This Woman Went to Her Engagement Photos Alone for the Most Empowering Reason

The majority of our favorite Disney classics feature a knight in shining armor who comes to the rescue of a “helpless” princess. But what happens when the prince bails? Well, one woman found out the hard way when she and her fiancé called it quits — right before their magical engagement photo shoot. Instead of having her prince by her side, Brooke Lowry found that it’s ok, even beautiful, to be a princess all by yourself.

Three weeks after her engagement was broken off, Lowry headed to Disneyland for her “Happily Ever After” photo shoot — sans fiancé. “It was a bittersweet day,” she told Huffington Post. “What was supposed to be engagement photos turn out to be a solo session because of unforeseen circumstances. The shoot was already confirmed past cancellation, and the dresses carefully chosen and tailored, so I decided to show up anyways hoping to one day look back on the pictures knowing they marked the end of one chapter and the beginning of a new adventure.”

Are we the only ones tearing up here?!

Instead of feeling crummy during her solo photo shoot, Lowry found that people were extraordinarily nice, even for Disneyland. “Everyone was so, so kind,” Lowry said. “My hair and makeup artist Tatiana gifted me her services, a precious Disney employee named Pearl ‘Jay’ Wang heard me talking to the photographer and escorted me on a private tour of the Royal Hall, the princesses inside treated me so gently, I got into the park for free, I had a few guests ask me which princess I was, which made my day, and my photographer Drexelle Park was absolutely amazing in every way…I’m so grateful for the smallest acts of daily kindness that make all the difference in a broken world.”

Although Lowry is a fan of Disney’s classic princesses, she’s also very into the modern ladies who are redefining what it means to be a Disney princess. “These remarkable female characters are put in extreme circumstances, but still display qualities that we all have — strength, beauty, compassion, and courage,” she told HuffPo.

See More: Subtle Ways to Embrace Your Inner Cinderella Bride

And Lowry embodied just that at her magical Disneyland photo shoot. Who knows how many brokenhearted women will benefit from seeing her strength and courage in the midst of such hardship, but what we do know is that she’s most certainly the bravest real-life princess there is. As for her next steps?

“I am not quite sure what the next chapter holds…After wrapping up the shoot at Disneyland and watching the fireworks over the castle on my own, I left feeling like anything was possible. All I can do is have courage, be kind, let go of the past, work hard, dream big, and keep believing.”

Anyone would be lucky to have her in their life.