I was never the little girl who dreamed of her wedding day. I dreamed of moving to New York and building a career in television, and I always had my eye on the goal. That doesn’t mean I didn’t Also My dream was to find my husband and start a family with him, but I was confident that the time would come when it was meant to be.

He came into my life on a summer night in July 2022. Two meters of kindness, laughter and immediate connection. A religious person who valued family, shared my love of travel and answered my random opening question – “Are you a happy person?” – with a resounding yes.

Our first trip together was to Italy with his parents and a handful of our friends. We were still getting to know each other and it was a four-day crash course in how to behave around the people he cared about. On the way home, my girlfriend said, “You’re going to marry this man.” I blushed as if the thought was ridiculous, but I knew it was true.

In April 2023, after a proposal of epic proportions, I agreed to marry the only person I’ve ever truly loved. As we thought about the wedding, I dreamed that our day would be filled with our favorite things: great food, music, and most importantly, our closest family and friends. It would be the start of a fulfilling and loving life together.

As for the location, nothing jumped out at us. Atlanta, where he grew up? He preferred not to. My hometown in Massachusetts? That’s what I thought. New York City, where we both live? Narrowing down the guest list would be impossible.

We decided to go back to Italy for the wedding and the following year, as we finalized the venue, vendors and guest list, the excitement was palpable.

But life keeps you on your toes sometimes. As June 2, 2024 approached, we realized marriage was no longer an option and we decided to call off our wedding.

We ended our relationship for reasons known only to him and me – I won’t go into them here and, honestly, that’s not why I’m telling my story. What I can say is that I’ve never experienced such heartbreak before; it was a cruel and undying pain. The pain that made me sure I would never be able to set foot in Italy again, where we had created so many memories.

But as the phone calls and text messages started pouring in, I learned that dozens of family members and friends would be boarding planes and arriving—whether I wanted them or not.

I had already cancelled my flight, but after a weekend of tireless encouragement from lifelong friends, I agreed to book another one – with plans to meet up for what was now a celebration of a different kind of love.

They say life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react. I have always taken that motto to heart – now was not the time to stop. Landing at Milan airport brought clashes with loved ones on both sides and with them inevitable waves of emotion. The grief was even more relentless when I arrived at the hotel alone. I retreated to my room but could not sleep. How could I not have seen this coming? If I had seen it, perhaps my family and friends would not have had to endure this financial burden and I would not have been left heartbroken.

But the next day, when my loved ones from all over the world arrived, the intrusive thoughts subsided and I began to feel the love. The army had gathered.

The once eagerly awaited, now slightly dreaded day of my wedding arrived – with rain in tow – but I told myself it was just a matter of refocusing. It was a new day, in a beautiful place, surrounded by beautiful people, and I had this gift to be grateful for. I put on a red dress instead of the wedding dress I was supposed to wear. The rain stopped, the sky brightened, and suddenly I found myself in a fairytale setting, in a room so full of love it was hard to feel anything else. Sure, the person I’d once dreamed would be standing next to me was conspicuously absent, but in a room like this, you focus on what you have, not what you don’t.

Just before dinner, the wedding planner asked me, “Would you like to say a few words?” I had barely decided to show up before I even thought about speaking. I looked around the room. How could I not this group that stood by me when I needed it most? The words came easily… and the jokes even easier as I thanked everyone for being there for me. My dad spoke next, then took my hand to begin an unconventional, unexpected, non-wedding father-daughter dance.

As the hours passed, I was grateful to be surrounded by the people closest to me. We danced to ABBA, Gloria Gaynor and Elton John, and at the end of the night, my sister and I jumped into the lake with some of my long-time friends – dresses and all.

After returning home, I put together a highlight video of the day’s special moments and posted it on TikTok to share with family and friends. Then I turned off my phone to go to church alone for the first time in a long time.

An hour later, I saw my phone explode with notifications. I took a deep breath and realized that in just one hour, hundreds of people had seen and shared my TikTok post.

On a day when I was truly alone for the first time in months, I suddenly felt a lot less alone. In the days that followed, the response grew stronger and my gratitude towards strangers I’d never met before grew. More than 1.7 million people watched my video. “I’ve never been so proud of a total stranger,” one person wrote. “SO beautiful and brave. I pray that God sends you the most incredible love story as your heart heals. May the beauty of what is to come outweigh the pain of today. Cheers to the next chapter!” another person said.

It felt like each word was putting a piece of my heart back in place, affirming what I had always believed to be true: that everything happens exactly as it should.

Through good times and bad, I hold on to that. Thanks to the big, crazy family you see in this video, I know one thing: it’s much easier to get through life’s challenges when you’re surrounded by love and support.

Now I’ve found that in thousands of people I’ve never met. That’s made all the difference. And to those who are currently carrying their own pain from one stranger to another: I’m giving that love, support, and strength right back to you. We can do this. And the best part? We’ll come out even stronger on the other side.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com.