Our wedding planner says that it would be nice if we had a reading, done by one of our friends or family,?

Question

during our ceremony. We don't want a religious reading. Can you recommend a reading that you heard and loved? Thanks!

Answer 1

Choose a beautiful poem that has meaning for you. Here are some examples:

Autumn - Garrison Keillor:

Here on an autumn night in the sweet orchard smell,

Sitting in a pile of leaves under the starry sky,

Oh what stories we could tell

With this starlight to tell them by.

October night, and you, and paradise,

So lovely and so full of grace,

Above your head, the universe has hung its lights,

And I reach out my hand to touch your face.

I believe in impulse, in all that is green,

Believe in the foolish vision that comes true,

Believe that all that is essential is unseen,

And for this lifetime I believe in you.

All of the lovers and the love they made:

Nothing that was between them was a mistake.

All that we did for love's sake,

Is not wasted and will never fade.

All who have loved shall be forever young

And walk in grandeur on a cool fall night

Along the avenue,

They live in every song that is ever sung,

In every painting of pure light,

In every pas de deux.

Oh love that shines in every star

And love reflected in the silver moon.

It is not here, but it's not far.

Not yet, but it will be here soon.

Habitation - Margaret Atwood

Marriage is not

a house, or even a tent

It is before that, and colder:

the edge of the forest, the edge

of the desert

the unpainted stairs

at the back, where we squat

outdoors, eating popcorn

where painfully and with wonder

at having survived

this far

we are learning to make fire.

i carry your heart with me - ee cummings

  

i carry your heart with me(i carry it in

my heart)i am never without it(anywhere

i go you go,my dear; and whatever is done

by only me is your doing,my darling)

i fear

no fate(for you are my fate,my sweet)i want

no world(for beautiful you are my world,my true)

and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant

and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows

(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud

and the sky of the sky of a tree called life;which grows

higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)

and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart)

Love is not all - Edna St. Vincent Millay

Love is not all: It is not meat nor drink

Nor slumber nor a roof against the rain,

Nor yet a floating spar to men that sink

and rise and sink and rise and sink again.

Love cannot fill the thickened lung with breath

Nor clean the blood, nor set the fractured bone;

Yet many a man is making friends with death

even as I speak, for lack of love alone.

It well may be that in a difficult hour,

pinned down by need and moaning for release

or nagged by want past resolution's power,

I might be driven to sell your love for peace,

Or trade the memory of this night for food.

It may well be. I do not think I would.

Answer 2

Touched By An Angel Maya Angelou



We, unaccustomed to courage

exiles from delight

live coiled in shells of loneliness until love leaves its high holy temple and comes into our sight to liberate us into life.

Love arrives and in its train come ecstasies, old memories of pleasure, ancient histories of pain.

Yet if we are bold, love strikes away the chains of fear from our souls.

We are weaned from our timidity In the flush of love's light we dare be brave And suddenly we see that love costs all we are and will ever be.

Yet it is only love which sets us free.

I Will Be Here

If in the morning when you wake,

If the sun does not appear,

I will be here.

If in the dark we lose sight of love,

Hold my hand and have no fear,

I will be here.

I will be here,

When you feel like being quiet,

When you need to speak your mind I will listen.

Through the winning, losing, and trying we'll be together,

And I will be here.

If in the morning when you wake,

If the future is unclear,

I will be here.

As sure as seasons were made for change,

Our lifetimes were made for years,

I will be here.

I will be here,

And you can cry on my shoulder,

When the mirror tells us we're older.

I will hold you, to watch you grow in beauty,

And tell you all the things you are to me.

We'll be together and I will be here.

I will be true to the promises I've made,

To you and to the one who gave you to me.

I will be here.



~Steven Curtis Chapman

Answer 3

its a suggestion so you dont ahve to do it

but if you want to

http://weddings.about.com/od/yourwedding...

Answer 4

Why not a poem on couples and love?  Just get a few poem books and start reading.  Or let your friend of choice surprise you with something they may have in mind.  It could even be funny depending on how you want your wedding to go.  Just make it yours.  Don't stress on it.  It is not a must.  If its to hard skip it and do something you want to do.

Have a happy day.

Answer 5

I had the same question for my ceremony and I came across this and had my sister read this just before the exchanging of the rings.

“Blessing of the Hands", revised by Rev. Daniel L. Harris (back to top of page)

(best to be read just before the exchange of rings)

“These are the hands of your best friend, young and strong and full of love for you, that are holding yours on your wedding day, as you promise to love each other today, tomorrow, and forever. These are the hands that will work alongside yours, as together you build your future. These are the hands that will passionately love you and cherish you through the years, and with the slightest touch, will comfort you like no other. These are the hands that will hold you when fear or grief fills your mind. These are the hands that will countless times wipe the tears from your eyes; tears of sorrow, and as in today, tears of joy. These are the hands that will tenderly hold your children, the hands that will help you to hold your family as one. These are the hands that will give you strength when you need it. And lastly, these are the hands that even when wrinkled and aged, will still be reaching for yours, still giving you the same unspoken tenderness with just a touch.”