A wedding. What a wonderful thing. It brings together people in love and happiness. It’s also a day when a husband and wife can easily go bankrupt trying to pay for the massive expenses of the celebration. When did money become the most important aspect of weddings?

The average price of a wedding has increased dramatically over the last 50 years. The grandeur of the average American wedding has been hyped up immensely, with special thanks to TV and Film for their depictions of what they call the average wedding. Since when did a guest list of 200 become an unspoken law at every wedding? How about paying a thousand dollars for wedding flowers? Even the simple act of inviting people has become expensive. These figures aren’t exaggerations, either. Taking a quick look at KayCircle’s guide on the subject, you will notice the cost of the average wedding ceremony is between $15,000 and $25,000. This ends up being more than half of the average American household’s income, according to Bureau of Census figures from 2007. Many people end up in debt over houses, cars, college. But what about weddings? It is true that thousands of people each year take out loans to pay for their weddings. Is that really the smartest way to start a new life together?

As the extravagance of the wedding increases, so does the stress felt by the husband and wife to be. Many couples have some of their worst fights over the silly details of their weddings. All those wedding expenses won’t help the couple when anger and resentment is standing between them on this important night. Will that $2,000 dress really make up for a spoiled start to the first day of the rest of your lives?

So when the time comes to start making those wedding plans, consider which is the more important sentiment: decorations or the feeling behind them? Is all this expensive food really necessary? Is it worth worrying over the open bar? Let’s make weddings simple again. Let’s throw out all the ridiculous expenses and extravagant frills. Let’s bring back the love.