Captain Corelli’s Mandolin by Louis de Bernieres – Extract

In My Life John Lenon & Paul McCartney

There are places I’ll remember

All my life though some have changed

Some forever not for better

Some have gone and some remain

All these places have their moments

With lovers and friends I still can recall

Some are dead and some are living

In my life I’ve loved them all

But of all these friends and lovers

There is no one compares with you

And these memories lose their meaning

When I think of love as something new

Though I know I’ll never lose affection

For people and things that went before

I know I’ll often stop and think about them

In my life I’ll love you more

The Bridge Across Forever by Richard Bach

A soulmate is someone who has locks that fit our keys,

and keys to fit our locks.

When we feel safe enough to open the locks, our truest selves step out and we can be completely and honestly who we are; we can be loved for who we are and not for who we’re pretending to be.

Each unveils the best part of the other. No matter what else goes wrong around us, with that one person we’re safe in our own paradise.

Our soulmate is someone who shares our deepest longings, our sense of direction. When we’re two balloons, and together our direction is up, chances are we’ve found the right person.

Our soulmate is the one who makes life come to life.

 The Eskimo Love Song

You are my husband, you are my wife

My feet shall run because of you

My feet dance because of you

My heart shall beat because of you

My eyes see because of you

My mind thinks because of you

And I shall love, because of you

Reading for a 7 year old child

We were given two hands to hold,

two legs to walk,

two eyes to see,

two ears to listen, but why only one heart?

Because, the other was given to someone else, for us to find.

 I Would Live In Your Love by Sara Teasdale

I would live in your love as the sea-grasses live in the sea,

Borne up by each wave as it passes,

drawn down by each wave that recedes;

I would empty my soul as the dreams

that have gathered in me,

I would beat with your heart as it beats,

I would follow your soul as it leads.

 Love by Roy Croft

I love you, not only for what you are,

But for what I am when I am with you.

I love you, not only for what

You have made of yourself,

But for what you are making of me.

I love you for the part of me that you bring out;

I love you for putting your hand

Into my heaped-up heart and passing over

All the foolish, weak things

That you can’t help dimly seeing there,

And for drawing out into the light

All the beautiful belongings

That no one else had looked quite far enough to find.

I love you because you are helping me to make

Of the lumber of my life

Not a tavern, but a temple;

Out of the works of my every day

Not a reproach but a song.

I love you because you have done

More than any creed could have done

To make me good,

And more than any fate to make me happy.

You have done it without a touch,

Without a word, without a sign.

You have done it by being yourself.

Perhaps that is what being a friend means after all.

Love is Little Things

To me, love is being with you.

It is looking into your eyes.

It is spending a whole day with you and still dreading our goodbyes.

Love is spending time with you no matter what we do.

Love is anything at all as long as it takes two.

Love is planning out our lives while sitting on our bed.

Love is knowing you will catch every tear that I may shed.

Love is feeling beautiful when all my makeup’s gone.

Love is laughing at you when I make you yawn.

Love is holding hands with you wherever we may go.

Love is what I feel with you, with you it’s all I know.

Love is when you kiss my hand just like in storybooks.

Love is when my knees grow weak from one of your sweet looks.

Love is when you kiss me and the whole world fades away.

Love is knowing you are mine and that you’re here to stay.

Loving You by Larry S. Chengges

Your love is the best thing that has ever happened to me.

It has given my life new priorities and meaning and filled it with joy.

Thank you for giving so much of yourself

And for helping me to discover so much about myself too.

Sometimes I think you know me better than I know myself.

When we are together Love feels so right with you

And I miss you so much when we are apart

I’ll always be there for you

And together I know

We can make our dreams come true.

Thank You by Led Zeppelin

If the sun refused to shine,

I would still be loving you.

When mountains crumble to the sea,

There will still be you and me.

Kind woman, I give you my all,

Kind woman, nothing more.

Little drops of rain whisper of the pain,

Tears of loves lost in the days gone by.

My love is strong, with you there is no wrong,

Together we shall go until we die.

My, my, my, An inspiration is what you are to me,

Inspiration, look see.

And so today, my world it smiles,

Your hand in mine, we walk the miles,

Thanks to you it will be done,

For you to me are the only one.

Happiness, no more be sad,

Happiness….I’m glad.

 Time in a Bottle by Jim Croce

If I could save time in a bottle

The first thing that I’d like to do

Is to save every day

‘Til eternity passes away

Just to spend them with you.

