The reading is selected to add meaning and perspective to your marriage ceremony.  The reading can be read by your officiant or you can invite a loved one up, giving a more personalized touch to your ceremony.  You can choose from the readings below or we can include any other reading that you enjoy the words to of that has meaning to the two of you.
 
"A Beautiful Journey" by Donna Fargo.
 
"A great marriage begins with two people joined together in love as partners and best friends. 
It's a commitment to always be on each other's side, sharing everything...
When two people become one in spirit, every joy is doubled and every disappointment is diminished.  They live their lives in an attitude of cooperation with each other.  They plan on togetherness.  They listen.  They hope.  They dream.  They make mistakes.  They understand.  They forgive.  And they move on ...together.  They're loyal to each other and steadfast in their pledge to be there for each other forever...through sickness or health, poverty, wealth, or whatever.
For these two people, love is the magic that keeps them together and guides them on their journey,
enhancing their lives and assuring their happiness."
 
"A Good Marriage" by Pearl S. Buck
 
"A good marriage is one where love is not destroyed.  Love changes, of course, in its manifestation as time goes on and as individuals achieve higher levels of maturity, but change does not mean destruction.  It can and should mean growth.  A good marriage is one which allows for change and growth in the individuals and in the way they express their love
 
"A History of Love" by Diane Ackerman
 
"Love.  What a small word we use for an idea so immense and powerful.  It has altered the flow of history, calmed monsters, kindled works of art, cheered the forlorn, turned tough guys to mush, consoled the enslaved, driven strong women mad, glorified the humble, fuelled national scandals, bankrupted robber barons, and made mincemeat of kings.  How can love's spaciousness be conveyed in the narrow confines of one syllable?  Love is an ancient delirium, a desire older than civilization, with taproots spreading into deep and mysterious days.  The heart is a living museum.  In each of its galleries, no matter how narrow or dimly lit, preserved forever like wondrous diatoms, are our moments of loving, and being loved."

"A Marriage" by Mark Twain
 
A marriage...makes two fractional lives a whole;
It gives to two purposeless lives a work,
and doubles the strength of each to perform it;
It gives to two questioning natures a reason for living,
and something to live for
It will give a new gladness to the sunshine,
a new fragrance to the flowers,
a new beauty to the earth,
and a new mystery to life.
 
"A Reminder for the One I Love" by Rachyl Taylor
 
"We say 'I love you' just about every day.  Sometimes the words are whispered as we fall asleep at night; sometimes they're spoken at the end of a phone conversation or accompanied by a quick kiss as we rush out the door.  The words are always there, but sometimes we forget to think about how much they really mean.
Every time you hear me say those three little words, I want you to remember that they're coming from the bottom of my heart.  I want you to remember that I love you for everything you are and for everything I am with you.  I want you to remember that you're the best person I've ever known and I feel so lucky to have you in my life.
I want you to remember that true love is forever and there is no love truer than the love I feel for you.  I want you to remember that you're the most wonderful thing that has ever happened to me, my happy ending my dream come true, my friend and my love all wrapped up in one."
 
Excerpt from “The Art of a Good Marriage” by Wilferd Arlan Peterson

 

"A good marriage must be created.
In marriage the "little" things are the big things.
It is never being too old to hold hands.
It is remembering to say, ”I love you" at least once a day.
It is never going to sleep angry.
It is having a mutual sense of values, and common objectives.
It is standing together and facing the world.
It is forming a circle that gathers in the whole family.
It is speaking words of appreciation, and demonstrating gratitude in thoughtful ways.
It is having the capacity to forgive and forget.
It is giving each other an atmosphere in which each can grow.
It is a common search for the good and the beautiful.
It is not only marrying the right person -- it is being the right partner."

 
"A Wonderful Gift" by Douglas Pagels
 
"Always remember the wishes and the romance and all the reasons your love came to be.  Never forget that love can see you through anything:  all you have to do is just let it.  Never turn away from the sweetness of sharing.  You're both so incredibly lucky:  never forget it.  Never let the important things go unspoken.  The dreams you have together are guideposts in your days; never forsake them. The roads you walk together will lead to a deepening joy; go hand-in-hand as best friends on your way.  Never forget that many people search all their lives for the kinds of smiles you have been blessed with.  Be sure to remember that love will always be life's most beautiful gift.  Share, support, speak from the heart and listen with your very souls.  Know that there will be times when you may disagree; nothing could be more natural.  Simply remember that when you see things from two different perspectives, you need to give and make a compromise.  The longest-lasting and most loving unions in the worlds all have moments when their journeys have uphill climbs.  But the secret they share is knowing beyond any clouds that come along, the sun will keep on shining above.  As you continue on your path together, you will come across more joys than you'll ever be able to count.  And you'll keep on discovering that the 'forever' kind of love is the very best thing there is.  May you always and forever be lovingly blessed with this exquisite and wonderful gift...because you deserve to have all the joyous rewards... of a truly great relationship."
 
