HELP PLEASE- searching for the perfect wedding reading......

This site seems to have a few

http://offbeatbride.com/2008/07/wedding-readings

This is the one we used (although our officiant read it, not a friend) -- another bride on the forum here posted it

http://www.weddingbee.com/2007/01/25/hands-ceremony/

We have a wonderful officiant (Celia) who is on the forums too and she has a great list she can send you -- I'm sure she will comment if she sees this!

"The Art of Marriage" by Wilfred A. Peterson is nice.

Sara D. posted about this and I love it! Happiness in marriage is not something that just happens. A good marriage must be created. In the Art of 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 expecting the husband to wear a halo or the wife to have the wings of an angel. It is not looking for perfection in each other. cont..

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 finding rooms for things of the spirit. 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 obligation is reciprocal. It is not only marrying the right partner, it is being the right partner. -Paul Newman

Courtney, that was read at Paul Newman's wedding but was written by Wilfred A. Peterson.

I carry you heart with me by ee cummings is a nice short and sweet one

Try the "On Marriage" section from Kahlil Gibran's "The Prophet." It is unique and beautiful but not too long!

I wish I could give you some good advice, but I am stuck at the same place. I can't seem to find the right one either

Think songs that you like, books that you like, childrens books that you like...use these as inspiration to join together your own reading, it can be parts of everything or anything. It may be helpful to ask your best friend if she has any suggestions...sometimes they know us better than we think and she may just come through.

Here is what I found for our wedding, it just seems like us, in a reading.

I Like You by Sandol Stoddard Warburg

I like you and I know why

I like you because you are a good person to like

I like you because when I tell you something special, you know it's special

And you remember it a long, long time

You say, Remember when you told me something special

And both of us remember

When I think something is important you think it's important too

We have good ideas

When I say something funny, you laugh

I think I'm funny and you think I'm funny too

Hah-hah!

I like you because you know where I'm ticklish

And you don't tickle me there except just a little tiny bit sometimes

But if you do, then I know where to tickle you too

You know how to be silly - that's why I like you

If I am getting ready to pop a paper bag,

then you are getting ready to jump

HOORAY

I like you because when I am feeling sad

You don't always cheer me up right away

Sometimes it is better to be sad

You can't stand the others being so googly and gaggly every single minute

You want to think about things

It takes time

I like you because if I am mad at you

Then you are mad at me too

It's awful when the other person isn't

They are so nice and oooh you could just about punch them on the nose

I can't remember when I didn't like you

It must have been lonesome then

Even if it was the 999th 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

Over and over again

And that's how it would happen every time

Union by Robert Fulghum try to google that... IDK I like it and was looking for something similar to what you said...

‘Apache Blessing’

Now you will feel no rain, for each of you will be shelter for 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

(cont)

OPTIONAL SECOND VERSE:

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 only 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.

‘Friendship’

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 pro- tection 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. (Bride) and (Groom) 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.

Two Hearts

Two hearts beating in unison,

One soul weaved with love,

Two hearts both loving the other,

One soul blessed from above.

Two hands holding tightly,

One kiss breaks silence through motion,

Two hands, gentle and true,

One kiss showing their devotion.

Two eyes watching their true love,

One smile showing whats on their mind,

Two eyes seeing their one and only,

One smile shows the happiness they find.

Two people knowing how right it is,

One spirit of love is clear,

Two people finding bliss together,

One spirit in a bond so sincere

Juliette, you are a sweetheart!

Alison, if you email me, I'll send you my list of unconventional readings, many of them found by my cool, cool couples. There are a few great dog related readings on that list, but my current fave is this one, which is very loosely based on a book by Bob and Melinda Blanchard,

“Life isn't measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the number of loving moments that take our breath away.

You can have those moments. You just have to get over the jitters and let the dreams show you the way. Tie your kite to reality… check your gut whenever it says “hey, wait”… take action when the time is right… remember and treasure what life shows you… but don’t ever stand in the way of what you really love. (con't)

As far as we can tell, dreams are nothing more than love trying to take wing and soar. Imagine for just a moment, the thrilling, distracting, wonderful, odd, unusual sensation of new love. You immediately begin dreaming of life together… of where you will go… of what life will mean for the two of you. Live in that moment every day. Fall in love with new ideas, new opportunities, and new places all the time. Trust it, live it, don’t say no to love or crush a dream that wants to live. It isn’t that hard to give yourself over to it. You just have to say yes to life and love; to be silently drawn by the stronger pull of what you really love, because true love will never lead you astray.

Will you live an unusual life together? Will you live the life you love? We all hope so. Anyone with a heart filled by dreams is already halfway there. So breathe deep. Jump in. Swim, or just float on the rivers of life, of laughter and love. “ Melinda and bob Blanchard, authors and entrepreneurs

Please read the sticky on the main page about what to do when you're "new"

https://www.weddingwire.com/wedding-forums/new-to-the-weddingwire-forums-please-read-before-you-post/b433c40c1a62b96a.html