Our Hawaii Wedding
Processional
All You Need is Love by The Beatles
John and Jonathan enter from the side
Lisa and Erik enter
At Last by Etta James
Alex and Bruce enter
Opening Words
Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today in the presence of God to celebrate the love that Jonathan and Alexandra share and to witness the joining together of their lives.
Today is the day that they will formally and publicly make their promises to one another. Although this is indeed a high point, marriage is a journey not a destination. Marriage is more than any one single event or promise. It is a series of decisions that have been made, and will continue to be made over and over again, every day, that shows their care and concern for the one whom they each love most in the world. Marriage is a promise that is renewed daily through a couples actions and a responsibility taken on in the spirit of faith, hope, and love that brings comfort in times of sadness and heightens our greatest joy.
Jonathan and Alexandra, may the promises you make this day live always in our hearts and in your home so that all which you share now deepens and grows through the years, leading you through a lifetime of happiness.
Greeting of guests
Jonathan and Alex would also like to take a moment to thank all of you for making the long journey to be here with them today. Family are those who are nearest and dearest to us. Family are the people with whom we share our deepest secrets, and from whom we have no secrets. Some family we are born into and others earn the title through their actions. You have all been there for them from the beginning, sharing your love and support, your laughter and tears and they are deeply grateful for each and every one of you here today.
Lei Ceremony
Alex and Jonathan would now like to show their gratitude and love for their new families and each other with a traditional Hawaiian lei ceremony.
Charge to couple
Alex and Jonathan, the covenant, which you are about to make with each other, is meant to be a beautiful and sacred expression of your love for each other. As you pledge your vows to each other, and as you commit your lives to each other, we ask that you do so in all seriousness, and yet with a deep sense of joy; with the deep conviction that you are committing yourselves to a dynamic growing relationship of trust, mutual support, and caring love.
A wedding is more than a celebration of the love, which lives in our Bride and Groom's hearts today. It reaches into the future and proclaims their intentions for that which tomorrow shall hold.
A couple who wed are joined not only by the mutual affection and love they share, but also by their hopes, dreams and by their promises of what will be... The promises and vows they make this day shall guide them into their common future. I will ask you now if you are prepared to make these promises.
Alex, Have you come here today of your own free will to take Jonathan to be your husband, that you may live together as equal partners sharing all that life has to offer?
Alex: "I have."
Will you love him, comfort him, honor and keep him all the days of your life?
Alex: "I will."
Jonathan, Have you come here today of your own free will to take Alex to be your wife, that you may live together as equal partners sharing all that life has to offer?
Jonathan: "I have."
Will you love her comfort her, honor and keep her all the days of your life?
Jonathan: "I will."
Readings
(John)
Jonathan and Alex both immensely value their families and have asked their siblings to both bless the wedding.
Lisa will begin with an Irish wedding blessing.
Irish Wedding Blessing (Lisa)
May the road rise to meet you,
And the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
And the rains fall soft upon your fields.
May green be the grass you walk upon,
And blue be the skies above you.
May the warm rays of sun fall upon your home
May pure be the joys that surround you,
And true be the hearts that love you.
And may the hand of a friend always be near.
May you be poor in misfortune,
And rich in blessings.
May the saddest day of your future
Be no worse than the happiest day of your past.
May your hands be forever clasped in friendship
And your hearts joined forever in love.
But rich or poor, quick or slow,
May you know nothing but happiness
From this day forward.
Erik will now offer a Native American blessing.
The Blessing Of The Apaches (Erik)
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 you,
For each of you will be companion to the other.
Now you are two bodies,
But there is only 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.
Self vows
John: Jonathan and Alexandra would now like to share their own thoughts and words with each other.
Jonathan:
Alex,
Much like a seedling that needed the sun
Your energy, enthusiasm, passion, smile, and laughter
Has made me into something new, something whole.
Something that I previously thought might be possible
But was never realized until you.
You’re brilliant light that has brought me to life.
I can now fully soak up all that life has to offer.
