A lesbian whose religious parents refused to come to her wedding has instead received support from tens of thousands of internet users after posting beautiful photographs of the day online.
Meredeith Hendrix, a 25-year-old grad student, married girlfriend Kat Jackson, also 25, in Arkansas in October, witnessed by friends and family - although her parents had refused the invitation.
After the wedding, which she called the 'best day of my life', Hendrix-Jackson shared some of her gorgeous wedding photographs on Tumblr - and received an overwhelming response.
She wrote beneath the images: 'In case you are a fan of same sex unions, weddings in general, or are just really itching to know what I look like (or my wife, as I haven’t posted a picture of her yet [she’s the adorable one in the suspenders]).'
The photographs, taken by photographer Megan Burges, fast became an internet hit, amassing more than 10,000 'notes' - including likes, shares and comments - on Tumblr.
They show the happy couple getting ready for the day - Hendrix in a beautiful white lace gown, Jackson in pants, a shirt, bow-tie and suspenders - before walking down the aisle.
At the end of the aisle, they remove scarves covering their eyes and gasp as they see each other for the first time.
Two weeks later, Hendrix posted again to thank people for their overwhelming support, and said she had been stunned how they had not received a single homophobic or negative message.
'[N]ot a single message I've received, not a single reblog that I have been able to find, has had anything to say but amazing, beautiful, kind words of congratulations,' she wrote.
'No bullying. No trolling. No inappropriate offers or lewd remarks. Out of tens of thousands... That's not something I’m used to. It's not something anyone in the LGBTQ community is used to.'
She added that her wife had even previously been fired from a job as a driver for a children’s occupational therapist after her boss saw the couple kissing at the mall.
Hendrix also spoke about how much she was loving married life.
'I've been married for about two months, and goddammit, it has been just the best, you know?' she said. 'She's incredible. She's unreal. She's kind and she’s thoughtful and she's everything I never thought I deserved. She's the woman who I get to spend the rest of my ridiculously lucky life with.
'It's so simple to me, to us... But it's so complicated to so much of the world.'
In an email to the Daily Dot, Hendrix-Jackson said her sister and extended family had traveled to the wedding, but that her 'stoically religious' parents had refused her invitation.
She added that she had met her wife at college as they both studied theater.
She expressed her thanks for the overwhelming support in a post on Tumblr, writing: 'Do you even get how amazing you are? You, the denizens of Tumblr. Do you understand that?
'I am so exceedingly proud of you, you wacky kids. You are all such incredible people, with such kind and open hearts, and I wish I could hug each and every one of your necks.
'So if you are having any sort of rough day, please know that there is this tiny lesbian couple in northeast America who likes you just a whole lot, okay? You've overwhelmed us. Thank you. We love you.'
And in one final thank you - she uploaded even more photographs of their happy day.
(dailymail.co.uk)
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