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"PinterestFacebookWhen my sister asked me to be her maid of honor, I happily accepted without hesitation. She&amp;#39;s my closest friend, and I couldn&amp;#39;t imagine not being by her side on the big day. What I didn&amp;#39;t expect was to be on the other side of the altar, as her officiant.\nLaura and her fiance were planning a destination, interfaith wedding and wanted someone who knew them personally to lead the service. Although I was touched that she would entrust me to be the officiant, I was also overwhelmed by the prospect. I&amp;#39;m already an emotional person and couldn&amp;#39;t imagine marrying my little sister without choking up and crying in front of her guests.\nTechnically I had experience with wedding ceremonies from attending dozens of them, being a bridesmaid 11 times, and walking down the aisle myself, but I had never pictured myself leading a couple through the traditional rites of marriage and pronouncing them husband and wife.\nI wasn&amp;#39;t prepared to emulate a priest, rabbi, or justice of the peace, but I could envision myself as a wedding host, welcoming the guests, sharing a personal story about my sister and her fiance...and holding back tears while they read their vows.\nI scoured the Internet, a surprisingly reliable resource for wedding research, and created a ceremony outline. After numerous phone conversations and emails, we all agreed to a wedding script that felt like an ideal balance of time-honored traditions and personal expression.\nOn the wedding day, I vacillated between being a maid of honor and the officiant. We toasted with mimosas, spent hours getting ready with the bridesmaids, and posed for photos with bouquets in hand. As the evening approached, I double-checked that the wedding binder was in the right place, the prayers were tucked inside, and I had copies of their vows.\nOnce the music began playing, I walked down the aisle arm in arm with my brother and then circled around the podium. As my sister emerged from the hotel and stepped onto the beach, I had the perfect vantage point to watch her smile and head toward me. When she and her fiance stepped under the chuppah, I understood that officiating a wedding is the ultimate honor, transitioning a couple from engagement to marriage.\nAs waves crashed on the beach and curious bystanders paused to watch, I took a deep breath and said, &amp;quot;Welcome to the wedding. Thank you to everyone for traveling abroad and being a part of their special day. This ceremony will incorporate certain Jewish traditions that will be explained throughout, but most importantly, it will be a reflection of the couple.&amp;quot;\nThe ceremony was brief and heartfelt, with personal vows from the bride and groom, culminating in a joyous cheer for the couple and an immense sigh of relief from me. My sister was now married, and I gained a wonderful brother-in-law. I made it through my first experience as an officiant and realized I would gladly do it again.\nPinterestFacebookWould you ask a family member or friend to officiate your wedding? Would you say yes if someone asked you to officiate?"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.glamour.com/story/my-sister-asked-me-to-be-her-w>