"Advise for a Marriage" by Carol Howard
 
"Treat each other with respect and kindness.  Be open-minded, so that you may see each other's point of view.  Listen to your heart and with your heart.  Be patient when things don't go right; eventually, they'll be replaced by good things.   Be loving, especially when the other is hurting over something.  Be honest and don't hold back your feelings.  Laugh a lot at yourselves and with each other.
Enjoy the good times, and think of them more often than the bad ones.  Be there for one another at all times.  Make yourself, as well as your spouse, happy, and let them find their own happiness, too.  Share all things; learn new things.  Always remember the times when you first fell in love and all the special moments.  Keep making every year special and always love one another."
 
"Because" by Steven Reiser
 
Because we have things in common
We have the joy of sharing them
Because we are so different
There is so much we can learn from each other
Because we love each other
We look for the good in the other
Because we are forgiving
We overlook the faults in each other
Because we are patient
We give each other time to understand
Because we are filled with kindness
We compliment the things we do for each other
Because we can empathize
We know what it's like to stand in each other's shoes
Because we have character
We enjoy each other's uniqueness
Because we have faith
We believe in the best for the future
Because we are honest
We are comfortable to trust each other
Because we are filled with loyalty
We always know the other will be there
 
"Benediction of the Apaches"
 
Now you will feel no rain,
For each of you will be shelter to the other.
Now you will feel no cold,
For each of you will be warmth to the other
Now there is no more loneliness for you
For each of you will be companion to the other.
Now you are two bodies,
But there is only one life before you.
Go now to your dwelling place,
To enter into the days of your togetherness.
And may your days be good and long upon the earth
 
"Blessing For A Marriage" by James Dillet Freeman
 
May your marriage bring you all the exquisite excitements a marriage should bring, and may life grant you also patience, tolerance and understanding.  May you always need one another -- not so much to fill your emptiness as to help you to know your fullness.  A mountain needs a valley to be complete.  The valley does no make the mountain less, but more.  And the valley is more a valley because it has a mountain towering over it.  So let it be with you and you.  May you need one another, but not out of weakness.  May you want one another, but not out of lack.  May you entice one another, but not compel one another.  May you embrace one another, but not out encircle one another,  May you succeed in all-important ways with one another and not fail in the little graces.  May you look for things to praise, often say, "I love you!" and take no notice of small faults.  If you have quarrels that push you apart, may both of you hope to have good sense enough to take the first step back.  May you enter into the mystery that is the awareness of one another's presence -- no more physical than spiritual, warm and near when you are side by side, and warm and near when you are in separate rooms or even distant cities.  May you have happiness, and may you find it making one another happy.  May you have love and may you find it loving one another.
 
"Falling In Love" - Author unknown

 

“Falling in love is like being first to discover the most beautiful thing in the world or finding something so lovely that no one else had ever noticed. It is like glimpsing the first evening star or the rainbow that unexpectedly appears in the midst of a storm.  Love often starts in little ways. It comes quietly with a smile, a glance or a touch, but you know it's there because suddenly you're not alone and the sadness inside you is gone. Love means finally finding a place in this world that shelters you and is your very own - where you feel you have been forever.”
 

"Friendship" by Judy Bielicki
 
“It is often said that it is love that makes the world go round. However, without doubt, it is friendship which keeps our spinning existence on an even keel. True friendship provides so many of the essentials for a happy life-it is the foundation on which to build an enduring relationship, it is the mortar which bonds us together in harmony, and it is the calm, warm protection we sometimes need when the world outside seems cold and chaotic. True friendship holds a mirror to our foibles and failings, without destroying our sense of worthiness. True friendship nurtures our hopes, supports us in our disappointments, and encourages us to grow to our best potential. (Bride) and (Groom) came together as friends. Today, they pledge to each other not only their love, but also the strength, warmth and, most importantly, the fun of true friendship.”
 
“Gift from the Sea” by Anne Morrow Lindbergh 
 
"When you love someone, you do not love them all the time, in exactly the same way, from moment to moment. It is an impossibility. It is even a lie to pretend to. And yet this is exactly what most of us demand. We have so little faith in the ebb and flow of life, of love, of relationships. We leap at the flow of the tide and resist in terror its ebb. We are afraid it will never return. We insist on permanency, on duration, on continuity; when the only continuity possible, in life as in love, is in growth, in fluidity - in freedom, in the sense that the dancers are free, barely touching as they pass, but partners in the same pattern.  The only real security is not in owning or possessing, not in demanding or expecting, mot in hoping, even. Security in a relationship lies neither in looking back to what was in nostalgia, nor forward to what it might be in dread or anticipation, but living in the present relationship and accepting it as it is now. Relationships must be like islands, one must accept them for what they are here and now, within their limits - islands, surrounded and interrupted by the sea, and continually visited and abandoned by the tides.”
 
“Hug O' War” by Shel Silverstein (A Great Reading for Children)
 
"I will not play at tug o' war. I'd rather play at hug o' war, where everyone hugs instead of tugs, where everyone giggles, and rolls on the rug, where everyone kisses, and everyone grins, and everyone cuddles, and everyone wins.”
 
