Creating something memorable
Fiona Brown Celebrant HMD Services for Naming, Weddings, Funerals
Fiona Brown Celebrant HMD Services for Naming, Weddings, Funerals
Poems (or even parts of poems) can also be used as
Wedding Vows or Readings
During the signing of the register a music recital or reading can be presented by a family friend.
To the Love of My Life –
How many ways can I say I love you and still make you smile?
I’ll cross my fingers that whether or not my words measure up, you’ll at least know that you and you alone hold the key to my heart.
I love you for your thoughtfulness and tenderness,
For always being so good to me,
For your easy attitude,
Your faithfulness and loyalty,
And your commitment to us.
I love you because you let me be who I am,
Because you want the best for me, and because you love me too.
I want to be the happy in your birthdays,
The merry in your Christmases,
The light in your darkness.
I want to be everything to you that you are to me.
Does this sound like I love you,
That I’m smitten to the core,
And that no one could ever take your place?
I just know this...as long as my heart beats, I will love you –
My partner, my funny valentine, the love of my life, and my best friend.
No matter what happens, I’ll be just fine as long as you are my roommate in this place called life.
Donna Fargo
To my Soul Mate
I am so glad that you are a part of my life.
It is a privilege to know you,
To share myself with you,
And to walk together on the paths that take us in so many beautiful directions.
I had heard of ‘soul mates’ before,
But I never knew such a person could exist
Until I met you.
Somehow, out of all the twists and turns our lives could have taken,
And out of all the chances we might have missed,
It almost seems like we were given a meant-to-be moment to meet,
To get to know one another,
And to set the stage for a special togetherness.
When I am with you, I know that I am in the presence of someone who makes life more complete than I ever dreamed it could be.
I turn to you for trust, and you give it openly.
I look to you for inspiration, for answers, and for encouragement, and
Not only do you never let me down, you lift my spirits up and take my thoughts to places where my troubles seem so much farther away,
And my joys feel like they’re going to stay in my life forever.
I want you to stay forever. You’re my soul mate.
And I want you to know that my world is reassured by you,
My tomorrows need to have you near, so many of my smiles depend on you,
And my heart is so thankful that you’re here.
Carey Martin
I’m so lucky to have found you
Once in a lifetime,
You find someone
Who touches not only your heart,
But also your soul.
Once in a lifetime,
You discover someone
Who stands beside you,
Not over you.
Once in a lifetime,
You find someone
Who loves you for who you are
And not for who you could be
Once in a lifetime,
‘If you’re lucky,
You find someone
As I have found you.
Nanci Brillant
You Are my Forever Love
As long as I have you, I have everything I need
Your friendship and love, and all the wonderful things that they bring to my life, are like nothing else I’ve ever known.
My heart is complete with the love we share, and our love grows more beautiful each day.
Moments of success may come and go, and material things bring us momentary joy. But you are with me always...in a smile, a touch, a memory, a feeling, or a moment we share.
Friends enter our lives, sometimes only for a short time, but the friendship we share is deep and secure. Even if everyone else suddenly left me, I know that I’d still have you as my best friend.
We pass through different phases of life with all their changes and challenges, and one day turns into another. But through it all, our love is constant.
You lend me strength when I need it most and give me a precious gift each day by loving me just the way I am.
I don’t know how you do it, but in your own special way, you fill my life and heart with a wondrous joy that will always be present. You make my life complete, and I love you.
Linda Sackett-Morrison
In Marriage, Two People Can Create an Infinite Love Regina Hill
When two people join together and bond their lives forever because they are certain they have something special that will make their marriage last...this is the first act of faith in each other.
Upon this act of faith, these two people will build a life. And as long as their determination stays with them, this life will always be their hope, their dream, their truth, their being, their inspiration, and their source of strength.
Through their life together, they will hurt and laugh.
Together, they will feel all of life’s ups and downs.
They will learn and grow through trial and error.
The lessons will show them the meaning of true love and the difference between a love that lasts and one that just gives up.
These two people will face each failure together and discover the strength to go on.
They will encourage each other’s dreams and forgive each other’s faults.
Through a labour of love, these two will become as one – fighting against the odds and ultimately creating a marriage that will grow into an infinite love.
Something to Remember on your Wedding Day and Forever.
We are not meant to go through life alone.
We need a partner who will forever remain by our side –
Someone to lean on at times,
Remembering, as well,
That we will be leaned on, too;
Someone to share our joy and hold us in sorrow.
Understand that there will be difficult times,
And doubt may cloud your lives.
It is then that you must trust each other the most
And believe that love will sustain you.
