Art Of A Good 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 wings of an angel.
It is not looking for perfection in each other.

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 room for the 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
the obligation is reciprocal.
It is not only marrying the right partner, it is being the right partner.

"I Will Be Here" by Steven Curtis Chapman

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.

"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.

An Irish 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 your fields. And until we meet again, May God hold you in the palm of his hand.

May God be with you and bless you; May you see your children's children. May you be poor in misfortune, Rich in blessings, May you know nothing but happiness, From this day forward.

May the road rise to meet you, May the wind be always at your back, May the warm rays of sun fall upon your home, And may the hand of a friend always be near.

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.

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.

Why Marriage? by Mari Nichols

Because to the depths of me, I long to love one person, With all my heart, my soul, my mind, my body... Because I need a forever friend to trust with the intimacies of me, Who won't hold them against me, Who loves me when I'm unlikable, Who sees the small child in me, and
Who looks for the divine potential of me...

Because I need to cuddle in the warmth of the night, With someone who thanks God for me, With someone I feel blessed to hold, Because marriage means opportunity, To grow in love in friendship... Because marriage is a discipline, To be added to a list of achievements...Because marriages do not fail, people fail, When they enter into marriage, Expecting another to make them whole...

Because, knowing this,, I promise myself to take full responsibility, For my spiritual, mental and physical wholeness,  I create me, I take half of the responsibility for my marriage, Together we create our marriage... Because with this understanding, The possibilities are limitless

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. I love thee to the depth and breadth and height, My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight, For the ends of Being an Ideal Grace. I love thee to the level of every day's, Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light. I love thee freely, as men strive for Right; I love thee purely, as they turn from Praise. I love thee with the passion put to use, In my old grief's, and with my childhood's faith. I love thee with a love I seemed to lose, With my lost saints,--I love thee with the breath, Smiles, tears, of all my life!--and, if God choose, I shall but love thee better after death.

 Love's Philosophy by Percy Shelley

The fountains mingle with the river, And the rivers with the ocean;  The winds of heaven mix forever, With a sweet emotion; Nothing in the world is single; All things by a law divine In one another's being mingle:- Why not I with thine? See! the mountains kiss high heaven, And the waves clasp one another; Now sister flower would be forgiven, If it disdained    its brother; And the sunlight clasps the earth, And the moonbeams kiss the sea:- What are all these kissing's worth,   If thou kiss not me?

Now you will feel no rain, For each of you will be shelter to the other. Now you will feel no cold,For each of you will be warmth to the other. Now there is no more loneliness, For each of you will be companion to the other. Now you are two bodies,But there is one life before you. Go now to your dwelling place, To enter into the days of your togetherness. And may your days be good and long upon the earth.

Now you have lit a fire and that fire should not go out. The two of you now have a fire that represents love, understanding and a philosophy of life. It will give you heat, food, warmth and happiness. The new fire represents a new beginning - a new life and a new family. The fire should keep burning; you should stay together. You have lit the fire for life, until old age separates you. 

'Words of Power'; Voices from Indian America