CREATING YOUR OWN WEDDING VOWS

 

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CREATING YOUR OWN WEDDING VOWS

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When it comes to writing their own vows couples often don’t know where to

start and can become overwhelmed, but its often not quite as hard as it first

seems. Follow the six simple steps below to help create vows that are both

unique and special.

1) Make sure that everyone is on the same page.

Talk to your future spouse and your celebrant and make sure everyone is

okay with personalized wedding vows. You'll also want to make sure that

your partner also wants to do it. While you're at it, decide together whether

you want to write one wedding vow that you will both say, or whether you

want to write individually.

2) Answer some simple questions.

Sit down in a quiet space with paper and pen and answer these questions.

Even if you don't think the answer will end up in your wedding vows, still

take the time to write it down. It may help you in the long run.

- What is the single greatest thing about the person you are going to marry?

- When did you know that you were in love/ know that this person was the

one you wanted to marry?

- What does marriage mean to you?

- What is the most important thing you want to promise to your partner?

- What is the promise you most want to hear from them?

- What will change about your relationship once you are married? What will

stay the same?

- What is your most favorite memory of your partner?

CREATING YOUR OWN WEDDING VOWS

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3) Consult the experts

Take some time to read through a variety of wedding vows, as well as

passages of poetry, love stories, and famous writing about love. Print out

your favorites, and highlight passages that you could use. Included below

are some examples of vows to help give ideas.

4) Put it all together

Go back to the words you wrote before, and highlight passages that you

might want to include in your wedding vows. Now is the time to pare things

down – select the very best of all the material you have to work with. Try

taking a sentence or two from literature, add a sentence or two from the

answers to the above questions, and finish with a vow – a sentence that

begins "I promise" or "I vow". For example, you might say: "I promise to

love you, honor you, care for you, and be faithful to you, from this day

forward and for the rest of our lives."

5) If that didn't work

Try filling in the blanks in a simpler vow. (Name of your partner), you are

my (best friend, one true love, the one I want to spend the rest of my life

with, etc.) Today, I take you to be my (wife, husband, lawfully wedded wife

or husband, life partner, etc.) I promise you that I will be (faithful, worthy of

your trust, worthy of your love, your loving partner, etc.) I vow to (honor you,

cherish you, love you, respect you, laugh with you, cry with you, support you

in your goals, etc.), (insert here the length of your vow, for example, for

richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, for as long as we both shall live.)

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6) Practice, Practice, Practice

First, try reading what you've written out loud to a trusted friend or family

member. Ideally, this person will be someone who is a good writer, and

someone who knows your relationship. They may have good suggestions for

you, or the simple act of reading it out loud might help you identify places

where you can improve. Once you've worked out a final version, practice

reading it on your own to make sure you are comfortable with it. You can

choose whether you memorize them, read them off cards, or repeat them

after the celebrant.

Vow Examples

I, (name), take you, (name),

To be my lawfully wedded wife,

Knowing in my heart that you will be a faithful friend and a true and loving

companion,

As your husband

I will always be with you and support you

In times of sickness and health, joy and sorrow

I promise to love you completely

To encourage you and achieve you’re full potential

To laugh and grieve with you

To be truthful and honest with you and to cherish you

As long as we both shall live

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I (name), take you (name) to be my wife/husband, my partner in life and my

one true love.

I will cherish our friendship and love you today, tomorrow, and forever.

I will trust you and honor you I will laugh with you and cry with you.

I will love you faithfully through the best and the worst, through the

difficult and the easy.

Come what may I will always be there.

As I have given you my hand to hold so I give you my life to keep

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I (name), take you (name), to be my wedded wife/husband.

To have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer,

for poorer, in sickness or in health, to love and to cherish 'till death do us

part.

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I love you.

You are my best friend.

Today I give myself to you in marriage.

I promise to encourage and inspire you, to laugh with you, and to comfort

you in times of sorrow and struggle.

I promise to love you in good times and in bad, when life seems easy and

when it seems hard, when our love is simple, and when it is an effort.

I promise to cherish you, and to always hold you in highest regard

These things I give to you today, and all the days of our life.

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I love you

For all that you are

All that you have been

And all you’re yet to be.

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Today, a day of music and celebration, I pledge to share my life with you.

Whether the days that come are happy or sad, I will live them with you.

(Name), I give myself to you as your husband/wife.

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(Name), you are so many things to me, and I am sure you will be many more

in our life together. No one is perfect, but with all of your strengths and

weaknesses, and with all of mine, together we ARE perfect. You complete

me in more ways than I could have thought possible. I knew before my heart

did that we were made for each other and now my heart has caught up.

Because of all of these things, I want with all my heart, to be the best person

I can be for you. I will love you forever. I will laugh with you when times are

good, and I will lift you up when times are hard. I will be the joy of your

heart, and I will be the food of your soul. I promise to wash away your tears

with my kisses, and hold you with passion. My affection will know no

bounds. With this ring I give to you my body, my mind, my soul, my being

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Today, (name), I join my life to yours, not merely as your (husband/wife),

but as your friend, your lover, and your confidant. Let me be the shoulder

you lean on, the rock on which you rest, the companion of your life. With you

I will walk my path from this day forward.

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(Name), I take you to be my wife/husband from this time onward, to join

with you and to share all that is to come, to be your faithful husband/wife,

to give and to receive, to speak and to listen, to inspire and to respond;

A commitment made in love, kept in faith, and eternally made new.

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You are my Rock, my strength and with you by my side, I know that we can

overcome any obstacles that come our way. You are my best friend and my

one true love and I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with you. I promise

to always nurture our relationship, and to respect you and to love you for

always.

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I, (name), take you, (name), to be my wife, my constant friend, my faithful

partner and my love from this day forward. In the presence of, our family

and friends, I offer you my solemn vow to be your faithful partner in

sickness and in health, in good times and in bad, and in joy as well as in

sorrow. I promise to love you unconditionally, to support you in your goals,

to honor and respect you, to laugh with you and cry with you, and to cherish

you for as long as we both shall live.