Thank you!
9.1.19 — This day, always.
Buffalo.
Just kidding…
To Kristen, from Julia —
Where do I even begin?? I know it’s a running joke that in the beginning, I had eyes only for you at Battlefest360, but I am so, SO thankful to count you as my closest friend. It may not always be in time spent together, or shared interest in TV shows, but there is not a thing that happens in my life that I ever don’t want to share with you. With you, I know I have someone that understands me, is forever in my corner, but will also tell me honestly and generously when I am wrong. You’ve shown me how to have tough conversations with love, and how much better the world could be with a little extra TLC. And you’ve also shown me how much more fun the world can be with a little less restraint, a little more sass, and a lot more leaning into your own superpower. I know you had a difficult time with family and work challenges during our engagement, and you felt like you weren’t there for this important milestone in my life. And even though I know we both would’ve preferred it went down another way, the important thing is that I know we’ll have all the rest of life’s milestones to celebrate together.
To JP, from Brian —
What can I say man. You were there from the beginning. I remember sitting in the back of your car as you and Kristen drove both me and Ro to Weejay’s birthday because Julia was going to be there. All of you were giving me a pep talk that went something along the lines of “just go for it”, “buy her a drink and ask her to dance”. Seems pretty straight forward, but as you may know, I tend to over complicate things in my head 😅. Fortunately, it all seemed to work out! It’s crazy to think we’ve lived together for 9 years, sharing the same roof for effectively a 3rd of our lives. We created the real life Terrace house and I wouldn’t trade it for anything else. We’ve had some amazing adventures, from wild parties, one-off night house hangs, to searching for your very well parked car! Always good times with you, hopefully this is just one in hopefully many more that we can share together!
To you both, from BJ —
What a wonderful, everything moment for all of us, when Kristen, Kevin, and Brian decided to live together in what would henceforth be known as King’s Landing. Growing our friendship (both individually and as a couple) with you both has made our lives richer, more beautiful and textured than we could have ever imagined. And we are determined to keep our lives intertwined, with KL 2.0 to 5.0 to infinity and beyond. There’s probably not much left to say that hasn’t been said before, but it’s all worth saying again, so here goes: it’s impossible to overstate the impact you’ve had on our lives. You’ve made us a better couple (with more productive and healthier ways to argue), demonstrated how to show up in friendship in both the fun times and the difficult ones. You’ve made us better cooks, better at play, better at knowing that yes, we can do that. You’ve made us braver, more vulnerable, sassier. You’ve made our livers stronger, Tuesdays more fun, Terrace House-watching a national sport.
You’ve also inspired us with your core tenet of generosity. In a lot of ways, the way Brian and I grew up was around the idea of fairness. You don’t ask someone to contribute more than their share, but the flip side of that is it can also feel uncomfortable to accept “more than your share” of help/friendship/attention/kindness/whatever. There’s a feeling of guilt, like you’re cheating somebody else out of something. You both have shown us that friendship/family/help/love, freely given, only serves to make the world a richer place. And you’ve shown us that generosity does not mean that you don’t give constructive criticism, and does not mean that you have to take injustices lying down. True generosity means holding those you love accountable, and growing that love as a result. True generosity means holding on to the ability to be gracious when people don’t respond the way you hoped. It means not shriveling into a bitter prune, but continuing to act toward making the world better, investing in your community, and lifting people up with you. It means that you are generous also to yourself — that you don’t have to be endlessly kind or forgiving, and that there is space for petty waps and unflattering thoughts (to be aired in a safe space with those you trust — preferably over a cocktail and a shared plate of fries).
Generosity means a lot of nuanced things, but to us, what it means is how you have demonstrated how to show up in life, with loved ones, and build the world you want to live in. For us, that world is KL forever. <3
Thank you again for celebrating with us on this very special day. It wouldn’t have been the same without you.
Love,
Julia & Brian
P.S. To see the rest of our wedding photos and find your beautiful faces, click here.
