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In Response To Robin Williams' Death, The Most Powerful Description Of Depression I’ve Ever Heard
I am so, so thankful this video was made. It's probably the most intimate, real description of depression I've ever heard.
08.13.14
Lynch is part of a growing crowd of newlyweds going against the regular wedding tradition of spending loads of money.
Making a priceless memory.
At first glance, one might think that Jillian Lynch wore a traditional (read: expensive) dress to her wedding. After all, it did look glamorous on her. But this 32-year-old bride has a secret superpower: thrifting.
Lynch posted her bargain hunt on TikTok, sharing that she had been perusing thrift shops in Ohio for four days in a row, with the actual ceremony being only a month away. Lynch then displays an elegant ivory-colored Camila Coelho dress. Fitting perfectly, still brand new and with the tags on it, no less.
You can find that exact same dress on Revolve for $220. Lynch bought it for only $3.75.The bride-to-be’s video quickly went viral, racking up 2.6 million views. People were floored that Lynch was able to find such a huge deal on a dress that seemed to be made just for her.
@jilly_lynch so happy with all these finds 🤍
♬ original sound - Jillian
“Honestly, brides pay 1000s of dollars to look that good in a white slip dress like that, I think you’re rocking it & it’s perfect,” complimented one person.
OK, maybe it did cost her a little more than $3.75. In an interview with Insider, Lynch disclosed that she did make some customizations based on suggestions from the comments—”elevating” the gown with nonadjustable shoulder straps, taking in the waist and adding a “demure” bit of lace to the front slit.
Altogether, those alterations totaled out to $110. Add to that some $8 shoes (also thrifted, of course) and Lynch still created an entire wedding look for only $113.75. That, ladies and gentlemen, is a steal.
Lynch is part of a growing line of newlyweds going against the regular wedding tradition of spending loads of money. And she might be better off for it. Research has shown that when it comes to creating happy long-lasting marriages, frugality oftens beats extravagance. With the average wedding cost at around $19,000, and the average wedding dress costing $1800, it certainly makes sense. Weddings are supposed to be fun, celebratory and joyous. It can be hard to feel any of those things when financial stress is involved. Who would want to start off a (hopefully) lifelong partnership that way? Save that money for the honeymoon, I say! Or the gas station!
Still, Lynch didn’t say no to every wedding tradition. As she walked down the aisle in her gorgeous discounted gown, looking like a Grecian goddess, her father walked right alongside her. "I could see how much it meant to him, and it actually ended up meaning a lot to me," she told Insider.
@jilly_lynch♬ Put Your Head On My Shoulder - Paul Anka
And perhaps most important of all—Lynch felt good in her own skin on her big day. "I don't think I've ever felt that great in something. That's what brides should feel on their wedding day, like they're at their peak beautiful self. That's exactly how I felt when I put it on."
It doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg to make lasting memories. And when you are able to show up for life’s big moments authentically, that feeling is priceless.
The universe was just itching for them to bump into each other!
Sisters meet after 56 years apart.
Here at Upworthy we love to bring you feel-good stories, and this one was just too good to keep to ourselves. Imagine growing up your entire life not realizing you had a sister out there. That’s exactly what happened to Diane Ward and Mary McLaughlin. The women were born three years apart and were adopted, but neither knew the other existed until submitting a DNA test through MyHeritage. It took them 56 years to learn of one another.
McLaughlin and Ward grew up visiting their adoptive relatives in each other's respective city and never knew. McLaughlin lived in Detroit, Michigan, and would visit relatives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Ward lived in Pittsburgh and would visit relatives in Detroit. It was as if fate was itching to make them bump into each other. And it gets weirder. For a time, both sisters lived in Michigan as children and, strangely enough, they actually lived only a few blocks apart.
Mary McLaughlin in kindergarten.
McLaughlin grew up with their biological mother off and on but, after being left with the babysitter when their mother didn’t return, the babysitter and her husband became her legal guardians. McLaughlin's mother became a “peripheral figure” according to People. McLaughlin told the Mirror that she was never officially adopted as her mother refused to relinquish rights. Sadly their mother passed away from breast cancer when McLaughlin was 26, well before the two sisters were reunited through DNA.
Ward told People, “We were basically just crossing back and forth most of our childhood.” Evidently the pair even went to the same bakery, yet never met. Ward continued “It’s just weird. Creepy weird. Because we were just in the same circle the whole time.”
Diane Ward at 2 years old.
At-home DNA tests, which have become popular over recent years, have been known to dig up family secrets, confirm suspicions or, if your family is a little less scandalous, tell you where you originate from. You spit in a tube, then you wait. Eventually you get an email telling you your ancestry results with normally nothing more exciting than finding out that Grandma Gina lied and you aren’t Italian after all. Only a few DNA testers are like McLaughlin and Ward, finding long lost siblings or birth parents.
With the pair having been constantly in and around each other’s orbits, McLaughlin pondered the thought to People, “Maybe we did see each other. Maybe we were even sitting at the same ice cream stand. Who knows?”
Diane Ward and Mary McLaughlin.
After discovering the other existed, the sisters were finally able to meet up a few months later to see each other face to face. Ward was aware of her adoption from the start and used MyHeritage for the DNA testing to learn more about her ethnic heritage and possibly find her birth parents. It never dawned on her that she could have a sibling. According to the Mirror, Ward is the one that initiated the reunion after getting a familial match with a maternal cousin who pointed her in the direction of McLaughlin, who then took a DNA test.
Mary McLaughlin and Diane Ward.
In June, Ward and her husband flew to Charlotte, North Carolina, from the U.K. to meet McLaughlin and her family for the first time. The sisters enjoyed a vacation at Nags Head Beach in North Carolina. It’s amazing that these two were able to meet after so many near misses. Now then can start making new memories together.
This article originally appeared on 09.06.17
Being married is like being half of a two-headed monster. It's impossible to avoid regular disagreements when you're bound to another person for the rest of your life. Even the perfect marriage (if there was such a thing) would have its daily frustrations. Funnily enough, most fights aren't caused by big decisions but the simple, day-to-day questions, such as "What do you want for dinner?"; "Are we free Friday night?"; and "What movie do you want to see?"
Here are some hilarious tweets that just about every married couple will understand.