Weddings are more than just a celebration. They are markers of a profound life transition that affects not only the couple but also their families and community. Today we reflect on the full range of emotions that can accompany this pivotal rite of passage and learn how our guests made room for them in the wedding time.

So it’s the big day. The day of the Techno Cosmic Wedding. With your virtual invitation in hand, you walk into the venue. Prayer flags hang from the ceiling above you. A set of handmade neon signs rests neatly in the window ledge, spelling out “Marry Me Colleen” The neon question mark at the end is no longer working, but that’s okay because she said yes. (Part 2)

What would you think if you received an invitation to attend to something called a Techno Cosmic Wedding? Would you be curious? Avoidant? Undecided? What if it was framed as a post-modern, rave-inspired event where your whole self was welcome. How would you feel then? (Part 1)

Today we revisit one of our most popular episodes, an early interview with Sheryl Paul, author of "The Conscious Bride". Sheryl's work allows us to reflect on how the pain, grief, discomfort, and vulnerability that can arise throughout the wedding process can actually be doorways into joy if we are willing to let them in.

She saw him as a free spirit who was never going to get married. She didn't know how to let go of him because maybe there would never be a wedding and a dance. How one mother and son completely transformed their relationship with a ceremony in the middle of a lake.

Nick and Thom were married in a big, open field in Oakland California. This was right after same-sex marriage was legalized in the US and it was a huge celebration. Join us for a glimpse of their special day.

It's taboo to acknowledge or to express anything but joy on the wedding day. But what would it look like to make room for some of the more complex emotions? To let everyone acknowledge the effect a wedding has on their unique relationship to the couple?

Transitions are our friends. Transitions bring us new things. Transitions can also bring discomfort, but that discomfort offers us a chance to grow - if we are willing to let it have a seat at the table. What would happen if we embraced the discomfort, embraced the difficulty, embraced the challenge? What would it be like if all parts of us were offered a place at the table?

What if you could find the most amazing partner in the world, someone who loves you unconditionally, who respects you, admires you, and has your back through thick and thin? What if that person was you?

What happens when our values and choices don't match the expectations of our family? How can we nurture those important relationships while also finding ways to be true to ourselves? Today we will meet Betsy and Brandon who wanted to do their commitment a bit differently than their families expected.

Landis Bejar has a job you may not have ever heard of before. She is a wedding therapist. In her room, individuals and couples plan for the big day by setting goals and processing the experience of the transition.

Betty Ray walked to the top of Bernal Hill at the turn of the millennium. She brought three things with her: a candle, her checkbook, and a ring.

Tria is getting remarried. She and her fiancé want to create a unique wedding ceremony that is not only different from her first wedding, but also one that won’t give her any flashbacks to the many weddings she has planned. But how exactly does she do that?

On this trailer for the first mini-season of Shame Piñata, we hear from people who pressed beyond the limitations of traditional weddings and commitment ceremonies to create unique gatherings that allowed them and their partners to truly shine.