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May 22-28, 2020 Facebook @FloridaCatholic
YOUR OR NDO COMMUNITY
three weeks with this type of stress, not knowing what's going to hap- pen," Alexa recalled. Father Nguyen called immedi- ately after the press conference of- fering his support for whatever they wanted to do. He said he was ready to marry them in 24-hours and in- formed them they could livestream the wedding. It was 2 p.m., Wednes- day, April 1, 2020. They made the call to get married the next morn- ing at 10 a.m. Alexa remembers still feeling a little unsettled. "There was defi- nitely a strange feeling of stress, and anxiety of not including my parents physically there and just the unknown..." she said. "But the livestream offered something that we didn't even know was capable. It turned out as well as it could in the midst of everything and we're grateful for that." Although we were prepared, it felt rushed," John admitted. "We were ready, but to make that deci- sion so swiftly was a lot to take in and to process. Ultimately, I could sense that was what Alexa wanted to do, and I wanted to as well. Mostly, I just wanted to support her. I knew it was the right decision because it would put her mind at ease." Next, they called their parents. We were anticipating that things were going to be changing," said Tammy Earl, Alexa's mother. The family had moved to Virginia a year ago. When they got the call, she recalled feeling "exhilarated because we were happy for them to have the Sacrament and begin that part of their lives. At the same time, a little panicky, wondering could we make it? If we left right now, we could." After taking a few deep breaths, they chose to watch via livestream so as not to get caught on the road and possibly be unable to return, since some states were restricting entry. We decided to stay put and pray over them from where we were, but of course, we were saddened not be- ing able to be with them." In Ocala, Michele Cuomo's re- sponse was exuberant. "Let's do it." She thought to herself, "This is God coming through." Since she was di- agnosed with stage four lung can- cer last September, she prayed she would reach this significant mile- stone and see her son get married. Living within an hour of St. Paul Parish, she and her husband Louis would be able to make it. I was over the moon. Just the fact that I was there...," Michele recalled. It was a very special day. - Among the chaos of what we were going through, it was a ray of sunshine in the midst of a lot of grayness." Memories returned to the day John told her about Alexa. Michele's first question was, "What is her re- ligion?" When he told her she was a faithful, practicing Catholic, Mi- es." Tammy and Robert understood, It's a lesson for marriage. You plan all these things. You have all these expectations and it just doesn't go the way you had planned. That's pretty much life and marriage too." John's parents drove from Ocala. Alexa's sister, Heidi, who lives in Orlando, and Alexa's boss and men- tor, Jenny Lovely, attended. John's brother, Alexa's parents and sis- ters Hannah, Allie, Gianna, Emma and Holly watched via livestream, joined by friends, many of whom otherwise would not have been able to participate. "It went seamlessly," Alexa remarked, the day still vivid in her mind. "The technology was amazing. They even had multiple camera shots." Her sister, Heidi, stepped in to fill several roles. She walked her sister down the aisle for her father and served as lector for her moth- er. Previewing the reading from 1 Corinthians, she knew it was going to be emotional as she read, "Love chele felt it was an answer to her prayers. The Sacrament of Marriage is sacred. It is ultimate sacredness, in my opinion," she said. "I feel there is no greater love that you can give to another person, than through mar- riage. The greatness that goes along with that is when two people have that same view." For the Earls, the conviction was just as strong. The Sacrament itself took priority. "It's them and God," Tammy Earl affirmed. "Ideally, yes, you would want your closest family members being there and celebrat- ing with you, but ultimately, they belong to him and the Sacrament is something for them to celebrate and give to one another. For it to matter to them is huge. It is some- thing to accept as a gift. We've done our best imperfectly, but we are very grateful that they wanted to make it what it is supposed to be in God's eyes. It's a great consolation to us." Tammy had been reflecting on the meaning of spiritual commu- nion and asked God to inspire them with ways to be more intentionally present. She, Robert and Alexa's sisters - Allie, Gianna, and Emma - set about doing whatever they could. They donned their wedding clothes, including bridesmaids' gowns, made a homemade wed- ding cake with a photo of the couple at its center and Robert held a photo of Alexa as he imagined walking her down the aisle. After all, she was the eldest of their seven girls and the first to be married. We were happy and sad at the same time," Tammy said. "My chest physically ached the entire day, but I embraced it because I thought, this is part of the prayer, part of be- ing with them, that pain that you have when you love someone." She sought ways to offer that up and took walks when "the reality sunk in that we really did miss it." She added, "I lifted it up and talked to God out loud and said, this is our offering for their marriage. It helped, but it still hurt, but it was okay. It's part of the package, having those aches for your kids along the way at different points, for different reasons, in different circumstanc- endures all things." "Seeing them both grow together, that line spoke to me," she said. Given the circum- stances surrounding their wedding and the many hard decisions they were already forced to make, the words took on a deeper meaning than most newlyweds would com- prehend. Regardless of one's love or dis- dain for the internet, the fact re- mains that technology facilitated others to be present. "It's all in how you use it," said Tammy. "Technol- ogy can be a blessing or a curse. That day, it was truly a blessing. I complain about internet and usage a lot, but that day, I was particularly thankful we had an opportunity to join with them in that way... praying with them from where we were and spiritually uniting ourselves with- out being physically present." Alexa emphasized it was their parents' and Father Nguyen's sup- port and focus on the Sacrament of Marriage that got them through it. "That kind of drove it home for me, and for John too. That's what you really need to focus on - not all the craziness and chaos around you." Sometimes life throws curve- balls at us, but we have our faith to lean on," acknowledged John. We're just thankful we were able to do it and humbled that we were still able to achieve what's most impor- tant. Ultimately when we look back, we'll have a story to tell, and hope- fully one that will always be mean- ingful to us." In his homily, Father Nguyen reminded the couple of what their love would demand of them and admired their "deep commitment to each other and to their Catho- lic faith." "It gave me great joy to witness their matrimony," he said smiling. "While facing such a chal- lenging time, this celebration was a powerful reminder of that beautiful truth: omnia vincit amor - love con- quers all things."
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From left, Heidi Earl, Alexa and John Cuomo, Louis and Michele Cuomo on April 2, 2020 celebrating the couples' wedding which was livestreamed due to the coronavirus. (COURTESY) Alexa Cuomo's father, Robert, joins remotely, symbolically walking his daughter down the aisle as holds her photo. (COURTESY) Allie, Emma, Gianna, and Tammy Earl dress up in their wedding clothes to celebrate Alexa and John's wedding virtually. (COURTESY)
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