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Wedding Readings

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There are literally hundreds 
of poems, readings, prayers, and blessings 
that are appropriate to be read as part of  your 
wedding ceremony.  Here are a just a few of them.

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List of readings

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pink shinny bullet   A Reading Introduction

             By Paul Seifert, The Father of One of Our Grooms

pink shinny bullet   A Reading on Marriage

               From   The Prophet     by   Kahlil Gibran:   

pink shinny bullet   Additional Words on Marriage

              From   The Prophet     by   Kahlil Gibran:   

pink shinny bullet   Guardian of Solitude

                Based on a letter in “A Bride’s Book of Wedding Traditions”     
                by Ranier Marie Rilke

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4   pink shinny bullet   I Love You

               Roy Croft

pink shinny bullet   In a Simple Way, I Love You

               Gretchen Cryer & Nancy Ford   (Fiddler Back Music 1978)
               Sung by   Alliance   on their album titled  “Songs from the Heart” 

6 pink shinny bullet   Dedication to My love

               From The Life Center  Wedding files

pink shinny bullet   Friends & Lovers

               From The Life Center  Wedding files

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pink shinny bullet   I promise Myself

               Based on a reading titled,   “Promise Yourself”    
               (Source unknown)

9   pink shinny bullet   The Traditional Irish Blessing

               Author Unknown

10 pink shinny bullet   Apache Wedding Blessing   (Short version)

              Author Unknown

11 pink shinny bullet   Apache Wedding Blessing   (Long Version)

               Author Unknown

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12 pink shinny bullet   Footprints

                  Author Unknown

13 pink shinny bullet   The Road Not Taken

                Robert Frost

14 pink shinny bullet   Words on Feeling Safe

               George Elloit

15 pink shinny bullet   Loving  Somewhere

                 Source Unknown

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16 pink shinny bullet   The Art of a Good Marriage

              Wilferd Arlan Peterson

17 pink shinny bullet   The Lord’s Prayer

                 From the Christian Bible

18 pink shinny bullet   Loving Thoughts Inspired by The Lord’s Prayer

                  From The Life Center  Wedding files

19 pink shinny bullet   Corinthians Chapter 13         (Short Version)

                 From the Christian Bible

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20 pink shinny bullet   Corinthians  Chapter 13        (Long Version)

                 From the Christian Bible

21 pink shinny bullet   Corinthians Chapter 13           (Edited Version)

                 From the Christian Bible

22 pink shinny bullet   Love Always Prevails

                  From The Life Center  Wedding files

23 pink shinny bullet   The Cyclops Episode

                  From Ulysses, by James Joyce

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24 pink shinny bullet   Sonnet XLIII, From "The Portuguese"

                  Elizabeth Barrett Browning

25 pink shinny bullet   Sonnet XVIII

                  William Shakespeare

26 pink shinny bullet   A Red, Red Rose

                  Robert Burns

27 pink shinny bullet   God Blesses this Marriage

                  From The Life Center  Wedding files

Editor's note  ---  Some of the reading have been edited slightly to make them more functional as part of a wedding ceremony.

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By Paul Seifert, The Father of One of Our Grooms

You asked me to read some poetry about love at your wedding ceremony.   The first surge of love I feel today is the warmth, honor, and pride that comes from the fact that you would ask me to do such readings in celebration of your wedding.   What greater gift could any father ever receive from a child than to be asked to be spokesperson for the greatest spiritual force in life at that beautiful time when the woman he loves is finally wed to him, forever and ever.

      

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From   The Prophet     by   Kahlil Gibran:   

Edited Version

When you find someone you can love and who can love you, then love one another.   And, as you love one another, remember this:  Make your love a joyous, freedom-loving adventure.   Let your love be a moving sea    between the shores of your souls.   Sing, dance, and be joyous together, and yet, let each of you have moments alone.  Let there be spaces in your togetherness so that the winds of the heavens dance between you.

Remember, the strings of the lute are together, yet alone as they quiver with the same music.   As the pillars of the temple stand apart, they serve a common goal.   Fill each other’s cup, and yet, allow each to drink at their own choosing.   Give one another of you bread,  while allowing each to season it to their own taste.

Give your hearts to each other, while providing space for each other's heart to be free,  for there is much in life to be loved.   Let your lover's heart be free to answer the call of life.

Stand together, yet not too near each other, for in the garden of life,  the oak tree & the cypress each have air to breathe and a little earth to call their own,  where the sun can reach down & touch them bringing forth the hidden beauty that lies within each one.   Yes, be together, and be yourself.   Be free, and always be together.

     

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From   The Prophet   On Love     by   Kahlil Gibran

Edited Version   With the last two lines by Rumi

Love  has no desire other than to fulfill itself.
But if your love must have desires, let these  be yours:

To melt and be  like a running brook
that sings its melody into the night.