From "The Velveteen Rabbit" by Margery Williams (A Great Reading for Children)

 

"What is REAL?" asked the Rabbit one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender, before Nana came to tidy the room. "Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?" 
"Real isn't how you are made, "said the Skin Horse."  It's a thing that happens to you.  When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real."  
"Does it hurt?" asked the Rabbit.
"Sometimes," said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful.  "When you are Real you don't mind being hurt."
"Does it happen all at once, like being wound up," he asked, "or bit by bit?"
"It doesn't happen all at once,' said the Skin Horse.  "You become.  It takes a long time.  That's why it doesn't happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept.  Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby.  But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand."
 

"I am Love" - Author unknown
 
Some say I can fly on the wind, yet I haven’t any wings. Some have found me floating on the open sea, yet I cannot swim. Some have felt my warmth on cold nights, yet I have no flame. And though you cannot see me, I lay between two lovers at the hearth of fireplaces. I am the twinkle in your child’s eyes. I am hidden in the lines of your mother's face. I am your father's shield as he guards your home. And yet… Some say I am stronger than steel, yet I am as fragile as a tear. Some have never searched for me, yet I am around them always. Some say I die with loss, yet I am endless. And though you cannot hear me, I dance on the laughter of children. I am woven into the whispers of passion. I am in the blessings of Grandmothers. I embrace the cries of newborn babies. And yet… Some say I am a flower, yet I am also the seed. Some have little faith in me, yet I will always believe in them. Some say I cannot cure the ill, yet I nourish the soul. And though you cannot touch me, I am the gentle hand of the kind. I am the fingertips that caress your cheek at night. I am the hug of a child. I am love.
 
"In Marriage" by Susan Polis Schutz
 
In marriage you make the most beautiful commitment in life - to love each other forever. You will share work and play, happiness and sadness, goals and values, family and friends, excitement and boredom. You will build a life which is stronger because you are now part of a team - a team which should go through life holding hands always cheering for each other. In marriage you make the most beautiful commitment in life - two people in love joining together to become one forever.
 
"In Your Life Together" by Jon Peyton
 

In your life together... you'll have times of laughter when the sun comes to rise in your hearts and everything is perfect. You'll also have to hold on to each other and make it through times that challenge who you are and what you mean to each other.
You'll experience moments that will live forever in your minds. Your marriage will be a shining example of what two people can achieve when their hearts are in tune and their spirits are set free by trust and support to follow their dreams.
Most of all, you will learn what it means to truly love - to dedicate your hearts to the commitment, sacrifice, and awareness it takes to make love last forever.
 
“Love” by Michele Weber

 

"Love doesn't mean that you will never feel pain of live a life free from care. It doesn't mean that you will never be hurt or that your life will be perfect, with every moment consumed by happiness.
Love does mean that you will always have a companion, someone to help you through the difficult times and rejoice with you in your times of celebration. Love does mean that each argument is followed by a time of forgiveness, and each time of sorrow is far outweighed by all the tender moments spent in each other's arms.
Love is the miracle that can take two lives and mold them into one, take two souls and bind them for life, take two hearts and fill them with enough passion and tenderness to last a lifetime.
Love is a blessing that will lead you down life's most beautiful path."
 
“Love Endures” by Douglas Pagels
 
"There are few miracles in this universe as amazing as love. When it is true and real and lasting, it forms an unbreakable bond between two very fortunate people. It lets one know that it is always there, always caring. It lives in the deepest part of the heart, but it sneaks out as often as it can...to inspire a grin on the face, a smile in the eyes, a serenity in the soul, and a quiet gratitude in the days.. Love is giving and forgiving, taking and partaking of the sweetest joys and most comforting reassurances imaginable. Love can work wonders. It can travel a thousand miles in the span of one second, and it can take every hope and well-wishing along with it on the journey. Love can feel at home no matter where it is, as long as it knows that it has a companion there by its side to make each place, each day, and each moment a space and a time of sharing. Love is amazing, precious, and beautiful. It's there for the giving, here for the receiving. Love is what I want to give to you and what I pray that you will always share with me. Love endures, and love will make sure that we're as happy as two people can be."
 

Love is like owning a Dog by Taylor Mali

​

First of all, it’s a big responsibility, especially in a city like New York.
So think long and hard before deciding on love. On the other hand, love gives you a sense of security:
when you’re walking down the street late at night and you have a leash on love ain’t no one going to mess with you. Because crooks and muggers think love is unpredictable. Who knows what love could do in its own defence?  On cold winter nights, love is warm. It lies between you and lives and breathes and makes funny noises. Love wakes you up all hours of the night with its needs.It needs to be fed so it will grow and stay healthy. Love doesn’t like being left alone for long. But come home and love is always happy to see you. It may break a few things accidentally in its passion for life, but you can never be mad at love for long. Is love good all the time? No! No! Love can be bad. Bad, love, bad! Very bad love. Love makes messes.  Love leaves you little surprises here and there. Love needs lots of cleaning up after. Sometimes you just want to get love fixed. Sometimes you want to roll up a piece of newspaper and swat love on the nose, not so much to cause pain, just to let love know Don’t you ever do that again! Sometimes love just wants to go out for a nice long walk. Because love loves exercise. It will run you around the block and leave you panting, breathless. Pull you in different directions at once, or wind itself around and around you until you’re all wound up and you cannot move. But love makes you meet people wherever you go.
People who have nothing in common but love stop and talk to each other on the street. Throw things away and love will bring them back, again, and again, and again. But most of all, love needs love, lots of it. And in return, love loves you and never stops.

