Wedding Readings That You Love - for civil ceremony

These are the readings we're having for our civil ceremony.

Tread Softly by W.B. Yeats

This is my fav

Today is a day you will always remember
the greatest in anyone’s life.
You’ll start off the day just two people in love
and end it as Husband and Wife.

It’s a brand-new beginning, the start of a journey,
with moments to cherish and treasure
and although there’ll be times when you both disagree
these will surely be outweighed by pleasure.

You’ll have heard many words of advice in the past
when the secrets of marriage were spoken,
but you know that the answers lie hidden inside
where the bond of true love lies unbroken.

Plus a couple of others i had saved

Marriage Fulfills the Dreams and Love Two People Share

By Glenda Wilm

Everyone searches for one special person
They can share their lives with.
The other half who makes them whole,
Like two notes blending together to make a beautiful song,
Or the colours that complement
Each other to form a rainbow.
It is everyone’s wish to have a lifetime of sunny days,
A rainbow after every storm;
A lifetime of loving and living and growing and giving,
Of sharing and caring; a lifetime of days together,
Learning from the bad times and cherishing the good times.
Marriage is everything your heart desires
And the strength, courage and determination to work for it.
In marriage you take care of each other’s heart
And hold on to what you share.
You hold it gently so it doesn’t smother
And firmly so it doesn’t slip away.
Hold it so that it can grow
And you can grow together
And live and laugh and love together always.

MARRIAGE IS

Someone to believe in
And to put their trust in you
Someone who appreciates
The special things you do,
Someone to be close to,
In your heart and mind,
Someone who’s the love
You might have thought you’d never find,
Someone who stands by you
And whose faith can make you strong,
Someone you will cherish
Every day, your whole life long.

By Emily Matthews

Indian Wedding Blessing

Now we feel no rain for each of us will be a shelter to the other,
Now we feel no cold for each of us will be warmth to the other,
Now there is no loneliness for each of us will be
A companion to the other
We are two bodies but there is one life before us and one home.
When evening falls I’ll look up and there you will be,
I’ll take your hand, you’ll take mine and we’ll turn together
To look at the road we travelled to reach this the hour of our happiness
It stretches behind us, even as the future lies ahead.
A long and winding road whose every turning
Means discovery.
Old hopes, new laughter, shared fears -
The adventure has just begun.

This is one of the ones we had. It's not one of the really popular readings and I'd not come across it before:

https://www.weddingideasmag.com/images/stories/planning/readings_and_music/chapter_one_of_one_thousand.pdf

Thanks for these - I love love love the Edward Monckton one - and the treading on dreams one.

Currently I like this one best:

I do not love you as if you were salt-rose, or topaz, or the arrow of carnations the fire shoots off. I love you as certain dark things are to be loved, in secret, between the shadow and the soul.

I love you as the plant that never blooms but carries in itself the light of hidden flowers; thanks to your love a certain solid fragrance, risen from the earth, lives darkly in my body.

I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where. I love you straightforwardly, without complexities or pride; so I love you because I know no other way

than this: Where “I” does not exist, nor “You”, so close that your hand on my chest is my hand, so close that your eyes close as I fall asleep.

But I don't think my OH is so keen. so am still hunting - have got a while to go anyway :-)

x

I like that.

Glad you like our readings, I too really love the Edward Monkton one, it's just that little bit different. FIL2B is reading it at the ceremony and when we showed it to him he asked if we'd changed it to suit us because it does fit us really well. It was difficult to find 2 readings we both agreed on because we both liked different things and read them differently as well - but I'm very happy with our choices.

When are you getting married?

Not until next July, but I love poetry and studied literature, so apart from the I do bits in the vows, the other most important bit to me is the reading.

When I first started going out with my H2B I used to send him little cards and write love poems and quotes in that I found. I might go back through them and see if there was anything.

I was also thinking of putting them all into a little album for him as I know he's kept them all.

Edward Monckton is so brilliant - i love his card - I have been bought the Shoe one twice now!! When are you getting married? Where? I love all the details its so exciting

x

I love Edward Monkton as well, he's so funny. We have a calendar on our fridge with his things on and it always makes me smile.

