I did, sort of, become a wedding officiant accidentally.

Although maybe it's more accurate to say I had a dream and decided, why wait?

The truth is, ceremony found me long before I ever signed the paperwork.

I've always been drawn to ceremony and ritual. They are a big part of what kept me tethered to church long after I'd decided the book of stories was, well... mostly a book of stories.

But I loved what happened around those stories.

I think I first discovered the power of ceremony while preparing for my own First Communion. It wasn't just about wearing a white dress or standing in church. I had a speech to memorize. I learned how to say the Mass. I practiced reading in front of others—skills that felt incredibly important at the time and ones I would rarely ever use again.

Although, looking back, life has a funny way of preparing us for things we don't yet understand.

More than anything, I remember the feeling.

I remember knowing this wasn't just another Sunday. Something important was happening. A moment was being marked. My family would gather. I would step into something new.

It was my first experience of ceremony—the first time I understood that some moments deserve to be witnessed.