She’s a daddy’s girl, until she marries

When a father ‘gives away’ his daughter on her wedding day, the emotions for both are a mixture of joy and sadness, as it’s a symbolic ending.

A BRIDE takes her father’s arm and walks up the aisle towards her husband-to-be. Nothing can compare for drama, emotion and meaning. It’s a pivotal, iconic moment when a dad gives his daughter away, when she steps towards her new life.

“It’s a defining moment, where he realises his child is gone — the adult is taking centre stage,” says couples counsellor, Lisa O’Hara. “She’s walking into her new life and he’s accompanying her to the threshold and that’s where he stops, and there is a stepping-away and she takes the arm of her husband-to-be.”