If I could make days last forever

If words could make wishes come true

I’d save every day like a treasure and then,

Again, I would spend them with you.

If I had a box just for wishes

And dreams that had never come true

The box would be empty

Except for the memory

Of how they were answered by you.

And there never seems to be, enough time

To do all the things we want too

I hold your hand

And on this day

I want to go through time with you.

The Most Wonderful Of All Things in Life by Sir Hugh Walpole

The most wonderful of all things in life is the discovery of another human being with whom one’s relationship has a growing depth, beauty and joy as the years increase. This inner progressiveness of love between two human beings is a most marvellous thing; it cannot be found by looking for it or by passionately wishing for it. It is a sort of divine accident, and the most wonderful of all things in life.

True Love by Unknown Author

Truelove is a sacred flame

That burns eternally,

And none can dim its special glow

Or change its destiny.

True love speaks in tender tones

And hears with gentle ear,

True love gives with open heart

And true love conquers fear.

True love makes no harsh demands

It neither rules nor binds,

And true love holds with gentle hands

The hearts that it entwines.

My Love by Linda Lee Elrod

When I met you, I had no idea how much my life was about to be changed … but then, how could I have known?

A love like ours happens once in a lifetime. You were a miracle to me, the one who was everything I had ever dreamed of, the one I thought existed only in my imagination.

And when you came into my life, I realized that what I had always thought was happiness couldn’t compare to the joy loving you brought me.

You are a part of everything I think and do and feel, and with you by my side, I believe that anything is possible.

(This day) gives me a chance to thank you for the miracle of you…you are, and always will be, the love of my life.

Maybe….. by Anon

Maybe…We are supposed to meet the wrong people before meeting the Right one, so that when we finally meet the right person, we will know how to be grateful for that gift.

Maybe…it is true that we don’t know what we have got until we lose it, but it is also true that we don’t know what we have been missing until it arrives.

Maybe…the happiest of people don’t necessarily have the best of Everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their Way.

Maybe…the best kind of love is the kind where you can sit on a sofa together never say a word, and then walk away feeling like it was the best Conversation you’ve ever had.

Maybe…you shouldn’t go for looks; they can deceive. Don’t go for wealth; even that fades away. Go for someone who makes you smile, because it takes only a smile to make a dark day seem bright.

Maybe…you should hope for enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human, and enough hope to make you happy.

Maybe…Love is not about finding the perfect person; it’s about learning to see an imperfect person perfectly. When you do what you can, love will do what you can’t.

From Adam Bede by George Eliot

What greater thing is there for two human souls

than to feel that they are joined for life,

to strengthen each other in all labor,

to rest on each other in all sorrow,

to minister to each other in all pain

to be one with each other in silent unspeakable memories

at the moment of the last parting?

SONNET XVII by Pablo Neruda

I don’t love you as if you were the salt-rose, topaz

or arrow of carnations that propagate fire:

I love you as certain dark things are loved,

therefore, between the shadow and the soul.

I love you as the plant that doesn’t bloom and carries

Hidden within itself the light of those flowers,

and thanks to your love, darkly in my body

lives the dense fragrance that rises from the earth.

I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where

I love you simply, without problems or pride:

I love you in this way because I don’t know another way of loving.

but this, in which there is no I or you,

so intimate that your hand upon my chest in my hand:

so intimate that when I fall asleep it is your eyes that close.

Two Happy Lovers Make One Bread by Pablo Neruda

Two happy lovers make one bread,

a single moon drop in the grass.

Walking, they cast two shadows that flow together;

waking, they leave one sun empty in their bed.

Of all the possible truths, they chose the day;

they held it, not with ropes but with an aroma.

They did not shred the peace; they did not shatter words;

their happiness is a transparent tower.

The air and wine accompany the lovers.

The night delights them with its joyous petals.

They have a right to all the carnations.

Two happy lovers, without an ending, with no death,

they are born, they die, many times while they live:

they have the eternal life of the Natural.

The Meaning by Kellie Spehn (Loving and sharing)

To love is to share life together

To build special plans just for two

To work side by side

And then smile with pride

As one by one, dreams all come true.

To love is to help and encourage

With smiles and sincere words of praise

To take time to share

To listen and care

In tender, affectionate ways.

To love is to have someone special

One who you can always depend

To be there through the years

Sharing laughter and tears

As a partner, a lover, a friend.

To love is to make special memories

Of moments you love to recall

Of all the good things

That sharing life brings

Love is the greatest of all.