 
“Loving You Brings Me Such Happiness” by Donna Fargo

"Loving you means I'm happy. It means I'm with the person that I want to spend the rest of my life with. It means there's no one else who matter more to me. Loving you gives me the confidence to believe that nothing is impossible for us and together we can get through any challenge we face. Loving you means I am loved by the person I care most about. It means I'm satisfied and excited about life and I am blessed beyond anything I could imagine. Loving you means everything to me."
 
"Marriage Advice From 1886" by Jane Wells
 
"Never go to bed angry.
Let your love be stronger than your hate or anger.
Learn the wisdom of compromise, for it is easier to bend a little than to break.
Believe the best rather than the worst.
People have a way of living up or down to your opinion of them.
Remember that true friendship is the basis for any lasting relationship.
The person you choose to marry is deserving of the courtesies and kindness you bestow on your friends.
Please pass this on to your children and their children's children.
The more things change the more they are the same."
 

"Marriage is" by Barbara Cage
 
“A commitment. Its success doesn't depend on feelings, circumstances, or moods - but on two people who are loyal to each other and the vows they took on their wedding day.
Hard work. It means chores, disagreements, misunderstandings, and times when you might not like each other very much. When you work at it together, it can be the greatest blessing in the world.
A relationship where two people must listen, compromise, and respect. It's an arrangement that requires a multitude of decisions to be made together. Listening, respecting, and compromising go a long way toward keeping peace and harmony.
A union in which two people learn from their mistakes, accept each other's" faults, and willingly adjust behaviours that need to be changed. It's caring enough about each other to work through dissappointing and hurtful times, and believing in the love that brought you together in the first place.
Patience and forgiveness. It's being open and honest, thoughtful and kind. Marriage means talking things out, making necessary changes, and forgiving each other. It's unconditional love at its most understanding and vulnerable - love that supports, comforts, and is determined to triumph over every challenge and adversity.
Marriage is a relationship of two unique people who bring out the very best in each other and who know that even though they are wonderful as individuals... they are even better together."
 
"Marriage Means" by Jan Peyton
 

“On your wedding day, you will take the first step by promising to love, honour and cherish each other for the rest of your lives. From this moment on, you will travel together - sometimes side by side and other times apart, yet always connected by the feelings in your heart and your commitment to the journey. 

Along the way, you have learned love's greatest lessons: how to become one as a couple while remaining strong and independent individuals; how to meet challenges to your relationships in constructive ways; and how to forgive, forget, and move on to create greater levels of trust, passion and closeness.

Remember to cherish each other every day... and celebrate your life together as you walk hand in hand on your way to forever.”

 

“Sonnet 17” by Pablo Neruda 
 
“I don't love you as if you were the salt-rose, topaz or arrow of carnations that propagate fire: I love you as certain dark things are loved, secretly, between the shadow and the soul. I love you as the plant that doesn't bloom, and carries hidden within itself the light of those flowers, and thanks to your love, darkly in my body lives the dense fragrance that rises from the earth. I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where, I love you simply, without problems or pride: I love you in this way because I know no other way of loving but this, in which there is no I or you; so intimate that your hand upon my chest is my hand, so intimate that when I fall asleep it is your eyes that close.”
 
"Sonnet 116" by William Shakespeare 
 
"Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove.
Oh no, it is an ever-fixed mark,
That looks on tempests and is never shaken;
It is the star to every wandering bark
Whose worth’s unknown, although his height be taken
Love’s not time’s fool, though rosy lips and cheeks
Within his bending sickle’s compass come.
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,
But bears it out even to the edge of doom.
If this be error and upon me prov’d,
I never writ, nor no man ever loved."
 
"Sonnet XLIII" by Elizabeth Barrett Browning
 
"How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of Being and ideal Grace.
I love thee to the level of every day's
Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light.
I love thee freely, as men strive for Right;
I love thee purely, as they turn from Praise.
I love thee with the passion put to use
In my old grief's, and with my childhood's faith.
I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
With my lost saints, -- I love thee with the breath,
Smiles, tears, of all my life! -- and, if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death."

“Sooner or Later”

 

“Sooner or later we begin to understand that love is more than verses on valentines, and romance in the movies. We begin to know that love is here and now, real and true, the most important thing in our lives. For love is the creator of our favorite memories, and the foundation of our fondest dreams. Love is a promise that is always kept, a fortune that can never be spent, a seed that can flourish in even the most unlikely of places. And this radiance that never fades, this mysterious and magical joy, is the greatest treasure of all -- one known only by those who love."