To know the pain of too much tenderness.
To be wounded by your own understanding of love;
And still give from that wound,  willingly and joyfully.

To wake at dawn with a winged heart
and give thanks for another day of loving;

To rest at the noon’s hour and meditate on love’s ecstasy;
To return home at eventide with gratitude;
And then to sleep with a prayer for the beloved in your heart
and a song of praise upon your lips.

Let the beauty we love be what we do.
There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground.

     

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The following is based on a letter in

“A Bride’s Book of Wedding Traditions”     by Ranier Marie Rilke 

Edited Version

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What works well is to have one of your family members or friends read
A reading on Marriage  “The Prophet” and then have another person read the words below.

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A good marriage is that in which each appoints the other guardian of his solitude.   Each realizes and accepts that even between the closest of human beings,  infinite distances continues to exist.   In such a loving and accepting atmosphere, a wonderful living side by side is born and can grow up.

When the partners succeed in loving the distance between them,  they see each other whole against the wide sky.   Each becomes the treasure beyond measure  at the end of the others rainbow.

In their mystical, magical moments together, their rainbows merge to become a full circle around the brilliant morning sun.   As the sun and moon merge,  their inner senses feel the moon,  full and glowing in the starlit sky.   They become that which transcends thought.   They become that which is perceivable only by the personal experience of those fortunate enough to find and accept the ultimate treasure that any physical human being can receive  ---  the treasure of shared love.

     

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Roy Croft:    Edited  Version

What works well with this poem is to introduce it in the following manner:

     Bride     and     Groom   , I am about to read a poem written by Roy Croft    titled, “I  Love  You.”    As I read this poem, I  invite you to look into each other’s eyes and silently let these words flow from your heart to your partner’s heart. 

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I love you, not only for what you are,
But, for what I am when I am with you.
I love you, not only for what you have made of yourself,
but for what you are making of me.
I love you for the part of me that you bring out.

I love you for looking deeply into my heaped-up heart
and gently passing over all the foolish, and weak things
that you can't help dimly seeing there,
And for drawing out into the light
all the beautiful belongings
that no one else had looked quite far enough to find.

I love you because you are helping me
to make,  of the lumber of my life,  not a tavern,  but a temple;
Out of the works of my every day,  not a reproach,  but a song.

I love you because you have done more
than any creed could have done to make me good,
and more than any fate could have done to make me happy.

You have done it through your touch,  through your looks
through your words,  and through your very being.
You have done it  simply by being yourself.

Perhaps,  after all,  that is what being a friend really means.

     

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Gretchen Cryer & Nancy Ford   (Fiddler Back Music 1978)

Sung by   Alliance   on their album titled  “Songs from the Heart” 

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In a simple way I love you.
That’s something I can do.
I’ll make music while you sing your song.
When I can, I’ll join in  and sing along.
I’m filled with love, I care for you
And I understand what you are going through.

In a simple way I love you,
That’s so easy for me to do.
When you reach out to take my hand.
I’ll be there and beside you stand
Because you’ve made a friend of me.
I’ll help you become whomever you shall choose to be.

I hear your voice as it  sings out.
Speak your piece  and  let it go
I’ll give you room to breathe, and space to grow.

In a simple way I love you.
I’m here to see you through.
I’ll make music while you sing your song.
While you do whatever you choose to do.
I’ll stand beside you rain or shine.
Love has many faces, and one of them is mine.

     

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From The Life Center Wedding Files

Written by a bride for her soon to be husband

Edited slightly

I love you because the Earth turns around the sun;
Because the north wind blows north;
Because winter flows into spring,
And the air clears after a storm;

I love you because only my love for you
despite the charms of gravity
keep me from falling off the Earth
into another dimension.

I love you because
it is the natural order of things.
I am helpless in my love for you.
It makes me so happy to hear you
call my name.

I am amazed you can resist
Locking me in an echo chamber
Where your love reverberates
Through the four walls
Sending me into spasmodic streams of ecstasy. 

I love you because it has been so good for so long.
That if I didn’t love you
I’d have to be born again.
The Angles tell me love is so simple,
And yet, I'm almost pitiful in my love for you.

The very thought of you
Sends incredibly delicious,  multitudinous
thrills throughout and through
my body.  

I love you because no two snow flakes are alike 
and because it is possible, if you stand tippy toes,
to walk between the raindrops. 

I love you because I am afraid of the dark
and can’t sleep in the light.
Because I rub my eyes
when I wake up in the morning
and find you there beside me.
Because you, with all your magic powers,
determined that I should love you.
Because there is nothing else for you
but that I would love you.

I love you because you made me want to love you.
More that I love
My privacy
My freedom
My commitments
And responsibilities.

