Love Conquers All: A Wedding Under Fire (2-Minute Sweet Video)
When the IDF told this Ofakim family 2 days ago that their daughter would not be able to get married in a wedding hall for security reasons, the mother of the bride decided the show must go on. If a hall was out of the question then the young couple would just have to get married in her home. The neighbors made the fruit plates, family members contacted the 700 guests to notify them of the change in plans, and the bride found a wedding dress to replace the one she bought that was locked in a closed bridal salon in Ashdod. Mazal tov!
Scroll down for English translation.
Reporting by Amalia Dweck
In this yard on Lechi Street in Ofakim the “Wedding in 2 Days” Operation is almost complete.
Mother of the bride: We had a war room in our home. Whether it was notifying all the friends, neighbors, and everyone that the wedding wouldn’t be taking place at the hall, and that we would be making the wedding at our home…
Narrator: The fruit for the buffet was cut by the neighbors. Guests have arrived from all over the country. But an hour before the chuppah, Yael is still glued to the news updates.
Yael (the bride): It’s a little strange for me that I need to be happy on this day, when all around me many sad and unpleasant things are happening. But I’m trying to concentrate a little bit on myself. It’s my day, after all.
Narrator: It was supposed to be a wedding by the book- 700 guests and a poofy wedding gown. But the dress of her dreams remains in the closed bridal salon in Ashdod. And at present, it’s forbidden to hold events because of the situation. But the show, or in this case, the chuppah, must go on. So at the last moment a replacement gown was found. A final cup of water, a deep breath, and here we go…
Footage from the wedding
Narrator: The music is loud. There are no reminders of the sirens. And even if there was a siren, it seems that we wouldn’t be able to hear it. Only when Ofakim’s emergency staff stands beside the happy couple for a photo is everyone brought back to reality. The bride’s uncle was killed by a Kassam rocket 4 years ago. And during this round of missiles, one of her neighbor’s homes received a direct hit.
Leah Yehuda (The Groom’s Mother): There is fear. I’m not the only one here, also my family and friends are here. If suddenly a Kassam fell here. Over there (points to a house next door), over there one fell.
Yonatan Yehuda (Groom): It’s going to be OK, there won’t be any sirens. And if, worst case scenario, there’s a siren, there’s a fortified room 2 meters away. We’ll jump into the fortified room, and we’ll come out and continue.
Narrator: The young couple, in case you asked, has already bought a home near the Gaza Strip. And so you shouldn’t think that they gave up entirely on their dream of a large wedding– the date of the party is already scheduled for mid-December, in hopes that by then everything will be over.
Yael (The Bride): I’ll get married twice. To the same person. (laughter)