Deciding on wedding readings can be a dicey task, as no one wants a commonplace moment on such a once-upon-a-time day. This list of poetry and prose suggestions should help make the task a lot simpler; meaning, of course, that one has more time to argue over the color of the napkins.
Romantic Wedding Readings
- “It’s All I Have to Bring Today” - Emily Dickinson
Emily Dickinson is often described as a closeted, lonely soul pouring her passion into cold verse. Myths aside, let her verse heighten your wedding day. Dickinson’s poem speaks of offering only oneself. “It’s all I have to bring today/ this and my heart beside”, she writes. A sentiment perfectly fit for a wedding ceremony.
- “Words On Feeling Safe”- George Elliot
A marriage is a commitment to seeing the worst of times, and Elliot’s verse reminds us that love means not hiding in all one's vulnerability. She tenderly writes: “Oh the comfort of feeling safe with a person; /having neither to weigh thoughts, /nor measure words,”. This poem so affectionately describes how opening oneself up to someone one means trusting that they will be, “keeping what is worth keeping/and with a breath of kindness, /blow the rest away.”
- “JukeBoxLoveSong”- Langston Hughes
Hughes speaks to the urban romantic. “I could take the Harlem night/ and wrap around you/ take the neon lights and make a crown,” Hughes effuses. His festive verse is dreamy and fun and a perfect fit for the groom who exudes cool style. Langston Hughes is good choice for minority couples who want to reflect their wedding readings to reflect their heritage.
- "i love you much (my most beautiful darling)"- ee cummings
Free-verse expert ee cummings is known for his avant-garde style and complete avoidance of punctuation. What slips through the cracks is that he has a beautiful collection of gentle musings and sentimental poems. While his poem “somewhere I have never traveled” was popularized on the big screen, “i love you much (most beautiful darling) is the one most fit for romantic wedding readings. The true love of the narrator is compared to an effect causing the world to shine and sing and defy winter. In fact if one were to hear such singing, “everyone certainly would (my most beautiful darling)/believe in nothing but love”.
A wedding reading can be a moment worth cherishing for anniversaries to come. Let the amorous verse of word smiths serve as a billet doux to the enchantment of a wedding day filled with moments to treasure.