Do not give up easily;
Fight for what is most precious – Your marriage.
Help it survive - By nurturing it every single day.
Never hesitate to say, ‘I love you”
Or to be the first one to say, ‘I’m sorry.’
Give a lot and Overlook even more,
And always expect as much in return.
Never look back, or lose yourself,
Celebrate the special privilege of being a couple.
Never lose sight of what brought you to the altar in the first place:
Your special love for each other.
Cherish that always.
Linda Hersey
Marriage Is...
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...
Marriage is...
Hard work. It means chores, disagreements, misunderstanding, 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 to a long way toward keeping peace and harmony.
Marriage is...
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 disappointing 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 partnership 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.
Barbara Cage
My Vow
I will love you without fear
Trust you without wondering
Love you without restrictions
Want you without demand
Accept you how you are
I’m going to live the rest of my life
Proving to you
You made the right decision
My Flame
I don’t know how or why we ever met,
but I needed your love and then you were there…
I am the luckiest woman in the world…
There is a love in you heart like I have never felt before
and a flame in your eyes that sparks and excites my soul…
I fall in love with you more each and every day…
~Karen Kostyla
Marriage Joins Two People in the Circle of Its Love, by Edmund O'Neill
Marriage is a commitment to life, the best that two people can find and bring out in each other.
It offers opportunities for sharing and growth that no other relationship can equal.
It is a physical and an emotional joining that is promised for a lifetime.
Within the circle of its love, marriage encompasses all of life's most important relationships.
A wife and a husband are each other's best friend, confidant, lover, teacher, listener, and critic. And there may come times when one partner is heartbroken or ailing, and the love of the other may resemble the tender caring of a parent for a child.
Marriage deepens and enriches every facet of life.
Happiness is fuller, memories are fresher, commitment is stronger, even anger is felt more strongly, and passes away more quickly.
Marriage understands and forgives the mistakes life is unable to avoid.
It encourages and nurtures new life, new experiences, and new ways of expressing a love that is deeper than life.
When two people pledge their love and care for each other in marriage, they create a spirit unique unto themselves which binds them closer than any spoken or written words.
Marriage is a promise, a potential made in the hearts of two people who love each other and takes a lifetime to fulfil.
The Art of Marriage by Wilfred A Peterson
A good marriage must be created.
In the 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 at no time taking the other for granted; the courtship should not end with the honeymoon, it should continue through all the years.
It is having a mutual sense of values and common objectives.
It is standing together facing the world.
It is forming a circle of love that gathers in the whole family.
It is doing things for each other, not in the attitude of duty or sacrifice, but in the spirit of joy.
It is speaking words of appreciation, and demonstrating gratitude in thoughtful ways.
It is not expecting the husband to wear a halo or the wife to have the wings of an angel.
It is not looking for perfection in each other.
It is cultivating flexibility, patience, understanding and a sense of humour.
It is having the capacity to forgive and forget.
It is giving each other an atmosphere in which each can grow.
It is finding room for the things of the Spirit.
It is a common search for the good and the beautiful.
It is establishing a relationship in which the independence is equal, dependence is mutual, and the obligation is reciprocal.
It is not only marrying the right partner, it is BEING the right partner.
This is The Art of Marriage.
To My Soul Mate-Carey Martin
I am so glad that you are a part of my life.
It is a privilege to know you, to share myself with you, and to walk together on the paths that take us in so many beautiful directions.
I had heard of ‘soul mates’ before, but I never knew such a person could exist, until I met you.
Somehow, out of all the twists and turns our lives could have taken, and out of all the chances we might have missed, it almost seems like we were given a meant-to-be moment - to meet, to get to know one another, and to set the stage for a special togetherness.
When I am with you, I know that I am in the presence of someone who makes my life more complete that I ever dreamed it could be.
I turn to you for inspiration, for answers, and for encouragement, and, not only do you never let me know, you lift my spirits up and take my thoughts to places where my troubles seem so much farther away and my joys feel like they’re going to stay in my life forever.
I hope you’ll stay forever, too.
I feel like you’re my soul mate.
And I want you to know that my world is reassured by you, my tomorrows need to have you near, so many of my smiles depend on you, and my heart is so thankful that you’re here.
Love is not something you say and it happens… it is a feeling that is felt deep in the heart and I feel it for you… Only for You.
On your Wedding Day by Linda Hersey
We are not meant to go through life alone.
We need a partner who will forever remain by our side.
Someone to lean on at times, remembering, as well, that we will be leaned on, too; someone to share our joy and hold us in sorrow.
Understand that there will be difficult times, and doubt may cloud your lives.
It is then that you must trust each other the most and believe that love will sustain you.