 
"Take it One Day at a Time" by Julia Escobar
 

Cherish each other in big ways and in small ways, and never forget the magic of those three little words "I love you"... Remember it is the little things that make the difference... Don't forget the birthdays and the anniversaries. An occasional note means a lot. Share each other's life - even the small details - for too often we forget that day-after-day becomes year-after-year, and then it's gone. Give each other room to grow... we all need our time alone. Keep strong your faith in each other; time has a funny way of testing us, and it's faith that gets us through. Respect one another.. this world could always use more of that. Speak your mind honestly, openly, but with kindness, for angry words are scars that may never heal. Trust each other; let your trust be your rock. Most of all, each day... be sure to hold each other and fall in love all over again.

An excerpt from “The Art of a Good Marriage” by Wilferd Arlan Peterson
 
"A good marriage must be created.
In marriage the "little" things are the big things.
It is never being too old to hold hands.
It is remembering to say, ”I love you" at least once a day.
It is never going to sleep angry.
It is having a mutual sense of values, and common objectives.
It is standing together and facing the world.
It is forming a circle that gathers in the whole family.
It is speaking words of appreciation, and demonstrating gratitude in thoughtful ways.
It is having the capacity to forgive and forget.
It is giving each other an atmosphere in which each can grow.
It is a common search for the good and the beautiful.
It is not only marrying the right person -- it is being the right partner."
 
"The Greatest Commitment of All" by Barbara Cage
 

"It's always exciting when two people are so much in love they willingly pledge to spend the rest of their lives together. Anyone who has ever lived with someone else for more than a week knows that such a commitment takes a whole lot of patience, self-control, compromise, and a sense of humour, as well as open minds, hearts and doors. Fill your time together with love and laughter. Don't take life too seriously; make time to have fun. Listen to and care about each other's feelings, opinions, problems, and dreams. Look for the best and the good, and let go of those things that disappoint or anger you. Learn to communicate in ways that uplift each other. Choose peace, happiness, and love. Make up your minds that your marriage is going to be the best in every way... and it will be"

 
"The Keys to Love" by Robert M. Millay
 
"The key to love is understanding... the ability to comprehend not only the spoken word, but those unspoken gestures, the little things that say so much by themselves.
The key to love is forgiveness... to accept each other's faults and pardon mistakes, without forgetting - but with remembering what you learn from them.
The key to love is trust... though dark doubts lie in hollowed thoughts, it must shine brightly on with reassuring radiance that suppresses fear with faith.
The key to love is sharing... facing your good fortunes as well as the bad, together; both conquering problems - forever searching for ways to intensify your happiness.
The key to love is giving... without thought of return, but with the hope of just a simple smile and by giving in, but never up.
The key to love is respect... realizing that you are two separate people with different ideas, that you don't belong to each other, but htat you belong with each other and share a mutual bond.
The key to love is inside us all... it takes time and patience to unlock all the ingredients that will take you to its threshold; it is a continued learning process that demands a lot of work... but the rewards are more than worth the effort.
And you are the key to me."

 
"The Merchant of Venice" by William Shakespeare
 
"The quality of mercy is not strain'd,
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
Upon the place beneath: it is twice blest;
It blesseth him that gives and him that takes:
'Tis mightiest in the mightiest: it becomes
The throned monarch better than his crown;
His scepter shows the force of temporal power,
The attribute to awe and majesty,
Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings;
But mercy is above this sceptred sway;
It is enthroned in the hearts of kings,
It is an attribute to God himself;
And earthly power doth then show likest God's
When mercy seasons justice. Therefore, [Jew,]
Though justice be thy plea, consider this,
That, in the course of justice, none of us
Should see salvation: we do pray for mercy;
And that same prayer doth teach us all to render
The deeds of mercy."
 
"The Promises of Marriage" by Bettie Meeks & Douglas Pagels
 
"Marriage is the joining of two people who share the promise that only marriage can make - to share the sunshine and the shadows and to experience a richer, more fulfilling life because of it.
A marriage is one of life's most wondrous blessings. It involves taking the words of two life stories and weaving them together on the same pages. Every year, in a thousand special ways, the words that will be written in this remarkable story will reflect the strength and the joy and sorrows. 
A marriage is the precious, reassuring comfort of having a kindred soul care about your day, every day and each tomorrow, your whole life long.
A marriage is the making of a home that seems so meant to be... between a special woman and a special man. A marriage is a beautiful journey along life's road with two people smiling as they go, lovingly... hand in hand."
 
"The True Meaning of "I Do" by Lisa Crofton
 
"There was a time when being married for a lifetime was the rule, not the exception. Today, too many couples believe ``I do`` means until times are tough, they grow tired and impatient with each other, or until they find somebody better. Couples who reach the milestone of each anniversary know better. They know ``I do`` means honouring each other even when they don't understand each other. It means respecting each other even when their opinions differ. It means entrusting each other with their hearts, dreams and lives. It means holding tight when grief, illness or worry threatens to pull them apart. It means fighting with fortitude to stay together during life's most difficult times. Perhaps most important of all, it means pledging to be dearest friends all the days of their lives."
 

 "The Web of Marriage" by Anne Morrow Lindbergh
 
"It is made of loyalties, and interdependencies, and shared experiences. It is woven of memories of meetings and conflicts; of triumphs and disappointments. It is a web of communication, a common language, and the acceptance of lack of language, too; a knowledge of likes and dislikes, of habits and reactions, both physical and mental. It is a web of instincts and intuitions, and known and unknown exchanges. The web of marriage is made by propinquity, in the day to day living side by side, looking outward and working outward in the same direction. It is woven in space and in time of the substance of life itself."
 

