There was a couple who wished to be married in the mountains. They'd heard of a magical place, beside a beautiful loch, amongst the mountains on a distant isle called Eilean a' Cheo.
It was said if you were very very lucky indeed and your wedding day happened to fall on a bright and sunny day (often thought a myth in itself) you could travel by boat to this majestic landscape and be wed beneath the humbling mountains of the Cuillin.
And so, the couple with their hearts set on this place, fixed a date for their wedding and, though not at all religious, began to pray and pray for sunshine.
Just two days before their wedding, the hawthorn in blossom (this being the time of Beltaine) the rain poured and poured and the wind howled and howled and the couple and all their wedding party prayed and prayed.
And then... almost as if in answer to their prayers... the winds dropped... the rain stopped... and the song of the birds and the cuckoo call was heard once more. And the couple set sail to the magical place, their boat bedecked with bunting, fit for a wedding, and the sun shone and only fluffy white clouds graced the blue skies (the sort of clouds which don't contain a single drop of rain).
Splashing through the surprisingly choppy waves, the boat slowed only for the couple to receive the blessing of the selkies, all wrapped tightly in their skins, sunning themselves on the rocks.
Once at anchor, the wedding party excitedly leaped from the boat, ascending the steps and together hiking the winding and rocky path toward the loch. Carrying with them flowers grown on the isle... delicate blooms grown with much care and magic... vibrant colourful blossoms, a delight to the senses; rings of gold and platinum; and a beautiful cord for handfasting, braided by the bride's sister and threaded through with love and gold. Not forgetting a two handled cup, a quaich... or loving cup...with a peaty whisky with which to celebrate... this, afterall, being a Scottish isle!
The wedding party arrived on the shores of the loch... the loch said to be home to a kelpie, a shape-shifting water horse with the strength of a hundred men (or a hundred strong women!). And without a soul in sight, reassured (for one never can tell what form a kelpie might take), the couple chose their spot to be married, beside the beautiful loch, amongst the mountains on the isle of Eilean a' Cheo.
And with the gentle breeze making the most exquisite music, the couple reached out their hands, knowing neither would ever be alone again. And they were handfast beside a beautiful loch, said to be home to a kelpie, amongst the impressive mountains of the Cuillin on the magnificent Isle of Skye. And as they shared their words of love and their forever promises, all who looked on cried tears of connection and joy.
And blessed by the selkies... the mountains... the loch... perhaps even by the kelpie (if a kelpie can do such a thing)... and by the merry dancers which showered them with all the colours of the aurora on their wedding night... the happy couple lived happily ever after!
The end.
Photography by https://www.loveskyephotography.co.uk/
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