I love you because I’ve changed my life to love you.
Because you saw me one fateful night
and decided that I would love you.
I love you more than any words can say,
I love you!
Yes, indeed, I do love you!

     

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From The Life Center Wedding Files

based on two short poems provided by

Maureen Donnelly &  Barry DeFreeze  May 9, 1998

We are  lovers because of
the love we make,
the love we have, 
and the love  we share.

We are friends because
of the laughs we spend
and the tears we save.

I love being near you
for the thoughts we share
and for the words
we never have  to speak

When we are apart,
I do miss you
because of what we do together,
but, mostly,  I miss you
because of what we are together.

I know that love is  tucking you in 
and kissing you “good night”
no matter how young
or how old you are.

Love is listening,  laughing
and asking questions
no matter how silly
those questions may sound.

Love is commitment to you
responsibility with you
and most of all,
love is fun because love is
you and me together. 

     

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I promise Myself          

Based on a reading titled,   “Promise Yourself”     

(Source unknown)

I promise myself to be so strong
that  my peace of mind is infinite in depth,   and ever-present;
To speak only of health, happiness and prosperity
to every person I meet;
And to make all of my friends aware
of those special qualities within them.

I promise myself to look at the sunny side
of everything, everyone, and every situation I encounter;
To look at life with optimism and with positive emotions;
thereby eliciting the infinite power of entire universe
in making my dreams come true. 

I promise myself to think about, take action toward
and expect only the best for myself and for everyone else;
And,  to be just as enthusiastic about the success of others,
as I am about my own success.

I promise to forget past mistakes;
Both my own and of those around me.
As an ever unfolding flower,
I promise myself to press on toward a greater future;
To be sincere, to be genuine;
To wear a cheerful countenance, at all times;
And to smile from my heart with warmth and love.

Promise myself to give so much thought and feeling
to the improvement of my own nature
that you have no time or interest in criticizing others.
To be too wise to worry,    too allowing to anger
and too centered in my Divine nature to fear anything outside of myself.

Promise to seek and share joy as my first priority,
to invite personal growth through the new and unexpected
to be free, to encourage others to be free
and above all,   to be happy. 

     

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Author Unknown     Edited Version

May the road rise to meet you,
And the wind be always at your back. 

May the sun shine warm upon your face,
And the rains fall soft upon your fields.

And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of his hand.

May green be the grass you walk upon,
And blue be the skies above you.

May pure be the joys that surround you,
And true be the hearts that love you.

May God be with you, guide you,  and bless you;
So that you see your children's children. 

May you be poor in misfortune,
And
rich in blessings.

May you know mainly happiness,
From this day forward.

     

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Apache  Wedding  Blessing   (Short version)

Author Unknown

Now you will feel no storms,
for each of you is shelter for the other,

Now you will feel no cold,
for each of you is warmth to the other,

Now there’s no loneliness,
for each of you is companion to the other,

You are still two persons,
and now there is only one life before you.

Go this day to your dwelling place
and enter into your days together.

May your days be good and long
upon the earth.

      

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Apache  Wedding  Blessing   (Long version)

Author unknown     Edited

Now you will feel no storms,
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 loneliness,
for each of you is companion to the other,

You are two persons,
but there is one life before you, and one home.

Turn together to look at the road you traveled,
to reach this---the hour of your happiness.
It stretches behind you into the past.

Look to the future that lies ahead.
A long and winding, adventure-filled  road,
whose every turn means discovery,
new hopes, new joys, new laughter,
and a few shared tears.

May happiness be your companion,
May beauty surround you both in the journey ahead;
And through all the years to come.

Go this day to your dwelling place
and enter into your days together.

May your days be good and long
upon the earth.
Your  adventure has just begun!

      

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Author unknown

One night a man had a dream.   He dreamed that he was walking along the beach with the Lord.   Across the sky, flashed scenes from his life.   For each scene, he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand; one belonging to him, and the other to the Lord.

When the last scene of his life flashed before him,  he looked back at the footprints in the sand.   He noticed that many times along the path of his life there was only one set of footprints.   He also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times in his life.

This really bothered him, and he questioned the Lord about it, “Lord, you said that once I decided to follow you, you’d walk with me all the way.    But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life, there is only one set of footprints.    I don’t understand why, when I needed you the most, you would leave me.”

 The Lord replied, “My precious child, I love you  and I would never leave you.   During your times of trial and suffering, when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you.”

     

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Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
and sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
and that has made all the difference.

     

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By George Elliot

Oh the comfort of feeling safe
with a person;
having neither to weigh thoughts,
nor measure words,
but to pour them all out
just as chaff and grain together,
knowing that a faithful hand
will take   and sift them,
keeping what is worth keeping
and with a breath of kindness,
blow the rest away.

     

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