We're getting married on 25th October this year at a place called Ufton Court in Berkshire. We wanted a civil ceremony because neither of us are religious, but the thing with a civil ceremony is the vows only need to be 2 sentences, so I agree with you that the readings are important for how they'll make the ceremony feel. We laughed when we got our pack from the registrar when we were deciding whether we should go for the straightforward 2 sentence vows or whether we wanted the extended 3 sentence version! (We've gone for the 3 sentence one because we'll be exchanging rings.) We didn't fancy writing our own vows for fear they got a bit soppy or cliched so we wanted to choose readings that expressed our feelings for us - it's tricky stuff! And like you I love literature and poetry (I did an Eng Lit degree) so I had lots of ideas for writing that captured my imagination at different times. The difficult part was getting H2B to agree to them!

Next July really will be here before you know it. Are you in a bit of a planning lull at the moment? I know when we got engaged we organised lots of things quite quickly then for several months didn't really have much to do, even though I was really excited and wanted lots to do. I got busy with other things and lost interest in weddingy things for a while and now all of a sudden our wedding is next month and there's lots to do again!

Our readings are:

Come live with me and be my love,
And we will all the pleasures prove
That valleys, groves, hills, and fields,
Woods or steepy mountain yields.

And we will sit upon the rocks,
Seeing the shepherds feed their flocks,
By shallow rivers to whose falls
Melodious birds sing madrigals.

And I will make thee beds of roses
And a thousand fragrant posies,
A cap of flowers, and a kirtle
Embroidered all with leaves of myrtle;

A gown made of the finest wool
Which from our pretty lambs we pull;
Fair lined slippers for the cold,
With buckles of the purest gold;

A belt of straw and ivy buds,
With coral clasps and amber studs:
And if these pleasures may thee move,
Come live with me and be my love.

The shepherds' swains shall dance and sing
For thy delight each May morning:
If these delights thy mind may move,
Then live with me and be my love.

and Us two by AA Milne:

Wherever I am, there's always Pooh,
There's always Pooh and Me.
Whatever I do, he wants to do,
"Where are you going today?" says Pooh:
"Well, that's very odd 'cos I was too.
Let's go together," says Pooh, says he.
"Let's go together," says Pooh.

"What's twice eleven?" I said to Pooh.
("Twice what?" said Pooh to Me.)
"I think it ought to be twenty-two."
"Just what I think myself," said Pooh.
"It wasn't an easy sum to do,
But that's what it is," said Pooh, said he.
"That's what it is," said Pooh.

"Let's look for dragons," I said to Pooh.
"Yes, let's," said Pooh to Me.
We crossed the river and found a few-
"Yes, those are dragons all right," said Pooh.
"As soon as I saw their beaks I knew.
That's what they are," said Pooh, said he.
"That's what they are," said Pooh.

"Let's frighten the dragons," I said to Pooh.
"That's right," said Pooh to Me.
"I'm not afraid," I said to Pooh,
And I held his paw and I shouted "Shoo!
Silly old dragons!"- and off they flew.

"I wasn't afraid," said Pooh, said he,
"I'm never afraid with you."

So wherever I am, there's always Pooh,
There's always Pooh and Me.
"What would I do?" I said to Pooh,
"If it wasn't for you," and Pooh said: "True,
It isn't much fun for One, but Two,
Can stick together, says Pooh, says he. "That's how it is," says Pooh

I'm making photo boards to put up at the reception too - one of H2B is a child, one of me as a child and one of the two of us together. The latter will have this poem in the middle of it:

You are my husband, you are my 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.

We are having the Pam Ayres one 'Yes I'll marry you my dear' and An extract from Good housekeeping 1950 - 'how to look after your husband' which is very amusing and very like my h2b (though he isn't like that, he likes to joke about it if you know what I mean)

I really wanted the Edward Monkton one and thought it was very apt but h2b just didn't get it - he didn't understand why they were dinosaurs....just didn't get it! I still bought lots of quirky gifts related to it as I still want it in my day somehow as I know a lot of my friends get it and love that sort of thing. I got dinosaurs in a bag with it printed on the side, and a canvas which I might put up at the reception, some pin badges with the dinosaur on and some notebooks with another edward monkton thoughts on, Love or something it was. They will be quirky thank you gifts along with something more traditional.

