Charity and Mali tied the knot with the equivalent of a sleepaway camp at Cama Beach for their queer friends and family, and I was smiling from ear to ear the entire time. I drove my rented car across the beautiful Washington landscape; I slept in a little cabin with Charity and Mali’s friends; I watched as every single person in attendance contributed to the decorations and fun. I listened to fascinating conversations about climate change and ecology, as almost everyone here does work with climate change policy and nature in one way or another… and also witnessed a mesmerizing late-night drinking game called “Stump.”

Most of all, I cherished the way that every component of this wedding came together. There was so much love, DIY community spirit, and nature — yes, nature, of course — which was threaded throughout everything, from the soft waves lapping the edge of Camano Island, to the leaves dappled with sunshine, turning colors, in the midst of fall.