"What is a Marriage" by Collin McCarty
 
"It is the most beautiful thing that can happen between two people in love. A marriage is more than just a husband and a wife. It is a bridge which allows the love of two very special people to give meaning and worth and wonder to life. It is a continual process of building of shaping; of communicating; and caring. It is the deepest and sweetest understanding. It is sharing todays and tomorrows together and making each one more treasured and more complete than anyone could make them alone. A marriage is a home interwoven with hopes and memories and dreams. The thankfulness and love it can bring have no comparison. Being happily married is the most beautiful thing that can happen... to anyone."
 
"When We Marry" by Thomas Moore

"When we marry, we are not only linking our lives to another individual, we are also entering a myth that reaches far into the most meaning-giving areas of the heart. The 'happiness' we hope for in marriage is a catchall word that embraces many spoken and unspoken wishes for fulfillment. In a sense, the person we marry offers us an opportunity to enter, explore, and fulfill essential notions of who we are and who we can be."
 
"Your Soul Mate Will" by Miranda Moti
 
"Your Soul Mate Will... Watch you while you sleep... Kiss you out of a bad dream... love every inch of your body... laugh, cry and share with you... celebrate with you... cherish every feeling you experience... be grateful that you're you... whisper sweet somethings in your ear... encourage you to follow your dreams... always be on your side... love you unconditionally"
 
"Your Love Was Meant To Be" by Douglas Pagels
 
"Yours is a story of two people, each with a journey in search of a distant horizon. Two souls whose paths were allowed to cross, whose words felt right at home, and whose smiles discovered that walking the way together could lead to a kind of happiness that only comes along once in a lifetime."
 
"Together in Marriage" by Susan Polis Schutz
 
"Together in marriage you will bring out the best in each other.   You will learn from each other and grow from your differences.  You will be two individuals living your own lives with each other as one.
Together in marriage you will be stonger, more sensitive, more aware, more knowing and more at peace than yo are individually.  You will be better people.
Together in marriage your love will give understanding to all that you do because you will share your ideas, goals and frustrations.  And you will always have someone to support whatever you say and do.
Together in marriage you will be able to achieve all that you want in life."

​

"Soulmate" - Author unknown

A soulmate is someone who challenges you to challenge yourself. Someone who sees the potential that courses through your bones, and who lets you know exactly what you are capable of. They help you to open your eyes, to come to terms with the fact that you are powerful beyond measure. They see you in ways that you have never been able to see yourself, and they are not afraid to inspire you until you finally see it too.
See, a soulmate is someone who is not afraid of your growth. They do not feel the need to close you off, to protect you from becoming as big as you were always meant to be. They do not feel inadequate when they see you soar, when they see something new within you spark. A soulmate is someone who will never vilify you for changing, for doing the things you have always held yourself back from doing because a soulmate knows that you are building yourself into someone you are proud of, and that is so beautiful to them-that is what they have always hoped for you. So no, a soulmate does not complete you, A soulmate inspires you to complete yourself, A soulmate is the person who supports your direction, who motivates and encourages you to stretch, to change to reinvent yourself until you are happy. A soulmate is someone who loves you with so much conviction, and so much heart, that it is nearly impossible to doubt just how capable you are of becoming exactly who you have always wanted to be.​

​

From Bob Marley
​
“Only once in your life, I truly believe, you find someone who can completely turn your world around. You tell them things that you’ve never shared with another soul and they absorb everything you say and actually want to hear more. You share hopes for the future, dreams that will never come true, goals that were never achieved and the many disappointments life has thrown at you. When something wonderful happens, you can’t wait to tell them about it, knowing they will share in your excitement. They are not embarrassed to cry with you when you are hurting or laugh with you when you make a fool of yourself. Never do they hurt your feelings or make you feel like you are not good enough, but rather they build you up and show you the things about yourself that make you special and even beautiful. There is never any pressure, jealousy or competition but only a quiet calmness when they are around. You can be yourself and not worry about what they will think of you because they love you for who you are. The things that seem insignificant to most people such as a note, song or walk become invaluable treasures kept safe in your heart to cherish forever. Memories of your childhood come back and are so clear and vivid it’s like being young again. Colours seem brighter and more brilliant. Laughter seems part of daily life where before it was infrequent or didn’t exist at all. A phone call or two during the day helps to get you through a long day’s work and always brings a smile to your face. In their presence, there’s no need for continuous conversation, but you find you’re quite content in just having them nearby. Things that never interested you before become fascinating because you know they are important to this person who is so special to you. You think of this person on every occasion and in everything you do. Simple things bring them to mind like a pale blue sky, gentle wind or even a storm cloud on the horizon. You open your heart knowing that there’s a chance it may be broken one day and in opening your heart, you experience a love and joy that you never dreamed possible. You find that being vulnerable is the only way to allow your heart to feel true pleasure that’s so real it scares you. You find strength in knowing you have a true friend and possibly a soul mate who will remain loyal to the end. Life seems completely different, exciting and worthwhile. Your only hope and security is in knowing that they are a part of your life.” 
 

