ON MARRIAGE, By Edmund O’Neill
Marriage is a commitment to life - to the best that two people can find and bring out in each other.
It offers opportunities for sharing and growth that no other human relationship can equal, a 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. 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 love through the seasons of life.
When two people pledge to love and care for each other in marriage they create a spirit unique to 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, which takes a lifetime to fulfil.
THE ONE
When the one whose hand you’re holding
Is the one who holds your heart
When the one whose eyes you gaze into
Give your hopes and dreams their start
When the one you think of first and last,
Is the one who holds you tight
Find 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
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 humor.
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.
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.
(Name) and (Name) 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.
THE PERFECT PERSON
Nobody is perfect.
But if you can make each other laugh at least once,
cause each other to think twice
and can admit to being human and making mistakes,
then hold onto each other and give the most you can.
You aren't going to quote poetry to each other,
nor think about each other every moment,
but you will give a part of yourselves that you know can be broken.
So don't hurt each other,
or try to change the other person
and don't expect more than you both can give.
Smile when you make each other happy,
yell when you make each other mad,
and miss the other when they are not there.
Love hard when there is love to be had.
Because perfect people don't exist,
but there is always one person that is perfect for you.
ON YOUR WEDDING DAY
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. So live happy forever as lovers and friends It’s the dawn of a new life for you; As you stand there together with love in your eyes From the moment you whisper “I do”. And with luck all your hopes and your dreams can be real May success find its way to your hearts; Tomorrow can bring you the greatest of joys But today is the day it all starts
A MARRIAGE MADE FOR TWO
A successful marriage can learn a lot from bicycle riding. You should promise each other that you will not be fair weather riders, but venture out together in the wind and the rain.
Only by braving the storms as a team will you reap the rewards when the sunshine arrives. Look after each other. A well oiled bike will run smoothly and change gear easily. Marriage is like a tandem…keep pedalling or the one at the front shouts at you! You should promise each other to not only enjoy new adventures and explorations, but appreciate the same old routes you know and love. Marriage is a promise to each other to endure the climbs so that you may chase the swoops and swerves of perfect single track. The journey may be long and may have hills ahead, but if you climb together with love and passion, you will be able to achieve everything you both desire! Wishing you all the best from the start line of the greatest endurance event of your lives. Good luck and may each lap be a great adventure.
HERE’S TO RIGHT NOW
You’re surrounded by your loved ones
And all are wishing you well
As you create a brand new chapter
In the story that’s yours to tell
We talk about the memories
You have yet to make together
And the moment’s you’ve already shared
To be carried with you forever
But take the time to live today
As your marriage begins
Look around and soak it up
The moment that we are in
For this is where the magic starts
When you both say your vows
You pledge to spend your lives as one
Because of the love you feel now
So yes, here’s to a future
That is bright, warm & clear
But more than that, here’s to right now
And what it means to be here.
EVERYTHING I KNOW ABOUT LOVE by Neil Gaiman
This is everything I have to tell you about love: nothing.
This is everything I've learned about marriage: nothing.
Only that the world out there is complicated, and there are beasts in the night, and delight and pain, and the only thing that makes it okay, sometimes, is to reach out a hand in the darkness and find another hand to squeeze, and not to be alone. It's not the kisses, or never just the kisses: it's what they mean.
Somebody's got your back. Somebody knows your worst self and somehow doesn't want to rescue you or send for the army to rescue them. It's not two broken halves becoming one. It's the light from a distant lighthouse bringing you both safely home because home is wherever you are both together.
So this is everything I have to tell you about love and marriage: nothing, like a book without pages or a forest without trees. Because there are things you cannot know before you experience them. Because no study can prepare you for the joys or the trials. Because nobody else's love, nobody else's marriage, is like yours, and it's a road you can only learn by walking it, a dance you cannot be taught, a song that did not exist before you began, together, to sing.
And because in the darkness you will reach out a hand, not knowing for certain if someone else is even there.
And your hands will meet, and then neither of you will ever need to be alone again.
And that's all I know about love.
The Amber Spyglass – Philip Pulman
I will love you forever; whatever happens.
Till I die and after I die, and when I find my way out of the land of the dead,
I’ll drift about forever, al my atoms, till I find you again.
I’ll be looking for you, in every moment, every single moment
And when we do find each other again, we’ll cling together so tight that nothing and no one’ll ever tear us apart
Every atom of me and every atom of you. We’ll live in birds and flowers and dragonflies and pine trees and in clouds and in those little specks of light you see floating in sunbeams.
And when they use our atoms to make new lives, they won’t just be able to take one, they’ll have to take two, one of you and one of me, because we’re joined to each other so tight.