Do not give up easily; fight for what is most precious – your marriage. Help it survive by nurturing it every single day.
Never hesitate to say, ‘I love you’, or to be the first one to say, ‘I’m sorry.’
Give a lot, overlook even more, and always expect as much in return.
Never look back or lose yourself, but celebrate the special privilege of being a couple.
Never lose sight of what brought you to the alter in the first place: your special love for each other.
Cherish that always.
You have my best wishes as you take this giant step forward. I wish you nothing but happiness as you enter this wonderful new world of marriage.
Extract from 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 promulgation 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, and this is both an art and a fortunate accident.
Those that truly love have roots that grow towards each other underground, and when all the pretty blossoms have fallen from their branches, they find that they are one tree and not two.
Marriage Is... by Barbara Cage
Marriage is...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....
Marriage is...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.
Marriage is...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 disappointing 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 partnership 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.
Shakespeare Sonnet 116
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:
O, no! It is an ever-fix'd 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 lov'd.
In Marriage by Regina Hill
In marriage, two people can create an infinite love.
When two people join together and bond their lives forever because they are certain they have something special that will make their marriage last...this is the first act of faith.
Upon this act of faith, these two people will build a life.
And as long as their determination stays with them, this life will always be their hope, their dream, their truth, their being, their inspiration, and their source of strength.
Through their life together, they will hurt and laugh.
Together, they will feel all of life’s ups and downs.
They will learn and grow through trial and error.
The lessons will show them the meaning of true love and the difference between a love that lasts and one that just gives up.
These two people will face each failure together and discover the strength to go on. They will encourage each other’s dreams and forgive each other’s faults.
Through a labour of love, these two will become as one – fighting against the odds and ultimately creating a marriage that will grown into an infinite love.
Frank Yerby - Novelist
You are a part of me.
I do not know
By what slow chemistry you first became
A vital fibre of my being.
Go Beyond the rim of time or space, the same
Inflections of your voice will sing their way
Into the depths of my mind still.
Your hair
Will gleam as bright, the artless play
Of word and glance, gesture and the fair
Young fingers waving, have too deeply etched
The pattern of your soul on mine. Forget
Me quickly as a laughing picture sketched
On water, I shall never know regret
Knowing no magic ever can set free
That part of you that is a part of me.
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
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 not 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 which 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!
Extract from The Irrational Season, by Madeleine L'Engle
Ultimately there comes a time when a decision must be made.
Ultimately two people who love each other must ask themselves how much they hope for as their love grows and deepens, and how much risk they are willing to take.
It is indeed a fearful gamble. Because it is the nature of love to create, a marriage itself is something which has to be created.
To marry is the biggest risk in human relations that a person can take. If we commit ourselves to one person for life this is not, as many people think, a rejection of freedom; rather it demands the courage to move into all the risks of freedom, and the risk of love which is permanent; into that love which is not possession, but participation.
It takes a lifetime to learn another person.
When love is not possession, but participation, then it is part of that co-creation which is our human calling.
The Magic of Love by Helen Steiner Rice
Love is like magic, and it always will be,
For love still remains life's sweet mystery.
Love works in ways that are wondrous and strange,
And there's nothing in life that love cannot change!
Love can transform the most commonplace
Into beauty and splendour and sweetness and grace.
Love is unselfish, understanding and kind,
For it sees with its heart, and not with its mind.
Love is the answer that everyone seeks;
Love is the language that every heart speaks.
Love can't be bought, it is priceless and free.
Love, like pure magic, is life's sweet mystery!!
Extract from The Hungering Dark by Frederick Buechner
Matrimony is called holy, because this brave and fateful promise of a man and a woman, to love and honour and serve each other through thick and thin, looks beyond itself to more fateful promises still, and speaks mightily of what human life at its most human and most alive and most holy must always be.
Every wedding is a dream, and every word that is spoken there means more than it says, and every gesture - the clasping of hands, the giving of rings - is rich with mystery. And so it is that we hope with every bride and groom, that the love they bear one another, and the joy they take in one another, may help them grow in love for this whole world where their final joy lies.
You are my forever love by Linda Sackett-Morrison
You are my forever love.
As long as I have you, I have everything I need...
Your friendship and love, and all the wonderful things that they bring to my life, are like nothing else I’ve ever known.
My heart is complete with the love we share, and our love grows more beautiful each day.
Moments of success may come and go, and material things bring us momentary joy.
But you are with me always...in a smile, a touch, a memory, a feeling, or a moment we share.
Friends enter our lives, sometimes only for s short time, but the friendship we share is deep and secure.
