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A bride felt a “rush of emotions” when the unexpected happened while paying tribute to her late father during her wedding ceremony.

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Amy Rose Perry was just seven years old when her dad died on Aug. 5, 1999. In a touching tribute, she decided to honour her dad on her wedding day decades later.

In an exclusive interview with people.com, the 32-year-old said her tribute involved releasing monarch butterflies while marrying groom Matthew Perry in Cape Cod, Mass., on June 14.

When the time came to release the insects, however, the butterflies did something the bride was not expecting: They landed on her.

“In that moment, I felt a rush of emotions — gratitude for the beauty of the moment and a deep sense of connection to those around me,” Amy recalled.

“It was as if the butterflies were reassuring us that love endures, and that my father’s memory would always be a part of our lives,” she added. “I could feel my father’s presence so strongly. It was powerful.”

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Photos captured by photographer Brit Perkins show the butterflies clinging to pieces of the bride’s dress and veil throughout the ceremony. Her husband was likewise touched by the special scene.

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“For him to see those butterflies landing on my dress, over his heart and on my sister’s bouquet was a breathtaking reminder that my father is with us, watching over us, and blessing our union from above,” Amy said.

The monarch butterfly has been a symbol of her father for years, she said, adding that it all began after the creatures landed on her, her mom and sisters when they were out hiking years after his death.

“At exactly noon, the time in which he had passed, a monarch butterfly landed on each of us,” she said. “Ever since that day, monarchs appear on my father’s birthday, Father’s Day and other special occasions. I could not think of something more fitting than being surrounded by a symbol of his presence on my wedding day.”

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Additionally, Amy said family recordings of her father were used for the song their DJ played during the butterfly release at the ceremony.

“Two hugs and kisses for my little girlie whirls,” her dad was heard saying on audio mixed in by the DJ.

“It was truly so special to be able to hear and feel his love on my wedding day,” she said.

The bride also was given a special message from her late father, who wrote her a letter when she was a child.

“He started the card with, “Out of all the cards I have written, this is obviously the most difficult,” Amy said. “This card was different. For the first time, reading this as an adult, I saw these cards and their meaning from his perspective.”

She added: “In the card he also wrote, ‘I will be with you in your heart as you walk down that aisle.’ Little did I know he would be with me more than just in my heart that day.”

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