Welcome!
I am Shadi, an attorney, educator, wedding officiant and I LOVE love stories!
To me, your wedding is a celebration of the ultimate harmony: a miraculous love union that is a celebration truly worth bringing to life in a ceremonial experience.
I believe love stories are connected to an inner source of mutual respect and power shared between two people who then set out to make the world a better place with their shared vision.
I believe in the power of love to create greater understanding among people, illuminating the world with unity and inspiring all of us!
Watching my parents come from completely different beliefs—my father being a conservative and open-minded Muslim & my mother transforming from a Muslim to a Daoist to a Christian and then to a spiritual non-religious individual, I am used to listening to multiple perspectives, striving to bring understanding through a common ground of love. I believe when we can respect varying perspectives and honor one another, we can become united in the eyes of the world and inspire others to live in harmony.
Not only did my parents set an example for me of love and spiritual discourse, but they also officiated weddings on the weekends, which shaped me greatly as a teenager. My father was such a charming public speaker in fact, that he won national recognition. This joy for public speaking passed down to me.
As I watched my parents join others, I began to think about love more deeply and spent a lot of time reading books on love. Here are some of my favorite book titles along with some of my favorite quotes from each book:
Forty Rules of Love by Elif Shafak
“You can study God through everything and everyone in the universe, because God is not confined in a mosque, synagogue or church. But if you are still in need of knowing where exactly His abode is, there is only one place to look for Him: in the heart of the true lover.”
“You can purify your body through fasting and abstinence, but only love will purify your heart.”
“If you want to strengthen your faith, you will need to soften inside. For your faith to be rock solid, your heart needs to be as soft as a feather.”
“To each his own way and own prayer. God does not take us at our word. He looks deep into our hearts. It is not the ceremonies or rituals that make a difference, but whether our hearts are sufficiently pure or not.”
The Mastery Of Love by Don Miguel Ruiz
“You don’t need to justify your love, you don’t need to explain your love, you just need to practice your love. Practice creates the master.”
“Today, Creator of the Universe, we ask that you open our heart and open our eyes so we can enjoy all of your creations and live in eternal love with you. Help us to see you in everything we perceive with our eyes, with our ears, with our hearts, with all our senses. Let us perceive with eyes of love so that we find you wherever we go and see you in everything you create. Let us see you in every cell of our body, in every emotion of our mind, in every dream, in every flower, in every person we meet. You can not hide from us because you are everywhere and we are one with you.”
The Book of Love by Jalaluddin Rumi
“Where the lips are silent, the heart has a thousand tongues.”
“The minute I heard my first love story I started looking for you, not knowing how blind I was. Lovers don’t finally meet somewhere. They’re in each other all along.”
I also love writing spiritual poems. The following three were published in Nineteen months magazine in March 2017: Feeling Velvet, Sweet Lemon & Unfailing Availability
Since I enjoy exploring what love really means, it’s power to create understanding among people ranging from those who have very similar beliefs to those being as different as night and day, and what love looks like in practice, I am invested in getting to know your love story and sharing it with your guests through a unique ceremonial experience.
I don’t believe in meaningless transactional exchanges and traditions. I want your ceremony to be the heart of your celebration involving the beliefs, customs and traditions important to you. I want your guests to feel connected to you and know you better. After all, it took a very special journey to create your love union, so it’s beautiful to honor and share bits of the process that brought you together. Sharing your story with your guests also spreads the power of your love to infinite hearts, like a drop in an ocean, it’s ripple effect can change lives—witnessing what’s truly miraculous between loving couples and how it makes the world a more harmonious place.
I cannot wait to share your unique story with everyone on your celebratory wedding day!
rosewaterrituals.com 