I’ve learned the full meaning

Of sharing and caring

And having my dreams all come true;

I’ve learned the full meaning

Of being in love

By being and loving with you.

I Am Love

“I Am Love”

Some say I can fly on the wind, yet I haven’t any wings. Some have found me floating on the open sea, yet I cannot swim. Some have felt my warmth on cold nights, yet I have no flame.

And though you cannot see me, I lay between two lovers at the hearth of fireplaces. I am the twinkle in your child’s eyes. I am hidden in the lines of your mother’s face. I am your father’s shield as he guards your home.

And yet… Some say I am stronger than steel, yet I am as fragile as a tear. Some have never searched for me, yet I am around them always. Some say I die with loss, yet I am endless.

And though you cannot hear me, I dance on the laughter of children. I am woven into the whispers of passion. I am in the blessings of Grandmothers. I embrace the cries of newborn babies.

And yet… Some say I am a flower, yet I am also the seed. Some have little faith in me, yet I will always believe in them. Some say I cannot cure the ill, yet I nourish the soul. And though you cannot touch me, I am the gentle hand of the kind.,

I am the fingertips that caress your cheek at night. I am the hug of a child. I am love.

The Comb and the Watch Strap (Renewal of Vows)

One day, his wife, who had very long hair asked him to buy her a comb for her hair to grow well and to be well-groomed.

The man felt very sorry and said no. He explained that he did not even have enough money to fix the strap of his watch he had just broken. She did not insist on her request.

The man went to work and passed by a watch shop, sold his damaged watch at a low price and went to buy a comb for his wife.

He came home in the evening with the comb in his hand ready to give to his wife.

He was surprised when he saw his wife with a very short haircut.

he had sold her hair and was holding a new watch band.

Tears flowed simultaneously from their eyes, not for the futility of their actions, but for the reciprocity of their love.

MORAL: To love is nothing, to be loved is something but to love and to be loved by the one you love, that is EVERYTHING. Never take love for granted.

Passage taken from John Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach

A soul mate is someone who has locks that fit our keys, and keys to fit our locks. When we feel safe enough to open the locks, our truest selves step out and we can be completely and honestly who we are; we can be loved for who we are and not for who we’re pretending to be. Each unveils the best part of the other. No matter what else goes wrong around us, with that one person we’re safe in our own paradise. Our soul mate is someone who shares our deepest longings, our sense of direction. When we’re two balloons, and together our direction is up, chances are we’ve found the right person. Our soul mate is the one who makes life come to life.

Relativity by Albert Einstein

Gravitation cannot be held responsible for people falling in love.

How on earth can you explain in terms of chemistry and physics so important a biological phenomenon as first love?

Put your hand on a stove for a minute and it seems like an hour.

Sit with that special girl for an hour and it seems like a minute.

That’s relativity.

Travel is Like Love by Pico Iyer

“Travel is like love, mostly because it’s a heightened state of awareness, in which we are mindful, receptive, undimmed by familiarity, and ready to be transformed. That is why the best trips, like the best love affairs, never really end.”

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.

Yes I’ll Marry You by Pam Ayres

Yes, I’ll marry you, my dear,

and here’s the reason why;

So I can push you out of bed

when the baby starts to cry,

And if we hear a knocking

and it’s creepy and it’s late,

I hand you the torch you see,

and you investigate.

Yes I’ll marry you, my dear,

you may not apprehend it,

but when the tumble-drier goes,

it’s you that has to mend it,

You have to face the neighbour

should our Labrador attack him,

and if a drunkard fondles me

it’s you that has to whack him.

Yes, I’ll marry you,

You’re virile and you’re lean,

my house is like a pigsty

you can help to keep it clean.

That sexy little dinner

which you served by candlelight,

as I do chipolatas,

you can cook it every night!

It’s you who has to work the drill,

and put up curtain track,

and when I’ve got PMS it’s you who gets the flak,

I do see great advantages,

but none of them for you,

and so before you see the light,

I do, I do, I do!

 A Lovely Love Story by Edward Monkton (Funny)

The fierce Dinosaur was trapped inside his cage of ice. Although it was cold he was happy in there. It was, after all, his cage.

Then along came the Lovely Other Dinosaur. The Lovely Other Dinosaur melted the Dinosaur’s cage with kind words and loving thoughts.

I like this Dinosaur, thought the Lovely Other Dinosaur. Although he is fierce he is also tender and he is funny. He is also quite clever although I will not tell him this for now.