Even if everyone else suddenly left me, I know that I’d still have you as my best friend.
We pass through different phases of life with all their changes and challenges, and one day turns into another.
But through it all, our love is constant.
You lend me strength when I need it most, and give me a precious gift each day by loving me just the way I am.
I don’t know how you do it, but in your own special way, you fill my life and heart with wondrous joy that will always be present.
You make my life complete, and I love you.
To the Love of My Life by Donna Fargo
How many ways can I say I love you and still make you smile?
I’ll cross my fingers that whether or not my words measure up, you’ll at least know that you and you alone hold the key to my heart.
I love you for your thoughtfulness and tenderness, for always being so good to me, for your easy attitude, your faithfulness and loyalty, and your commitment to us.
I love you because you let me be who I am, because you want the best for me, and because you love me, too.
I want to be the happy in your birthday, the merry in your Christmas, the light in your darkness. I want to be everything to you that you are to me.
Does this sound like I love you, that I’m smitten to the core, and that no one could ever take your place?
I just know this...as long as my heart beats; I will love you – my partner, my funny valentine, the love of my life, and by best friend.
No matter what happens, I’ll be just fine as long as you are my roommate in this place called life.
Sonnets from the Portuguese 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 griefs, 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.
I Am Love
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.
Chinese Blessing
Ten thousand things bright
Ten thousand miles, no dust Water and sky one colour
Houses shining along your road.
Scottish Wedding Prayer
Lord help us to remember when we first met and the strong love that grew between us.
To work that love into practical things so that nothing can divide us.
We ask for words both kind and loving and hearts always ready to ask forgiveness as well as to forgive.
Dear Lord, we put our marriage into your hands.
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
Irish Wedding Blessing
You are the star of each night,
You are the brightness of every morning,
You are the story of each guest,
You are the report of every land.
No evil shall befall you, on hill nor bank,
In field or valley, on mountain or in glen.
Neither above, nor below, neither in sea,
Nor on shore, in skies above,
Nor in the depths.
You are the kernel of my heart,
You are the face of my sun,
You are the harp of my music,
You are the crown of my company
Eskimo Love Song
You are my husband/wife
My feet shall run because of you
My feet dance because of you
My heart shall beat because of you
My eyes see because of you
My mind thinks because of you
And I shall love because of you.
An excerpt from "The Master Speed" by Robert Frost
Two such as you with such a master speed
Cannot be parted nor be swept away
From one another once you are agreed
That life is only life forevermore
Together wing to wing and oar to oar.
“Wedding Prayer” by Robert Lewis Stevenson
Lord, behold our family here assembled.
We thank you for this place in which we dwell,
for the love that unites us,
for the peace accorded us this day,
for the hope with which we expect the morrow,
for the health, the work, the food,
and the bright skies that make our lives delightful;
for our friends in all parts of the earth.
Amen
"The Bargain" by Sir Philip Sidney'
My true love hath my heart, and I have his,
By just exchange one for another given:
I hold his dear, and mine he cannot miss,
There never was a better bargain driven:
My true love hath my heart, and I have his.
His heart in me keeps him and me in one,
My heart in him his thoughts and senses guides:
He loves my heart, for once it was his own,
I cherish his because in me it bides:
My true love hath my heart, and I have his.
"A Dedication to My Wife" by T.S. Eliot
To whom I owe the leaping delight
That quickens my senses in our waking-time
And the rhythm that governs the repose of our sleeping-time,
The breathing in unison
Of lovers whose bodies smell of each other
Who think the same thoughts without need of speech
And babble the same speech without need of meaning.
No peevish winter wind shall chill
No sullen tropic sun shall wither
The roses in the rose-garden which is ours and ours only
But this dedication is for others to read:
These are private words addressed to you in public.
"To My Dear and Loving Husband" by Anne Bradstreet
If ever two were one, then surely we.
If ever man were loved by wife, then thee;
If ever wife was happy in a man,
Compare with me ye women if you can.
I prize thy love more that whole mines of gold,
Or all the riches that the East doth hold.
My love is such that rivers cannot quench,
Nor ought but love from thee give recompense.
Thy love is such I can no way repay,
The heavens reward thee manifold I pray.
Then while we live, in love let’s so persevere,
That when we live no more, we may live ever.
Native American Blessing
May the sun
bring you new energy by day.
May the moon
softly restore you by night.
May the rain
Wash away your worries.
May the breeze
Blow new strength into your being.
May you walk
Gently through the world and know
It’s beauty all the days of your life.
wash away your worries.
May the breeze
blow new strength into your being.
May you walk
gently through the world and know
its beauty all the days of your life.
~Native American