At most weddings, there is a lot of talk about the blending of two families. The DJ will play “We are Family” by Sister Sledge, and the two newly combined families will get on the dance floor in a circle to celebrate their new bond.
Not for these two. Their families had been joined before they were even born.
Helah and Hash’s fathers have been best friends for most of their lives, so Helah and Hash grew up together, attending the same family parties and celebrations since they were in diapers.
“The funny thing is, we never even thought twice about liking, let alone LOVING, each other,” Helah told me. “It happened one night five years ago at Hash’s cousin’s engagement party. Just like any other family friend party before that night, we danced together. But this time it was different. Fireworks just happened! The sparks flew, and everything just went into place after that.”
But then they began to worry things would be complicated because of how close their families are, so they met for lunch one day to mutually end the relationship, before it could even really start. They cried and felt the pangs of heartbreak coming on. But then that night, they talked again, and ended up saying “I love you” for the first time, and realized that what they had together felt too right to let it end.
Their “first date,” if you can call it that, was during one of Hash’s university classes. He asked Helah to come sit in on the class with him. She sat in the back, next to him, and he suddenly reached out and held her hand. “His confidence and ability to make me feel so smitten was what warmed my heart,” Helah said.
Helah and Hash’s wedding at the Palm Event Center in Pleasanton, California, wasn’t really the blending of two families, since that was done decades ago. But it was the strengthening of two families who were already kinda one big family anyway. Having such a rich foundation brings such a unique perspective to Mauricio’s beautiful photos from their ceremony and celebration. I can’t wait to see what life has in store for these two from here on out, because it’s clear they have already found the right path simply by trusting their hearts.