I like this Lovely Other Dinosaur, thought the Dinosaur. She is beautiful and she is different and she smells so nice. She is also a free spirit which is a quality I much admire in a Dinosaur.

But he can be so distant and so peculiar at times, thought the Lovely Other Dinosaur. He is also overly fond of things. Are all Dinosaurs so overly fond of things?

But her mind skips from here to there so quickly, thought the Dinosaur. She is also uncommonly keen on shopping. Are all Lovely Other Dinosaurs so uncommonly keen on shopping?

I will forgive his peculiarity and his concern for things, thought the Lovely Other Dinosaur. For they are part of what make him a richly charactered individual.

I will forgive her skipping mind and her fondness for shopping, thought the Dinosaur. For she fills our life with beautiful thought and wonderful surprises. Besides, I am not unkeen on shopping either.

Now the Dinosaur and Lovely Other Dinosaur are old. Look at them. Together they stand on the hill telling each other stories and feeling the warmth of the sun on their backs.

And that, my friends, is how it is with love. Let us all be Dinosaurs and Lovely Other Dinosaurs together. For the sun is warm. And the world is a beautiful place.

Love Monkey by Edward Monkton (Funny)

It was once custom that every monkey would carve for himself a wooden heart. And the heart that love monkey carved was the most beautiful of all.

Its contours were soft and rounded, like an ancient pebble sculpted by the oceans. Its surface was smooth and shiny like liquid silk, and it shone as bright as a ruby in the desert sun.

“Take your hearts with you wherever you go,” said their teacher.

“Nurture them as a mother nurtures her new-born baby.

For when you want to give of yourself fully, your heart is the only true gift you will have.”

That night, Love Monkey had a dream.

He dreamt of a monkey whose smile lit up his sole like sunshine.

He held out his hear to her, so radiant, so splendid and so new.

She took him in her arms and he felt truly, perfectly, at peace.

When Love Monkey awoke he resolved that, from that day forward, he would search for his Dream Monkey until he could stand before her and give to her his perfect heart.

He travelled through deserts…and climbed over mountains.

He trekked across forests…and sailed many oceans.

Love Monkey looked after his heart as best he could, but the storms that he endured on his travels chipped away at its surface and each new adventure reshaped it.

By the time he arrived on the last distant shore, his heart was so changed by the patina of time that it barely resembled his old heart at all.

And then, he saw her.

Standing before him, as radiant and as beautiful as the sunshine, was his Dream Monkey.

At first he could not speak.

But then, from somewhere deep inside himself, he found a voice.

“I have travelled the world over to find you, and to give you my heart,” he said. “But now that I am finally with you, I see how foolish I have been. You are so beautiful, so perfect. And my heart that was once smooth, so bright and so new is now not something that I could even bring myself to show you,” .. and he turned to go.

“Let me see it,” said Dream Monkey. She took his heart and held it up to the light. “Nothing to me is more beautiful. Every fissure tells a story. Every blemish makes you more real. All my life I have been waiting for a heart like this; a heart that speaks the truth.”

“Come here,” she said. “I have something for you too.”

In her hand was a tiny golden heart.

It was as worn and as scratched as Love Monkey’s own

…and it was the most precious thing that he had ever seen.

 I’ll Be There by Louise Cuddon (Funny)

I’ll be there my darling, through thick and through thin

When your mind’s in a mess and your head’s in a spin

When your plane’s been delayed, and you’ve missed the last train.

When life is just threatening to drive you insane

When your thrilling whodunit has lost its last page

When somebody tells you, you’re looking your age

When your coffee’s too cool, and your wine is too warm

When the forecast said “Fine”, but you’re out in a storm

When your quick break hotel, turns into a slum

And your holiday photos show only your thumb

When you park for five minutes in a resident’s bay

And return to discover you’ve been towed away

When the jeans that you bought in hope or in haste

Just stick on your hips and don’t reach round your waist

When the food you most like brings you out in red rashes

When as soon as you boot up the bloody thing crashes

So my darling, my sweetheart, my dear…

When you break a rule, when you act the fool

When you’ve got the flu, when you’re in a stew

When you’re last in the queue, don’t feel blue

’cause I’m telling you, I’ll be there

I’ll be there for you.

He Never Leaves the Seat Up (Funny)

He never leaves the seat up

Or wet towels upon the floor

The toothpaste has the lid on

And he always shuts the door!