"Touched by an Angel" by Maya Angelou

​

We, unaccustomed to courage exiles from delight live coiled in shells of loneliness
until love leaves its high holy temple and comes into our sight to liberate us into life.

Love arrives and in its train come ecstasies old memories of pleasure ancient histories of pain.
Yet if we are bold, love strikes away the chains of fear from our souls.

We are weaned from our timidity In the flush of love's light we dare be brave
And suddenly we see that love costs all we are and will ever be.
Yet it is only love which sets us free.

 

To Diego and Frida by Tina Modotti (taken from a letter to artist Frida Kahlo when she married Diego Rivera)

​

I don't believe in marriage. No, I really don't. Let me be clear about that.

I think at worst it's a hostile political act, a way for small-minded men to keep women in the house and out of the way, wrapped up in the guise of tradition and conservative religious nonsense. At best, it's a happy delusion — these two people who truly love each other and have no idea how truly miserable they're about to make each other.

But, but, when two people know that, and they decide with eyes wide open to face each other and get married anyway, then I don't think it's conservative or delusional. I think it's radical and courageous and very romantic.

​​

"All I Ever Really Needed to Know I Learned in Kindergarten" by Robert Fulghum

​

All of what I really need to know about how to live, and what to do, and how to be, I learned in Kindergarten. Wisdom was not at the top of the graduate school mountain, but there in the sandbox at nursery school. These are the things I learned: Share everything. Play fair. Don’t hit people. Put things back where you found them. Clean up your own mess. Don’t take things that aren’t yours. Say sorry when you hurt somebody. Wash your hands before you eat. Flush. Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you. Give them to someone who feels sad. Live a balanced life. Learn some, and think some, and draw, and paint, and sing, and dance, and play and work every day. Take a nap every afternoon. Be aware of wonder. Remember the little seed in the plastic cup? The roots go down and the plant goes up and nobody really knows how or why, but we all are like that. Everything you need to know is in there somewhere. And it is still true, no matter how old you are, when you go out into the world, it is best to hold hands and stick together.

​

A excerpt from Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's The Little Prince “What does that mean—’tame’?”

​

“It is an act too often neglected,” said the fox. “It means to establish ties.” “Go and look again at the roses. You will understand now that yours is unique in all the world. Then come back to say goodbye to me, and I will make you a present of a secret.” The little prince went away, to look again at the roses. “You are not at all like my rose,” he said. “As yet you are nothing. No one has tamed you, and you have tamed no one. You are like my fox when I first knew him. He was only a fox like a hundred thousand other foxes. But I have made him my friend, and now he is unique in all the world.” And the roses were very much embarrassed. “You are beautiful, but you are empty,” he went on. “One could not die for you. To be sure, an ordinary passerby would think that my rose looked just like you—the rose that belongs to me. But in herself alone she is more important than all the hundreds of you other roses: because it is she that I have watered; because it is she that I have put under the glass globe; because it is she that I have sheltered behind the screen; because it is for her that I have killed the caterpillars; because it is she that I have listened to, when she grumbled, or boasted, or even sometimes when she said nothing. Because she is my rose.” And he went back to meet the fox. “Goodbye,” he said. “Goodbye,” said the fox. “And now here is my secret, a very simple secret: It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.” “What is essential is invisible to the eye,” the little prince repeated, so that he would be sure to remember. “It is the time you have wasted for your rose that makes your rose so important.” “It is the time I have wasted for my rose—” said the little prince, so that he would be sure to remember. “Men have forgotten this truth,” said the fox. “But you must not forget it. You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed. You are responsible for your rose.” “I am responsible for my rose,” the little prince repeated, so that he would be sure to remember.

 

"The Beatrice Letters" by Lemony Snicket

 

“I will love you as a drawer loves a secret compartment, and as a secret compartment loves a secret, and as a secret loves to make a person gasp, and as a gasping person loves a glass of brandy to calm their nerves, and as a glass of brandy loves to shatter on the floor, and as the noise of glass shattering loves to make someone else gasp, and as someone else gasping loves a nearby desk to lean against, even if leaning against it presses a lever that loves to open a drawer and reveal a secret compartment. I will love you until all such compartments are discovered and opened, and until all the secrets have gone gasping into the world.”

 

"If I were to build a house" - Author unknown

 

If I were to build a house

I’d have your arms as the walls

Your eyes as the windows

Your smile as the front door

Your heart as the fireplace

And your soul as my light

And in this house

I’d place my faith

Knowing I’d finally

Found a home.

​

“A Vow” by Wendy Cope

​

“I cannot promise never to be angry;
I cannot promise always to be kind.
You know what you’re taking on, my darling
It’s only at the start that love is blind.
And yet I’m still the one you want to be with
And you’re the one for me – of that I’m sure.
You’re my closest friend, my favourite person,
The lover and the home I’ve waited for.
I cannot promise that I will deserve you
From this day on. I hope to pass that test.
I love you, and I want to make you happy.
I promise I will do my very best.”

