Weddings are full of fun traditions that date back to olden times. Although they probably don’t hold the same meaning that they did then, they are a fun way to make people comfortable and get them to connect. The most widely known one is the bouquet toss, which often brings up a lot of feelings for people.
In this particular story, a woman began questioning her relationship after her longtime boyfriend rejected the bouquet he caught in the toss. He turned the entire situation into a joke that left her feeling devastated.
More info: Reddit
Although the wedding bouquet toss might seem like a fun and harmless tradition, it often holds a lot of meaning for the participants
Image credits: EyeEm / Freepik (not the actual photo)
The poster mentioned that her boyfriend was going to attend his friend’s wedding and convinced her to do the bouquet toss even though she didn’t want to
Image credits: pixel-shot.com / Freepik (not the actual photo)
When the bouquet toss happened, the man caught it, but he immediately threw it back and made the whole thing out to be a joke
Image credits: simonapilolla / Freepik (not the actual photo)
When the guy told his partner the story, she felt upset and hurt by his actions, believing it to be a public diss of their 2-year relationship
Image credits: Dry-Emotion-2237
Since the poster had also not been invited to the wedding, she felt like her relationship had been made into the punchline of a joke behind her back
The bouquet toss is an old tradition that dates back to a time when people believed that touching the bride or taking any of her possessions could be lucky for them. People used to even tear parts of her dress as keepsakes to give themselves some of that good luck. Eventually, the bouquet toss became a simpler option that could stop people from going to such extreme lengths.
Even though this practice is quite fun and gives people a lot of enjoyment, many modern couples don’t see a point in even doing it anymore. The bride in this story didn’t want to do it at her wedding, but her friend convinced her because he really wanted to be a part of it.
Usually, the wedding bouquet toss is done only with unmarried women, so that if anyone catches it, they’re said to be next on track to get married. Many people even get aggressive or possessive when it comes to catching the bouquet because of what it symbolizes.
It is odd that the poster’s boyfriend forced his friend to carry out this tradition, then joined in with a group of women, caught the bouquet, and threw it right back. The OP felt like he had purposely set this up in order to reject the idea of commitment in front of his friends, which obviously made her feel bad.
Image credits: The Yuri Arcurs Collection / Freepik (not the actual photo)
The poster kept thinking about the incident and wondered if he was downplaying their relationship in public. She was caught between feeling like she was overreacting and being upset that he could think of this incident as a joke.
When one partner has big feelings about something, it’s important to communicate those with the other person. They might not even realize how their loved one is feeling, and this will help both both of them to get on the same page. It might be difficult to initiate the conversation, but it can ultimately help both people’s bond.
The woman did share her feelings with her partner, but he dismissed them immediately and tried to play it off. He tried to make it out to be her problem and insisted that he was only joking. This kind of dismissive behavior can be very painful because it invalidates the other person’s emotions.
A big reason why a joke like this is hurtful is that it plays into many stereotypes about men being under the control of their wives or partners. Making light of commitment or putting down one’s partner might get a few laughs, but it also shows that the person doesn’t care as much about their relationship and is willing to throw it under the bus.
Nobody wants to be the butt of a joke like this, especially when they aren’t present. Hopefully, the man recognizes how much he hurt his partner, or she’ll have to pull the same stunt on him as revenge.
What are your thoughts on this story? Do you think the poster is overreacting to the joke? Do share your thoughts below.
Folks were divided on the issue, with some feeling that what the man did was significant, and others thinking that it really meant nothing