And though our time here, on Earth, is limited,
I vow to cherish every second, knowing that we are together,
And knowing that our bond will last
Even beyond the boundaries of our current existence.
I cannot thank you enough for all that you have brought to me
And will spend all eternity loving you.
Alexandra:
The day I first saw you again, I knew ‘I want that’ and within three weeks I knew I was going to spend the rest of my life with you. I was attracted to you at sight, but it was your heart and soul that I fell in love with. You are the most caring person I know and you think about others before yourself naturally. I strive to be a better person because of you; I strive to be the person that I see in you everyday.
It is only since I met you that I truly feel at home no matter where I am – you are my home. At the same time, you give me the confidence to try new things to take risks. I know that it does not matter if I am not successful right away, you will still be there loving me and supporting me, which allows me to feel like I can fly. You are truly both my roots and my wings.
Our future is still unwritten, but I know that our life together will be great. I thank you and I love you more than words can express and I promise to spend the rest of my life showing you just how much I love you.
Sand ceremony (John)
Alex and Jonathan have chosen to symbolize their joining with a traditional sand ceremony.
Alex and Jonathan may your love always be as constant as the never-ending waves, flowing endlessly from the depths of the sea. Just as the waters touch and nourish the many shores of the earth, may your love be a moving sea between the shores of your souls. Just as there will never be a morning without the ocean’s flow, there will never be a day without your love for each other.
This beautiful union is symbolized through the combining of these two individual jars of sand. The first jar represents you, Alex, in all that you were, all that you are, and all that you will ever be, and the other jar represents you, Jonathan, in all that you were, all that you are and all that you will ever be.
Each one holds its own unique beauty, strength, and character. They can stand on their own and be whole, without need of anything else. However when these two are blended together they create an entirely new and extraordinarily more intricate entity. Each grain of sand brings to the mixture a lasting beauty that forever enriches the combination.
When you pour the sand into this common container, it symbolizes the union of your two lives. Just as these grains of sand can never be separated and poured again into the individual containers, so will your marriage be a molding of two individual personalities, bonded together forming one heart, one love. The life that each of you experienced now, individually, will hereafter be inseparably united, for the two shall become one.
Will you each please take your separate jars now and pour them into the glass in order to be united forever.
Ring Vows
May I have the rings please?
Officiant given the rings
You are about to present a ring to each other. The wedding ring, a complete circle, is the symbol of the completeness a husband and wife find in a marriage
relationship.
The ring has no beginning and no end, just as true love is never-ending. As you place the wedding ring on each other's hand, may it not only remind you of the endless love you possess for one another, but may it also be a reminder of the precious gift that has been given you to make you complete.
I ask that you now exchange rings.
(Jonathan)
Alex, with this ring,
I give you my promise that from this day forward,
you shall not walk alone.
May my heart be your shelter
And my arms be your home.
May we talk together through all things.
May you feel deeply loved, for indeed you are.
May you always see your innocence in my eyes.
I give you my heart.
I have no greater gift to give.
Now please repeat after me:
I, Jonathan, take you Alex,
I, Jonathan, take you Alex,
to be my lawful wedded wife,
to be my lawful wedded wife,
to have and to hold, from this day forward,
to have and to hold, from this day forward,
for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer,
for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer,
in sickness and health, until death do us part
in sickness and health, until death do us part
(Alex)
Jonathan, with this ring,
I give you my promise that from this day forward,
you shall not walk alone.
May my heart be your shelter
And my arms be your home.
May we talk together through all things.
May you feel deeply loved, for indeed you are.
May you always see your innocence in my eyes.
I give you my heart.
I have no greater gift to give.
Now please repeat after me:
I, Alex, take you Jonathan,
I, Alex, take you Jonathan,
to be my lawful wedded husband,
to be my lawful wedded husband,
to have and to hold, from this day forward,
to have and to hold, from this day forward,
for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer,
for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer,
in sickness and health, until death do us part
in sickness and health, until death do us part
wild child
Bouquet of white roses and dark blue iris site on the table before the wedding
