Bridesmaid reading at wedding. Struggling to find something appropraite

LisaLou1982

Hi All

My best friend is getting married and I am chief bridesmaid. Due to issues with her Fiancees health, the wedding has been moved forward to 3 weeks time as he is too unwell to wait until the original date at the end of the summer.

We are all devastated for them but are determined to make it the best day that we can so that they can start married life with the love of their friends and family around them.

I have been asked to provide a reading at the church and possibly a speech at the wedding. Im really struggling with finding something that will be appropriate taking into consideration their circumstances.

It will be a non religious reading as there is already 1 religious reading being done at the church, but all of the readings ive found so far speak about a long and happy life together, going off and starting a family etc, none of which are going to be either applicable or appropriate.

Im ideally looking for something that will be slightly upbeat, and not too serious, but also something that will associate with their lives and their commitment to each other.

Any help would be gratefully received x

74jax

Are you wanting a publicly available one or help in writing an original one? If original, how long have you known them, how did they meet etc

gilly1964

We are having The Key To Love

have a read here

http://www.medway.gov.uk/communityandliving/birthdeathandmarriage/weddings/ceremoniesinmedway/weddingceremonychoices/poetryandreadings.aspx


Hope that helps

lizziebabe

This must be difficult for you especially in the circumstances. I looked around and found this:

On your wedding Day

Author Unknown
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 time 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 tru 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.


I hope you find something you feel happy and comfortable with.

cats2012

Oh this is so hard. That one posted by lizziebabe is beautiful but still talks of a journey, new life etc etc.

How about looking for a poem not about marriage but just about love in general?

scousewife

I saw this & thought it might be appropriate;

"The Promises of Marriage"
[SIZE=+1]
"Marriage is a promise of companionship,
Of having someone to share
All of life’s experiences.

Marriage does not promise that there will
Not be any rough times,
Just the assurance that there will
Always be someone
Who cares and will help you through
To better times.

Marriage does not promise eternal romance,
Just eternal love and commitment.
Marriage cannot prevent disappointments,
Disillusionment, or grief,
But it can offer hope, acceptance,
And comfort.

Marriage can’t protect you from making
Individual choices
Or shelter you from the world,
But it will help to reassure you
That there is some by your side
Who truly cares,
When the world hurts you
And makes you feel vulnerable,
Marriage offers the promise that there will
Be someone waiting to listen,
To console, to inspire.

Marriage is the joining of two people
Who share the promise
That only marriage can make –
To share the sunshine and the shadows,
And to experience a richer, more fulfilling life
Because of it."

[/SIZE]

LisaLou1982

Thanks all

I posted on 2 boards as i usually frequent the families board but thought that i might be able to get some help here too

It really is so very difficult to find something that is just right!

RuthnJasper

I love Shakespeare's Sonnet 116. Part of it was used in the Emma Thompson/Kate Winslet film version of Jane Austen's "Sense and Sensibility":-

Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove:
O no! it is an ever-fixed mark
That looks on tempests and is never shaken;
It is the star to every wandering bark,
Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken.
Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks
Within his bending sickle's compass come:
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,
But bears it out even to the edge of doom.
If this be error and upon me proved,
I never writ, nor no man ever loved.

A meaning of the words can be found here: http://www.shakespeare-online.com/sonnets/116.html

Best wishes LisaLou - what a great best friend you are to put so much thought into choosing the right words. Hope the day is wonderful for all involved and leaves a lasting memory to treasure. xx

Kaye1

This is from Captain Correli's Mandolin

“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 promises of eternal passion, it is not the desire to mate every second minute of the day, it is not lying awake at night imagining that he is kissing every cranny of your body. No, don't blush, I am telling you some truths. 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"

Kaye1

May the road rise to meet you
May the wind be always at your back
May the sun shine warm upon your face
and the rain fall soft upon your fields
And until we meet again my friend
May God hold you in the hollow (palm) of his hand

Lots of the irish wedding blessings are really good, so perhaps try those.

mtbbuxton

This is the one my friend had at her wedding. She married a Serviceman about to be posted on active duty and had that in mind when she chose it..

Love is Giving (Anon)

Love is giving, not taking,
mending, not breaking,
trusting, believing,
never deceiving,
patiently bearing,
and faithfully sharing
each joy, every sorrow,
today and tomorrow.
Love is kind, understanding,
but never demanding.
Love is constant, prevailing,
Its strength never failing.
A promise once spoken for all time unbroken,
Love's time is forever.

M x