One of the greatest balances to strike as you create your wedding ceremony is the balance between making your wedding for you and making it for your guests. Ceremony readings are a place where this balance is particularly precarious.
If you choose readings that are too personal, unusual or are tied to an inside joke, your guests might be left confused, wondering what they missed. But you should also avoid choosing readings just because they are something your parents will like.
At Esperanza Ranch, we have seen many meaningful ceremonies and have had the pleasure of helping couples make their weddings the best day of their lives. With this in mind, we have created a list of our favorite tips for finding the perfect ceremony readings that will be meaningful for both you and your guests.
Be Yourselves
In the end, people are coming to your wedding because they care about you and they want to see you happy. Your friends and family love you for who you are and they will want to see the real you reflected in your wedding. So choose readings that are meaningful to you and your love story.
Think about romantic quotes from your favorite books, movies, and TV shows. If there is a place that is very important to both of you, think about choosing writings from writers who live in that place. Don’t be afraid of unconventional and funny readings, but be sure that your quotes are always about love, family, friendship, or commitment.
Another fun place you can add a dash of your couple’s personality is by renting fun customizable marquee letters for your reception.
Let Your Guests In
There will be a few people at your wedding who do not know one of you at all. Don’t neglect these people, instead use them as an excuse to tell your guests even more about your personality as a couple.
During your ceremony, you should find times when you can tell your guests bits of stories about you as a couple. Sometimes, it can be nice to have a family member speak about the reasons they are excited to welcome a new member of a family.
The Classics Are Classic For A Reason
Don’t worry too much about finding completely new and unique readings for your wedding. Especially if you will be having a religious ceremony. You will probably find some of the classic readings that you love.
However, you should think critically about which readings you include in your wedding and reflect on whether they reflect your beliefs on marriage.
Tie Your Readings To A Theme
It might feel a little corny to you to have a specific theme for your wedding. Obviously, we’re not all ready to have an Avengers themed wedding or a Star Wars themed wedding. But many couples decide to have some sort of general theme to their wedding, whether that is “spring,” “trees,” “forever,” or “music.”
Think about what the theme of your wedding is and whether you can create some readings that fit into that theme.
Commission Writing
If you want readings that are truly personal and unique, the ultimate choice is to ask one of your friends to write a poem or a few paragraphs about either your relationship or love in general. This is a great way to support friends who are artists and a great way to take your ceremony to the next level.
This will require finding the right person. If your wedding is being officiated by someone who knows you both closely, they could be the person to write.
Find The Right Readers
Your ceremony is not just about the content. It’s also about presentation. One of the biggest choices you can make in terms of presentation is finding the right readers for your reading. Think about choosing people who are both meaningful to you and people who will be comfortable speaking in front of a crowd.
Make sure you think about matching the right reading with the right person. Make sure you aren’t asking your atheist cousin to read a Bible verse or asking your recently divorced best friend to read a poem about love being eternal. You want to make sure that your wedding will be just as enjoyable for the people who are in the ceremony as it is for the audience.
With all of these things in mind, you will be able to pick the perfect ceremony reading that will be meaningful to you and your partner while still being relatable to your guests.