Clare xxx

Yes, I'll Marry You

Pam Ayres

Yes, I'll marry you, my dear,
And here's the reason why;
So I can push you out of bed
When the baby starts to cry,
And if we hear a knocking
And it's creepy and it's late,
I hand you the torch you see,
And you investigate.

Yes, I'll marry you, my dear,
You may not apprehend it,
But when the tumble-drier goes
It's you that has to mend it,
You have to face the neighbour
Should our labrador attack him,
And if a drunkard fondles me
It's you that has to whack him.

Yes, I'll marry you,
You're virile and you're lean,
My house is like a pigsty
You can help to keep it clean.
That sexy little dinner
Which you served by candlelight,
As I do chipolatas,
You can cook it every night!

It's you who has to work the drill
and put up curtain track,
And when I've got PMT it's you who gets the flak,
I do see great advantages,
But none of them for you,
And so before you see the light,
I do, I do, I do!

This is ours (Shelley lived at our venue for a short period so the room we are holding our reception in is called "Shelley Suite")

Percy Bysshe Shelley (****)

The fountains mingle with the rivers
And the rivers with the oceans,
The winds of heaven mix forever
With a sweet emotion;
Nothing in the world is single;
All things by law divine
In one spirit meet and mingle.
Why not I with thine?

See the mountains kiss high heaven
And the waves clasp one another;
No sister-flower would be forgiven
If it disdained its brother,
And the sunlight clasps the earth
And the moonbeams kiss the sea:
What is all this sweet work worth

If thou kiss not me?

I love that Pam Ayres one. I met her once!! ?

We are getting married on 4th october, and having 2 readings in the registry office. Edward Monckton's lovely dinasour one by my father in law and my son from my first marriage (aged 10) is reading the following;

Getting married means you'll have Someone's hand to hold,

Even when you're feeling sick, Even when you're old.

It means when you sit down to eat, Someone will be there,

So you won't have to tell your day To an empty chair.

It means that when you need some help, Someone will help out,

Someone always near to you So you won't have to shout.

But best of all is when it's time To turn out all the lights:

You won't have to be alone Those long and scary nights.

So even though you don't have toys, You don't have to care:

Once you're married you can be Each other's teddy bear!

-------

There will only be 25 at the registry office, with 6 of them kids so we wanted it to be light hearted.

Sx

He Never Leaves the Toilet Seat up
Anonymous

He never leaves the seat up
Or wet towels upon the floor
The toothpaste has the lid on
And he always shuts the door!

He's very clean and tidy
Though he may sometimes delude
Leave your things out at your peril
In a second they'll have moved!

She romances him and dines him
Home cooked dinners and the like
She even knows his favourite food
And spoils him day and night!

She's thoughtful when he looks at her
A smile upon his face
Will he look that good in 50 years
When his dentures aren't in place?!

He says he loves her figure
And her mental prowess too
But when gravity takes her over
Will she charm with her IQ?

She says she loves his kindness
And his patience is a must
And of course she thinks he's handsome
Which in her eyes is a plus!

They're both not wholly perfect
But who are we to judge
He can be pig headed
Where as she won't even budge!

All that said and done
They love the time they spend together
And I hope as I'm sure you do
That this fine day will last forever.

He'll be more than just her husband
He'll also be her friend
And she'll be more than just his wife
She'll be his soul mate 'till the end.

This poem is for Bride and Groom
A married couple now
It's a token of the love they share
And the thought behind each vow

Could make a refreshing change?

H2B wrote this in my Valentine card (5th valentine together) made me cry then and will make me cry at our wedding too!

<a href="http://www.weddingcountdown.com">
<img border="0" src="http://img.weddingcountdown.com/ticker/ryy4pgflt21b.png" alt="wedding website" />
</a>

Loving all these suggestions for readings/poems!!