 

an excerpt from "The Notebook" by Nicholas Sparks

​

“I am nothing special; just a common (person) with common thoughts, and I’ve led a common life. There are no monuments dedicated to me and my name will soon be forgotten. But in one respect I have succeeded as gloriously as anyone who’s ever lived: I’ve loved another with all my heart and soul; and to me, this has always been enough.”

I don’t think a lot of people understand what real romance is. Anyone can buy flowers and candy and jewelry, there’s no love in that. The truly romantic things in life are those little things you do every day to show you care, and that you’re thinking of them. It’s going out of your way to make them happy. The way you hold her hand when you know she’s scared, or you save the last piece of cake for him. The random text in the middle of the day,just to say’ I love you’ or ‘I miss you’. The way he stops kiss you when he passes by. It’s dedicating her favourite song to her, and letting her eat your fries, and telling her she’s beautiful, even when she’s in her sweats with her hair in a ponytail and no makeup. It’s putting your favourite show on pause so she can tell you about her day, and laughing at his joke even the really lame ones. It’s slow dancing in the kitchen and kissing in the rain. Romance isn’t about buying, it’s about giving. True romance is in the gestures.

​

"Maybe we" - author unknown

​

Maybe we are supposed to meet the wrong people before we meet the right
one so when they finally arrive we are truly grateful for the gift we have been
given.

Maybe it’s true that we don’t know what we have lost until we lose it but it is
also true that we don’t know what we’re missing until it arrives.

Maybe the happiest of people don’t have the best of everything, but make the
best of everything that comes their way.

Maybe the best kind of love is the kind where you sit on the sofa together, not
saying a word, and walk away feeling like it was the best conversation you ever
had.

Maybe once in a lifetime you find someone who not only touches your heart but
also your soul, someone who loves you for who you are and not what you could
be.

Maybe the art of true love is not about finding the perfect person, but about
seeing an imperfect person perfectly.

 

"I will be here" - Author unknown

​

If in the morning when you wake, if the sun does not appear, I will be here.
If in the dark we lose sight of love, hold my hand and have no fear, I will be here.

I will be here, when you feel like being quiet, when you need to speak your mind I will listen.
Through the winning, losing, and trying we’ll be together, and I will be here.

If in the morning when you wake, if the future is unclear, I will be here.
As sure as seasons were made for change, our lifetimes were made for years, I will be here.

I will be here, and you can cry on my shoulder, when the mirror tells us we’re older.
I will hold you, to watch you grow in beauty, and tell you all the things you are to me.

We’ll be together and I will be here. I will be true to the promises I’ve made, to you and to the one who gave you to me.

 

"Captain Corelli's Mandolin" by Louis de Bernieres

​

Love is a temporary madness, it erupts like volcanoes and then subsides.

And when it subsides you have to make a decision. You have to work out whether your roots

have so entwined together that it is inconceivable that you should ever part. Because this is

what love is.

Love is not breathlessness, it is not excitement, it is not the promises of eternal passion. That is

just being in love, which any fool can do. Love itself is what is left over when being in love has

burned away.

So what then, sustains love through the inevitable dwindling of enthusiasm that time brings?

Commitment.

The commitment to stand side by side and confront the world honestly and courageously. The

commitment to sacrifice the worst of ourselves to bring forth the best of ourselves. The

commitment to accept our immutable blemishes and to work tirelessly to rectify our

impermanent flaws. The commitment to understand, ‘this is hard’. It’s supposed to be. For

without resistance how can we grow stronger? For without challenge how can we learn to

overcome? For without heat and pressure, how can coal become diamond?

It is this adventure we choose to embark on that brings forth great transformation. The choice

to be vulnerable, to be compassionate, to be encouraging, to be stern, to be unyielding, to be

courageous. Together these acts and many more create an environment of mutual growth,

where both individuals rise together to become more than either could be alone.

Few things in life provide such an amazing opportunity, and that is why we are all here today,

and will continue to be here supporting the bride and groom as they venture

into the wondrous unknown their future holds.

I will be here.

  

"I Carry your Heart With Me" by E.E. Cummings

​

I carry your heart with me (I carry it in my heart)
I am never without it (anywhere i go you go, my dear; and whatever is done by only me is your doing, my darling)

I fear no fate (for you are my fate, my sweet)
I want no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant and whatever a sun will always sing is you here is the deepest secret nobody knows (here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows higher than soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

I carry your heart (I carry it in my heart)

 

A vow adaptation from The Corpse Bride by Tim Burton, for Jack and Sally

​

With this hand I will lift your sorrows,

Your cup will never be empty, for I will be your wine,

With this candle I will light your darkness,

With this ring, I ask you to be mine.  

​

"Lovely Day" by Bill Withers

​

When I wake up in the morning, love
And the sunlight hurts my eyes
And something without warning, love
Bears heavy on my mind

Then I look at you
And the world's alright with me
Just one look at you
And I know it's gonna be
A lovely day 

When the day that lies ahead of me
Seems impossible to face
When someone else instead of me
Always seems to know the way

Then I look at you
And the world's alright with me
Just one look at you
And I know it's gonna be
A lovely day