Being a gypsy with a life of traveling is not as easy as what it looks like. Living with this kind of tradition is challenging in this modern-day but this community has also learned how to be competitive. We have been shown some of their tradition but do we really know them? They are often known because of having their grand gypsy weddings especially the bride’s wedding dress but seeing how they live; how do you think they can afford such big weddings?
Having a stable income when you are a gypsy, for some, is impossible because you don’t settle in one place. Because of this, poverty is a problem for them. But how do they really make a living? When you witness a gypsy wedding, you will notice how grand this event is for them. Knowing that they are a lot traditional, it seems that this event is quite expensive, but since they don’t make a lot of money, we are intrigued how do gypsy afford big weddings. First, let’s take a look at what kind of lifestyle a gypsy has.
Photographer: Neil Kelly
Gypsies Live a Simple Life
While most of us want all the luxury we can have, gypsies are more of having a minimalistic life. They don’t care about living expensively but what matters is they survive day by day. Not to incorporate poverty, but they are happier with this simple life because enjoying moments are more important than being materialistic. Gypsies don’t have a permanent home because their life is more on traveling, because of this, it is impossible for them to have a job at the office and make a lot of money. Most gypsies settle making money by looking for temporary jobs like gardeners, nail artists, and painters. There are also other ways for them to make money like, selling items that they buy in bulk, providing skills services, or even reading palms or tarot cards. Having a lack of education, they use their skills more as an asset. Most gypsies are musically inclined because they often grow up in a community that has a tradition of music, you will see some of them busking on streets with musical instruments and by this, they also earn their money. Having learned about their lifestyle, we know that gypsies are very strict on following culture and traditions, especially at weddings.
Photographer: Marina Ryazantseva
How Do They Prepare for their Wedding
Have you watched the famous TLC show, My Fat American Gypsy Wedding? Well in these episodes, they show how grand a gypsy wedding is! But contrary to popular belief, not everything we saw from the show is true. Although the wedding dresses are truly grand for our eyes, it doesn’t mean that it is entirely expensive. For some, they can really afford expensive ones but not all can spend a lot of money. It is important for their culture that their children should be married in their early teens so their parents, especially the groom’s parents, who do the funding. Although it seems that they do not have a lot of money, they are able to save up for this big event to fulfill their culture and traditions. We have shown the ways of how do gypsies earn money, but who knows if they actually have other ways? They might actually have something that supplies them greatly. The gypsies have a very supportive community and they might be offering sponsorships. They are very generous when it comes to their fellows and they are always willing to give a hand.
Photographer: Scott Webb
Gypsies are often stereotyped by people. Somehow, the term “gypsy” is offensive to them. Their community might be different from us typical people but as much as we deserve respect, we should also give them the same level because we are all living in the same land, we breathe the same air, and we all do a living to survive and to provide our daily needs.
