans, but also as couples. And many of you want to start your relationships off with a Good Beginning. I dug deeper to find out you want to start rituals in your life. You want to give back. You want to volunteer. And beyond that you want to carry this into your future, not only as a couple, but also as a family.

The Good Beginning for me is targeting couples like I’ve described above. If you’re reading this, I’m probably targeting you. Maybe you don’t need a salad bowl, toaster or anything of the like. Instead maybe you know this great organization in your hometown that you’d love to support. Or, maybe you DO need a toaster. Maybe you need a toaster more than anything, but instead of the $100 toaster, you could register for the $30 toaster and ask your guests to give the overage to that great organization in Africa you spent time volunteering with in college. Whatever the case may be, The Good Beginning is a great place to do any of the above.

On this site, you’re going to find hundreds of charities throughout the world to consider. For me, my passion is civil rights and poverty. And that’s where I personally like to give back. For you, it might be Arts and Education or Animals and Children. Whatever your passion as a couple, we’ve identified many organizations here where you can encourage guests to not only make donations on your behalf but also bring awareness. Or maybe, your guests just aren’t the people that would enjoy this, but you as a couple still want to do something. We’ve set up the option to make donations on your guests behalf instead of favors or other wedding gifting you may commonly see. And, lastly, if you don’t see an organization you’d like to support, let me know. Send an email to editor@thegoodbeginning.com and tell us about it. We’ll get the organization set up right away.

So there you have it. A little bit about me, the vision for this project and our beginning. I hope you’ll join us on this path and i look forward to getting your marriage started off with you’re very own Good Beginning.