“Forever together!”

It was a real revolutionary wedding, a modest event, but complying with all the traditions and with like-minded people around. The two met each other at the protest. Bohdan worked as a volunteer in the clinic, where one day Yulia came complaining of a hand injury. In this way, love was born at the barricades, and the couple decided to call God as witness to their union.

Everything was organized quickly. The bride’s friends looked for a dress for her via social networks just the day before the solemn event, and succeeded in their quest. Yulia wore a white dress with a long veil, and had a wreath of artificial poppies on her head. A folk headscarf sat on her shoulders. Bohdan wore his camouflage uniform, typical apparel of Euromaidan protesters. An Orthodox priest celebrated the wedding in the Column Hall of the Kyiv City State Administration (KCSA) building. One of the protesters played Mendelssohn’s Wedding March for them on a white grand piano. Bohdan and Yulia came to the hall, located on the second floor, through a corridor created by members of the Euromaidan’s self-defense detachments. The lads shouted “Glory to the newlyweds!” and “Congratulations!” Leader of Svoboda party Oleh Tiahnybok served as the father figure at the wedding, presenting the bride with a bouquet of white roses, greeting the young family and wishing that “the spirit that now reigns over Ukraine strengthen the newlyweds’ union.”

In strictest accordance with the protest’s own rules, this was a wedding without alcohol. Instead, a fireworks display was staged near the KCSA building to honor the new family. As a wedding gift, the couple received an evening tour of Kyiv and a night in one of the capital’s hotels. However, it was just wedding, as Yulia and Bohdan plan to officially register their marriage after the revolution ends.

By the way, at least three marriage proposals were made at the barricades in early February, and none of them was declined. So, we will hear many interesting stories about unions that were created during and after the events in the main square of the country, just as we had heard after the 2004 protests. In the end, love always wins.