She says she loves his kindness

And his loyalty is a must

And of course she thinks he’s funny

Which in her eyes is a plus!

He’s a very active person

Exercise is just the ticket

Where as she likes lazy days

He’ll drag her to the cricket…

or the rugby..or the football… anything really..

She’s thoughtful when he looks at her

A smile upon his face

Will he look that good in 50 years

When his dentures aren’t in place?!

He says he loves her figure

And her mental prowess too

But when gravity takes her over

Will she charm with her IQ?

All that said and done

They love the time they spend together

And I hope as I’m sure you do

That their happiness will last forever.

He’ll be more than just her husband

He is also her best friend

And she’ll be more than just his wife

She’s his soul mate ‘till the end.

I’ll Be There For You by Louise Cuddon (Funny)

I’ll be there, my darling, through thick and through thin

When your mind’s in a mess and your head’s in a spin

When your plane’s been delayed, and you’ve missed the last train.

When life is just threatening to drive you insane

When your thrilling whodunit has lost its last page

When somebody tells you, you’re looking your age

When your coffee’s too cool, and your wine is too warm

When the forecast said, “Fine,” but you’re out in a storm

When your quick break hotel, turns into a slum

And your holiday photos show only your thumb

When you park for five minutes in a resident’s bay

And return to discover you’ve been towed away

When the jeans that you bought in hope or in haste

Just stick on your hips and don’t reach round your waist

When the food you most like brings you out in red rashes

When as soon as you boot up the bloody thing crashes

So my darling, my sweetheart, my dear…

When you break a rule, when you act the fool

When you’ve got the flu, when you’re in a stew

When you’re last in the queue, don’t feel blue

’cause I’m telling you, I’ll be there.

Marriage Anon (Amusing)

Marriage is about giving and taking

And forging and forsaking

Kissing and loving and pushing and shoving

Caring and Sharing and screaming and swearing

About being together whatever the weather

About being driven to the end of your tether

About Sweetness and kindness

And wisdom and blindness

It’s about being strong when you’re feeling quite weak

It’s about saying nothing when you’re dying to speak

It’s about being wrong when you know you are right

It’s about giving in, before there’s a fight

It’s about you two living as cheaply as one

(you can give us a call if you know how that’s done!)

Never heeding advice that was always well meant

Never counting the cost until it’s all spent

And for you two today it’s about to begin

And for all that the two of you had to put in

Some days filled with joy, and some days with sadness

Too late you’ll discover that marriage is madness

How Falling In Love Is Like Owning a Dog by Taylor Mali (Funny)

First of all, it’s a big responsibility

especially in a city like New York.

So think long and hard before deciding on love.

On the other hand, love gives you a sense of security:

when you’re walking down the street late at night

and you have a leash on love

ain’t no one going to mess with you.

Because crooks and muggers think love is unpredictable.

Who knows what love could do in its own defense?

On cold winter nights, love is warm.

It lies between you and lives and breathes

and makes funny noises.

Love wakes you up all hours of the night with its needs.

It needs to be fed so it will grow and stay healthy.

Love doesn’t like being left alone for long.

But come home and love is always happy to see you.

It may break a few things accidentally in its passion for life,

but you can never be mad at love for long.

Is love good all the time? No! No!

Love can be bad. Bad, love, bad! Very bad love.

Love makes messes.

Love leaves you little surprises here and there.

Love needs lots of cleaning up after.

Sometimes you just want to get love fixed.

Sometimes you want to roll up a piece of newspaper

and swat love on the nose,

not so much to cause pain,

just to let love know Don’t you ever do that again!

Sometimes love just wants to go for a nice long walk.

Because love loves exercise.

It runs you around the block and leaves you panting.

It pulls you in several different directions at once,

or winds around and around you

until you’re all wound up and can’t move.

But love makes you meet people wherever you go.

People who have nothing in common but love

stop and talk to each other on the street.

Throw things away and love will bring them back,

again, and again, and again.

But most of all, love needs love, lots of it.

And in return, love loves you and never stops.

We’re All A Little Weird by Dr Seuss

“We’re all a little weird. And life’s a little weird. And when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall into mutually satisfying weirdness—and call it love—true love.”

The Jar of Life

“The Jar of Life”

When things in your lives seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous “yes.” The professor then produced two glasses of wine from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

“Now,” said the professor as the laughter subsided, “I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things–your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favourite passions–and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car.