We are having:

I Do by Clair Peach

Angela and Paul, as you say I DO


And promise to love your whole life through


Remember that today is just a start,

Just a beginning, a pledge from the heart.



A marriage isn't dresses or aisles or rings,

Or wedding cakes and invites and all those things.


It's taking and giving in equal share,


It's promising that you will always be there.


When things depress you and get you down,

When you're feeling sad and he's acting the clown.


Remember this day, and why you chose to be here,


Then Thank God for each other, year after year.


and The Art of A Good Marriage - shortened version by Wilfred Arian Petersen

-the vicar actually thought it was called the art of a short marriage lol

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 of love 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.

We had this :-)

I like you and I know why
I like you because you are a good person to like and because you like me
I like you because when I tell you something special, you know it's special
And you remember it a long, long time

When I think something is important you think it's important too
We have good ideas together
When I say something funny, you laugh
I think you are funny and you think I am funny too.

I like you because if I am mad at you
I can not be mad at you

You make me laugh which makes me even more mad at you

And makes me laugh even more

I can't remember when I didn't like you and you didn’t like me
Even if it was the 51st of July
Even if it was August
Even if it was way down at the bottom of November
I would go on choosing you
And you would go on choosing me
everytime

We're a long way from making this decision yet but my favourites are;

Union by Robert Fulghum

You have known each other from the first glance of acquaintance to this point of commitment.
At some point, you decided to marry.
From that moment of yes to this moment of yes, indeed, you have been making promises and agreements in an informal way.

All those conversations that were held riding in a car or over a meal or during long walks - all those sentences that began with “When we’re married” and continued with “I will and you will and we will”- those late night talks that included “someday” and “somehow” and “maybe”- and all those promises that are unspoken matters of the heart.

All these common things, and more, are the real process of a wedding.
The symbolic vows that you are about to make are a way of saying to one another, “You know all those things we’ve promised and hoped and dreamed- well, I meant it all, every word.”
Look at one another and remember this moment in time.

Before this moment you have been many things to one another- acquaintance, friend, companion, lover, dancing partner, and even teacher, for you have learned much from one another in these last few years.

Now you shall say a few words that take you across a threshold of life, and things will never quite be the same between you. For after these vows, you shall say to the world, this - is my husband, this - is my wife.

*******************

and The Art of a Good Marriage by Wilfred Arlan Peterson;

Happiness in marriage is not something that just happens.
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 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 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 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

We had the Edward Monkton one and it went down REALLY well - I could hear people chuckling behind me. We also had 'On Marriage' by Khalil Gibran (omitting the first verse that mentions God in case that offended the registrar)

Love one another, but make not a bond of love:
Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls.
Fill each other's cup but drink not from one cup.
Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf
Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone,
Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music.


Give your hearts, but not into each other's keeping.
For only the hand of Life can contain your hearts.
And stand together yet not too near together:
For the pillars of the temple stand apart,
And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other's shadow.

To be honest my OH wasn't into this second one but he let me have it as I really liked it and he was very happy with the dinosaur one (it helps he is a bit of a dino-geek)

We had

Captain Corelli's Mandolin
Louis de Bernieres

I think we're having this as well- I didn't want anything to 'fluffy' but reading all the others I think I'm changing my mind- may have to pinch some ?

How exciting—congratulations on receiving your registrar info! It’s great that you’re looking for quirky and personal readings. I love the Pablo Neruda sonnet and The Velveteen Rabbit—such beautiful choices! If you're looking for something different, consider song lyrics like "You’ve Got the Love" by Florence + the Machine, "All You Need Is Love" by The Beatles, or "A Thousand Years" by Christina Perri, all of which carry deep, heartfelt meaning. You could also consider quotes from your favorite movies or books, or even write your own, including personal anecdotes or inside jokes. Lastly, use AI images for print on demand custom touches like invitations or decorations that tie into your quirky theme. Whatever you choose, it’s sure to make your day even more memorable! 😊