Readings

My friend is doing one which starts 'today is the day you will always remember'. Not sure what it's called though.

My OHs auntie has a neighbour who writes poems and together they've written a personal one for us... I love this as it is so personal!

We had 3. One quite traditional, one very short and this from Douglas Adams' So Long and Thanks for all the Fish:

They looked at each other for a moment.

The moment became a longer moment, and suddenly it was a very long moment, so long one could hardly tell where all the time was coming from.

For Arthur, who could usually contrive to feel self-conscious if left alone for long enough with a Swiss Cheese plant, the moment was one of sustained revelation. He felt on the sudden like a cramped and zoo-born animal who awakes one morning to find the door to his cage hanging quietly open and the savannah stretching grey and pink to the distant rising sun, while all around new sounds are waking.

He wondered what the new sounds were as he gazed at her openly wondering face and her eyes that smiled with a shared surprise.

He hadn't realized that life speaks with a voice to you, a voice that brings you answers to the questions you continually ask of it, had never consciously detected it or recognized its tones till it now said something it had never said to him before, which was ``Yes''.

My personal favourites are, 'My Love is like a Red Red Rose' by Robert Burns and the one that starts 'Love is like volcanoes, it erupts and then is subsides. And when it subsides, you have a decision to make,' etc. it's from Captain Corelli's Mandolin.

Good luck!

We're having a lovely love story. My best friend had it in a book in her bathroom and i found it. Its lovely!!

Reading : A Lovely Love Story

The fierce Dinosaur was trapped inside his cage of ice.

Although it was cold he was happy in there. It was, after all, his cage.

Then along came the Lovely Other Dinosaur.

The Lovely Other Dinosaur melted the Dinosaur’s cage with kind words and loving thoughts.

I like this Dinosaur thought the Lovely Other Dinosaur.

Although he is fierce he is also tender and he is funny.

He is also quite clever though I will not tell him this for now.

I like this Lovely Other Dinosaur, thought the Dinosaur.

She is beautiful and she is different and she smells so nice.

She is also a free spirit which is a quality I much admire in a dinosaur.

But he can be so distant and so peculiar at times, thought the Lovely Other Dinosaur.

He is also overly fond of things.

Are all Dinosaurs so overly fond of things?

But her mind skips from here to there so quickly thought the Dinosaur.

She is also uncommonly keen on shopping.

Are all Lovely Other Dinosaurs so uncommonly keen on shopping?

I will forgive his peculiarity and his concern for things, thought the Lovely Other Dinosaur.

For they are part of what makes him a richly charactered individual.

I will forgive her skipping mind and her fondness for shopping, thought the Dinosaur.

For she fills our life with beautiful thoughts and wonderful surprises. Besides,

I am not unkeen on shopping either.

Now the Dinosaur and the Lovely Other Dinosaur are old.

Look at them.

Together they stand on the hill telling each other stories and feeling the warmth of the sun on their backs.

And that, my friends, is how it is with love.

Let us all be Dinosaurs and Lovely Other Dinosaurs together.

For the sun is warm.

And the world is a beautiful place

We're having two, one from my granddad's wife and the other from my OH's dad. We asked them and said if they wanted to choose their own then that would be fine or else we could choose something. They have both made lovely choices - my granddads wife is reading The Art of Marriage which is beautiful and really feels like something she would say to us and my OHs dad chose The One which I've posted below.

When the one whose hand you're holding
Is the one one who holds your heart
When the one whose eyes you gaze into
Gives your hopes and dreams their start,
When the one you think of first and last
Is the one who holds you tight,
And the things you plan together
Make the whole world seem just right,
When the one whom you believe in
puts their faith and trust in you,
You've found the one and only love
You'll share your whole life through.

My daughter is having These I can Promise by Mark Twain:

I cannot promise you a life of sunshine;
I cannot promise you riches, wealth or gold;
I cannot promise you an easy pathway
That leads away from change or growing old.
But I can promise all my heart's devotion;
A smile to chase away your tears of sorrow.
A love that's true and ever growing;
A hand to hold in yours through each tomorrow.

Also a biblical reading from the Song of Solomon.

We are having these two ;-)

The Owl and the Pussycat by Edward Lear

The Owl and the Pussycat went to sea
In a beautiful pea-green boat,
They took some honey, and plenty of money,
Wrapped up in a five pound note.
The Owl looked up to the stars above,
And sang to a small guitar,
"O lovely ***! O ***, my love,
What a beautiful *** you are, you are, you are,
What a beautiful *** you are."
*** said to the Owl "You elegant fowl,
How charmingly sweet you sing.
O let us be married, too long we have tarried;
But what shall we do for a ring?"
They sailed away, for a year and a day,
To the land where the Bong-tree grows,
And there in a wood a Piggy-wig stood
With a ring at the end of his nose, his nose, his nose,
With a ring at the end of his nose.
"Dear Pig, are you willing to sell for one shilling your ring?"
Said the Piggy, "I will"
So they took it away, and were married next day
By the Turkey who lives on the hill.
They dined on mince, and slices of quince,
Which they ate with a runcible spoon.
And hand in hand, on the edge of the sand.
They danced by the light of the moon, the moon, the moon,
They danced by the light of the moon.

The Apache Wedding Blessing

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 will be no loneliness, for each of you will be companion to the other.

Now you are two persons, but there is only one life before you.

May beauty surround you both in the journey ahead and through all the years,

May happiness be your companion and your days together be good and long upon the earth.

Treat yourselves and each other with respect, and remind yourselves often of what brought you together.

Give the highest priority to the tenderness, gentleness and kindness that your connection deserves.

