Apache Blessing

Now you will feel no rain,
For each will be shelter for the other.
Now you will feel no cold,
For each will be warmth for the other.
Now you will feel no loneliness,
For each of you will be companion to the other.
Now you are two persons,
But there are three lives before you;
His life, her life, and your life together.
May beauty surround you both
On the journey ahead and throughout the all years.
May happiness be your companion
To the place where the river meets the sun.
Go now to your dwelling
To enter into the days of your life together.
And may your days be good
And long upon the earth.

Marriage Means Being In Love for the Rest of Your Life - Chris Ardis
Marriage is love walking hand in hand together. It's laughing with each other about silly little things, and learning to discuss big things with care and tenderness. In marriage, love is trusting each other when you're apart. It's getting over disappointments and hurts, knowing that these are present in all relationships. It's the realization that there is no one else in this world that you’d rather be with than the one you're married to. It's thinking of new things to do together; It's growing old together. Marriage is being in love for the rest of your life.  

All I Want

All I want is to love you

For the rest of my life....

To wake up every morning

With you by my side,

Knowing that no matter what happens

I’ll be able to come home

To your loving arms.

All I want is to share everything with you....

To talk to you about our ideas, our dreams,

The little everyday things that make us laugh,

And the not-so-little things

That we can’t help worrying about.

All I want is to give you my love....

As a place you can always come to for acceptance

Or the simple comfort that silence brings

When things left unspoken can still be understood.

All I want is to grow old with you...

To watch our life unfold,

Our dreams, one by one, come true.

All I want is to love you forever.

Blessing of the Hands   

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 tears of joy. These are the hands that will tenderly hold your children. These are 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.

The Keys to Love 

The key to love is understanding....the ability to comprehend not only the spoken word, but also those unspoken gestures, the little things that say so much by themselves.

The key to love is forgiveness...to accept each other’s faults and pardon mistakes, without forgetting — but with remembering what you learn from them.

The key to love is trust...though dark doubts lie in hollowed thoughts, it must shine brightly on with reassuring radiance that suppresses fear with faith.

The key to love is sharing...Facing your good fortunes as well as the bad, together; both conquering problems— forever searching for ways to intensify your happiness.

The key to love is giving...without thought of return, but with the hope of just a simple smile and by giving in but never up.

The key to love is respect...realizing that you are two separate people with different ideas; that you don’t belong to, each other, but that you belong with each other and share a mutual bond.

The key to love is inside us all...it takes time and patience to unlock all the ingredients that will take you to its threshold; it is a continual learning process that demands a lot of work.. .but the rewards are more than worth the effort...

And Bride and Groom, you are the key to each other.

Blessing For A Marriage, by James Dillet Freeman

May your marriage bring you all the exquisite excitements a marriage should bring, and may life grant you also patience, tolerance, and understanding. May you always need one another -- not so much to fill your emptiness as to help you to know your fullness. A mountain needs a valley to be complete. The valley does not make the mountain less, but more. And the valley is more a valley because it has a mountain towering over it. So let it be with you and you. May you need one another, but not out of weakness. May you want one another, but not out of lack. May you entice one another, but not compel one another. May you embrace one another, but not out encircle one another. May you succeed in all-important ways with one another, and not fail in the little graces. May you look for things to praise, often say, "I love you!" and take no notice of small faults. If you have quarrels that push you apart, may both of you hope to have good sense enough to take the first step back. May you enter into the mystery that is the awareness of one another's presence -- no more physical than spiritual, warm and near when you are side by side, and warm and near when you are in separate rooms or even distant cities. May you have happiness, and may you find it making one another happy. May you have love, and may you find it loving one another.

The Art of Marriage

A successful marriage is not something that just happens. It takes work, it takes understanding, and it takes time. Most importantly, it takes a commitment from both of you – a commitment to do whatever it takes to make your relationship thrive and not just simply survive. A good marriage must be nurtured. Listen to these words of wisdom on how to create a successful marriage from a little book entitled, 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 facing the world together.

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.

It is cultivating  flexibility, patience, understanding, and 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 room for the things of spirit.

It is the common search for the good and the beautiful.

It is the establishing of a relationship in which the independence is equal, the dependence is mutual, and the obligation is reciprocal.

And finally, it is not only marrying the right partner, it is being the right partner.