The sand is everything else–the small stuff. “If you put the sand into the jar first,” he continued, “there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.

“Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first–the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.”

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the wine represented. The professor smiled. “I’m glad you asked.

It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there’s always room for a glass of wine with a friend.”

An excerpt from Winnie-the-pooh

“If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day so I never have to live without you.”

“Piglet sidled up to Pooh from behind. “Pooh?” he whispered.

“Yes, Piglet?”

“Nothing,” said Piglet, taking Pooh’s hand. “I just wanted to be sure of you.”

“We’ll be Friends Forever, won’t we, Pooh?’ asked Piglet.

Even longer,’ Pooh answered.”

“If ever there is tomorrow when we’re not together… there is something you must always remember. You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. But the most important thing is, even if we’re apart… I’ll always be with you.”

Passage taken from The Gone-Away World by Nick Harkaway

I need bruschetta (that’s ‘broo-SKET-uh,’ not ‘brushetter,’ a slender piece of ciabatta toasted and brushed with garlic and oil and covered in fresh tomato and basil– the chunks inevitably fall off the bread and the olive oil runs over your lips and down your chin. The whole thing is delicious, deeply physical and delightfully undignified, and a woman who can eat a real bruschetta is a woman you can love and who can love you. Someone who pushes the thing away because it’s messy is never going to cackle at you toothlessly across the living room of your retirement cottage or drag you back from your sixth heart attack by sheer furious affection. Never happen. You need a woman who isn’t afraid of a faceful of olive oil for that)

The relationship Promise by Luke Wright

I promise, my darling, to be your best friend

To settle the quarrels before the day ends

To teach you new things and learn in return

Halve debts, colds and baths, and share laughs and concerns.

I promise, my love, to be silly with you

To giggle in restaurants and cinema queues

The romance and hum-drum all blended to bliss

A life battle-plan that’s sealed with a kiss.

From school runs and house work to sweet pillow talk

From mortgage repayments to long country walks

A cuppa in bed when the morning begins

And then, when it’s over, I’ll pour you a gin.

I promise I’ll seek to avoid nasty schisms

I know that at times we’ll need two televisions

I love you so much that whenever we fight

I’ll learn to repeat : I was wrong, you were right.

I’ll cook for you darling, that’s what love’s about

A meal made from scratch is worth on hundred out

I’ll shield you from worries that swing overhead

I promise I’ll try to be awesome in bed.

I promise, my darling, I’ll give you your space

When you’re on the loo, dear, I’ll spare you my face

But know that I’ll be there when your spirit sinks

To match you for messiness, cuddles and drinks.

I love you, my darling, so let’s live together

Stack days into decades to make our forever.

From a Native American marriage ceremony (Blessing)

May the sun bring you new energies by day;

May the moon softly restore you by night.

May the rain wash away any worries you may have

And the breeze blow new strength into your being.

And, all the days of your life,

May you walk gently through the world

And know its beauty.

Apache Marriage Blessing (Blessing)

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

Now you will feel no cold, for each of you will be the warmth for the other.

Now you are two persons, but there is only one life before.

Go now to your dwelling place to enter into the days of your life together.

And may your days be good and long upon the earth.

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, difficulty 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.

An Irish Wedding Blessing (Blessing)

May the road rise to meet you.

May the wind be always at your back.

May the sun shine warm upon your face,

The rains fall soft upon the fields.

May the light of friendship guide your paths together.

May the laughter of your children grace the halls of your home.

May the joy of living for one another trip a smile from your lips,

a twinkle from your eye.

May green be the grass you walk on,

May blue be the skies above you,

May pure be the joys that surround you,

May true be the hearts that love you.

A Celtic Benediction (Blessing)

The peace of the running water to you,

The peace of the flowing air to you,

The peace of the quiet earth to you,

The peace of the shining star to you,

And the love and the care of all of us to you.

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 which 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.

Blessing For A Marriage by James Dillet Freeman (Blessing)

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 which 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.

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 have happiness, and may you find it making one another happy.

May you have love, and may you find it loving one another!

Blessing by Anon

And now, may the confidence, trust, and affection you have for each other on this day, sustain you as you go forth upon your journey of life together with its joy, its laughter, its sorrow, and its pain. May you fulfill your personal goals with each others help and guidance. May you live together in peace, love, and joy.

Blessing by Anon

Out of this tangled world, two souls have come together, drawn by mutual love and respect. May their days and years yet unborn deepen the joy of their choice and make it abidingly true.