When frustration, difficulties and fear assail your relationship – as they threaten all relationships at one time or another – remember to focus on what is right between you, not on the part which seems wrong.

In this way, you can ride out the storms when clouds hide the face of the sun in your lives – remembering that even if you lose sight of it for a moment, the sun is still there.

And if each of you takes responsibility for the quality of your life together, it will be marked by abundance and delight.

We are having an abridged version of The Wedding Song by Bob Dylan

I love you more than ever, more than time and more than love

I love you more than money and more than the stars above

I love you more than madness, more than waves upon the sea

I love you more than life itself, you mean that much to me.

Ever since you walked right in the circle's been complete

I've said goodbye to haunted rooms and faces in the street

In the courtyard of the jester which is hidden from the sun

I love you more than ever and I haven't yet begun.

The tune that is yours and mine to play upon this earth

We'll play it out the best we know, whatever it is worth

What's lost is lost, we can't regain what went down in the flood

But happiness to me is you and I love you more than blood.

It's never been my duty to remake the world at large

Nor is it my intention to sound a battle charge

'Cause I love you more than all of that with a love that doesn't bend

And if there is eternity I'd love you there again.
Oh, can't you see that you were born to stand by my side

And I was born to be with you, you were born to be my bride

You're the other half of what I am, you're the missing piece

And I love you more than ever with that love that doesn't cease.

And also No Matter What by Debi Gliori.

Small was feeling grim and dark. Playing toss and fling and squash, yell and scream and bang and crash. Break and snap and bash and batter. "Good grief," said Large. "What is the matter?" Small said, "I'm a grim and grumpy little Small and nobody loves me at all." "Oh Small," said Large. "Grumpy or not, I'll always love you no matter what." Small said, "If I was a grizzly bear, would you still love me, would you care?" "Of course," said Large, "bear or not, I'll always love you no matter what." Small said, "But if I turned into a bug, would you still love me and give me a hug?" "Of course," said Large, "bug or not, I'll always love you no matter what." "No matter what?" said Small and smiled. "What if I was a crocodile?" "I'll hug you close and tight and tuck you up in bed at night." "Does love wear out," said Small, "does it break or bend? Can you fix it, stick it, does it mend?" "Oh help," said Large, "I'm not that clever. I just know I will love you forever." Small said, "But what about when you're gone, would you love me then, does love go on?" Large held Small as they looked out at the night, at the moon in the dark and the stars shining bright. "Small, look at the stars- how they shine and glow, but some of those stars died a long time ago. Still they shine in the evening skies Love, like starlight never dies."

We started with Pam Ayres 'He never leaves the seat up' and have more or less re-written it to suit us. I wanted something which showed we are not perfect and can be complete opposites at times rather than something over gushy. My friend is reading it and she knows us both well so I think she'll do a great job.

He always leaves the seat up

Much to her dismay

And she leaves washing on the floor

To lift it is his way

She doesn’t like his driving,

His dancing or his singing.

He can’t stand her snoring,

His ears it leaves a-ringing.

She says she loves his humour

Although cringe sometimes she must.

And of course she thinks he’s handsome

Which in her eyes is a plus!

He says he loves her figure,

Charm, wit & smile too.

So as Father Time takes over,

He’ll be happy with her IQ.

He likes to watch the footie,

To her this is a bore.

She likes to snuggle on the couch

And he likes some amour!

She’s an early riser,

He likes to sleep in late.

She always steals the covers,

Which he doesn’t appreciate.

He tries to please the crowd

But she’s stubborn & won’t budge.

They’re both not wholly perfect,

But who are we to judge?

All that said and done

They have lots of fun together.

And I hope as I’m sure you do

this joy will last forever.

He’ll be more than just her husband,

Her lover and her friend.

And she’ll be more than just his wife,

Together, the perfect blend.

My boyfriend really wants "I Want to be Yours" by John Cooper Clarke so we have one of his friends reading that. I literally have no idea on any I would like!! Owl and Pussycat is a good suggestion though. Thinking of getting his 7 year old nephew to read this Dr Seuss quote

"I am weird, you are weird. Everyone in this world is weird. One day two people come together in mutual weirdness and fall in love"

I like Stephny691 and this one too:

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 blossom have fallen from their branches, they find that they are one tree and not two.

We are having Corinthians and 'I do' which is what Carrie Bradshaw wrote to read at her friends weeding in Sex and the City (if the church lets us!)

His ‘hello’ was the end of her endings.

Her laugh was their first step down the aisle.

His hand would be hers to hold forever.

His forever was as simple as her smile.

He said she was what was missing.

She said instantly she knew.

She was a question to be answered.

And his answer was “I do”.

We're having 2

Gravitation cannot be held responsible for people falling in love. How on earth can you explain in terms of chemistry and physics so important a biological phenomenon as first love? Put your hand on a stove for a minute and it seems like an hour. Sit with that special girl for an hour and it seems like a minute. That's relativity.

Albert Einstein

I’m sure that I will always be
A lonely number like root three
The three is all that’s good and right,
Why must my three keep out of sight
Beneath the vicious square root sign,
I wish instead I were a nine
For nine could thwart this evil trick,
with just some quick arithmetic
I know I’ll never see the sun, as 1.7321
Such is my reality, a sad irrationality
When hark! What is this I see,
Another square root of a three
As quietly co-waltzing by,
Together now we multiply
To form a number we prefer,
Rejoicing as an integer
We break free from our mortal bonds
With the wave of magic wands
Our square root signs become unglued
Your love for me has been renewed

David Feinberg

I think we will be having I will be here (stephen Curtis Chapman - originally a song) and scaffolding by Seamus Heaney (someone on here had it and I love it). I was toying with the idea of writing my own but I doubt I'll get round to it.