The short, bald minister smiled out to the crowd; and then looked down into his bible……….he began the ceremony.

"We are gathered here today to witness the coming together of two people, Eli Sammler and Grace Manning, whose hearts and spirits are entwined as one. They now desire to profess before all the world their intention henceforth to walk the road of life together."

Eli and Grace, facing one another, couldn't stop smiling. Though Grace was doing so through tears. Eli instinctively brought his finger to her eyes, and thumbed away the tears gently- only causing Lily and Karen to sniffle some more, and Grace's smile to become wider.

"To these two young people, this marriage signifies the birth of a new spirit, a spirit which is a part of each of us, yet not of any one of us alone. This "birth of spirit" reminds us of spring, the season when all life is reborn and looms again. It is appropriate, therefore, that this wedding of Eli Sammler and Grace Manning be in the spring, and that it be under the open sky, where we are close to the earth and to the unity of life, the totality of living things of which we are part."

"The beliefs and thoughts about love which motivate these two people are perhaps best expressed in the words of poet Kahlil Gibran:

"You were born to be together, and together you shall be forevermore.
You shall be together when the wings of death scatter your days.
Ay, you shall be together even in your silent memory.
But let there be spaces in your togetherness,
And let the winds of the heaven dance between you.
Love one another, but make not a bondage of love.
Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls.
Fill each other's cup, but drink not from one cup.
Give one another of your bread, but eat not of the same loaf.
Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each of you be alone,
Even as the strings of a lute are alone, though they quiver with the same music.
Give your hearts, but not into each other's keeping,
For only the hand of life can contain your hearts.
And stand together, yet not too near together,
For the pillars of the temple stand apart,
And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in shadow."

The minister turned to Grace; smiling at her tears of joy; he began to read………..

"Do you Grace Manning, knowing this man's love for you and returning it, realizing his strengths and learning from them, recognizing his weaknesses and helping him to overcome them, take Eli Sammler to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

Grace smiled, and instantly replied, through broken tears of pure happiness; "I do."

The old man smiled at her; "Place the ring on his finger."

He turned to Eli; who continued to stare into Grace's eyes; feeling his heart warm with every second;

"Do you Eli Sammler, knowing this woman's love for you and returning it, realizing her strengths and learning form them, recognizing her weaknesses and helping her to overcome them, take Grace Manning to be your lawfully wedded wife?"

Eli, happily replied; "I do."

The minister nodded, and continued;"Place the ring on her finger. Let these rings serve as locks–not binding you together–but as keys, unlocking the secrets of your hearts for each other to know, and thus bringing you closer together forever."

Eli and Grace locked hands, squeezing one another's tightly while the ministers words faded into the background; they only saw one each other……..


"And now Eli and Grace, seeking the fulfilment of love and marriage, find again that the poet Gibran speaks for them:"

"Love has no other desire but to fulfil itself.
To wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks to another day of loving.
To rest at the noon hour and meditate love's ecstasy;
To return home eventide with gratitude, and then sleep with a prayer
For the beloved in your heart and a song of praise upon your lips."

The minister closed his book, and smiled earnestly and broadly-

"I now pronounce you husband and wife."