May we all have a best friend like Ally Lothman.
Lothman had just given birth to her first child (according to Today.com) and was unable to make it to the wedding of her lifelong best friend Michelle Levenson. But Lothman’s Maid of Honor duties were still gloriously fulfilled.
A now-viral video, posted to TikTok by wedding photography and videography company Woodell Productions, shows that even though Lothman couldn’t celebrate in person, her FaceTimed wedding toast managed to bring everyone at the reception—along with everyone who watched online—to tears.
“You didn’t think a little bit of childbirth was going to keep me from giving the maid-of-honor speech at my best friend’s wedding, did you?” Lothman begins. Already a pretty epic start.
She continued by sharing one of her favorite memories with the bride.
“There were endless memories to choose from. We would be here all night if I wrote about them all … but I’ll never forget my first evening in Cortona, Italy,” she said.
Lothman seamlessly painted a picture of their adventure together.
“In true Michelle fashion, she had whisked me up and down the incredibly steep winding roads that Tuscan city was perched upon. She had planned my first day to a tee. She showed me an ancient mummy preserved in a church — and I think that may have been the day I was hit by the car and then promptly asked out on a date by the Italian man inside the car.”
“If I remember correctly,” Lothman continued, “it was that late summer sunset that we spent alone in the kind of bar bistro you would see in a life insurance commercial. We drank dry white wine and I remember we were moved to tears together for how beautiful it was.”
Lothman then recalled, whether it was due to the ambiance or the alcohol, that the two friends “had a moment, like the culmination of a lifetime of friendship had brought us to this one special place in time, 5,000 miles from where we grew up.”
But wait, it gets better.
Lothman remarked that their “deep, insightful understanding” of each other made them more than friends. “This was our sisterhood. In fact, I believe it was at this moment that we decided we needed to become sister wives.”
It was at this point that Lothman addressed Levenson’s new husband. And perhaps Lothman’s new husband as well.
“So Matt, I hope you understand: Michelle and I made a pact in 2014 that we would find husbands someday but it would always be sister wives first,” she quipped. “I’m pretty sure this means we all have to live together now — I’ll be bringing a baby so I hope that’s OK.”
This is just the nuts and bolts of it. In truth, the video is full of other gems, including but not limited to a 10 ft long charcuterie board and “the world’s spiciest Bloody Mary.”
Watch:
@woodellproductions Ally couldnt be at her best friends wedding because she just gave birth, so instead she dropped the greatest toast ever and made everyone sob over facetime #georgiaweddingvideographer #atlantaweddingvideographer #2024wedding #2025wedding #weddingvows #weddingtoast #maidofhonorspeech ♬ original sound – Woodell Films
The video has amassed over 2.5 million views, with tons of people sharing how impressed they were with Lothman’s flair for words.
“‘Maybe it was the way the golden light reflected off the landscape and bathed us in its holiness’ like are you KIDDING me? This is incredible,” one person commented.
“This was the most beautiful MOH speech I’ve ever heard,” wrote another.
But even more than that, people were inspired by how Lothman showed up for her friend.
“The epitome of ‘if they wanted to they would.’”