Margaret & Erin's Wedding at Salvage One

The moment I spoke to Erin and Margaret on the phone for the first time, I knew I was meant to marry them! They were so sweet and funny and we hit it off immediately. 

Their wedding at Salvage One ( a favorite venue!) was beautiful and intimate - with a ceremony that had lots of laughs and tears. They included two readings - "A Slippery Weasel," a wonderfully warm and irreverent piece by Ariadne Cass-Maran, and a love letter written by Johnny Cash to his wife, June. These selections were perfect for these fun, brilliant, and literary brides. 

And did I mention that we also included a reference to Bob's Burgers?  See why I liked them so much!

Here's a photo taken just before the ceremony (with my phone). Head on over to the Jill DeVries Photography blog to see the real (gorgeous!) photos. 

Poetry for Sci-Fi Lovers

I love this poem for a wedding ceremony! 


Scientific Romance Redux by science fiction writer Tim Pratt. He wrote it for his wife.

Zombie Love - me & my hubby on Halloween

An excerpt:


"If we were the sole survivors
of a zombie apocalypse
and you were bitten and transformed
into a walking corpse
I wouldn’t even pick up my
assault shotgun,
I’d just let you take a bite
out of me, because I’d rather be
undead forever
with you
than alive alone
without you."


It also mentions time travel, alien invaders and virtual fajitas. What's not to love?!


Thank you to my colleague, Dr. Robera Koepfer for suggesting it to our Life-Cycle Celebrant group!

It's All About YOU!!

Are you worrying about your upcoming wedding ceremony?

Nervous that it may wind up being the same as every other wedding ceremony you've seen?

Hoping to make your ceremony more "YOU?"

Then you may be interested in my upcoming workshop, "Creating a Unique Wedding Ceremony." The workshop is being offered through Oakton Community College.

Topics to be covered include:

• Selecting the right readings
• Rituals from different cultures
• Blending different traditions
• Theme weddings

There will also be time for a Q & A, so you can have your specific questions answered.

Here are all the details:

Class: Creating a Unique Wedding Ceremony (course code is PSY B02-01)

Location: Glenbrook South High School, 4000 W. Lake Ave. in Glenview

When: Tuesday, October 5th, 7 - 8:30 p.m. Workshop Fee: $30

How to Register online: Visit Oakton's website

Register by phone: Call 847-982-9888 & choose option 3 (days) or 847-486-4713 (evenings)

Hope to see you there!

Words of Love

In honor of Valentine's Day, here are some of my favorite quotes used in wedding ceremonies I've written in that past year:

"When two hands make a stand together on the solid rock of trust, they could be a million miles from each other and still be side by side in love." - Chris Ledoux, from the song, "Big Love"

"Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it." - Rumi (Persian poet)

"....happiness exists at just one time. And that time is now." - Willie Nelson, The Tao of Willie

"The world always seems brighter when you've just made something that wasn't there before." - Neil Gaiman (from an interview)

"I love you not only for what you are, but for what I am when I am with you. I love you not only for what you have made of yourself, but what you are making of me. I love you for the part of me that you brought out." - Erich Fried, from the poem, "I Love Thee"

"I have found for the first time what I can truly love - I have found you. You are my sympathy - my better self - my good angel - I am bound to you with a strong attachment." - Charlotte Bronte, from Jane Eyre

Words from the Wise

One of my favorite resources is a book that was a textbook for my Wedding Celebrant certification program at the Celebrant Foundation. The book, Joining Hands and Hearts by Rev. Susanna Stefanachi Macomb, is an invaluable resource when I'm writing ceremonies, especially when I want specific information pertaining to a particular faith or culture.

I thought I'd share some of my favorite quotes from this volume, which I think are great for wedding ceremonies. Enjoy!

"From every human being there arises a light that reaches straight to heaven. When two souls who are destined for each other find one another, their streams of light flow together and a single brighter light goes forth from their united being." Ba'al Shem Tov

"They are not said to be husband and wife who merely sit together. Rather, they alone are called husband and wife who have one soul in two bodies." Guru Amar Das

"The tender words you have said to one another are stored in the secret heart of Heaven. One day like rain they will fall and spread, and your mystery will grow green over the world." Jalal al-Din Rumi

"On this day, two lives join as one. Who can know from where this union comes? Who can know how far into eternity this will go? These are the blessings of Unknowing." Wendy Egoku Nakao, from The Blessings of Unknowing

"When two people are at one in their inmost hearts, they shatter even the strength of iron or bronze. And when two people understand each other in their inmost hearts, their words are sweet and strong, like the fragrance of orchids." from the I Ching

"Love gives life to the lifeless. Love lights a flame in the heart that is cold. Love brings hope to the hopeless and gladdens the heart of the sorrowful." Abdu'l-Baha from Paris Talks

A Reading That Will Induce Giggling

My Celebrant colleagues are fantastic people! I love that they are open to sharing ideas and giving advice.

Well, recently one of my colleagues was looking for funny readings for a couple she was marrying. Several people gave her suggestions, but my favorite came from the wonderful and creative New Jersey Celebrant, Cristina Kollet.

She suggested using a selection from the book, I Like You by Sandol Stoddard Warburg. I love this! Thanks for the idea, Cristina!

Here are some excerpts, which I think would be wonderful for a wedding ceremony:

Sometimes we don't say a word

We snurkle under fences. We spy secret places.
If I am a goofus on the roofus hollering my head off, You are one too
If I pretend I am drowning, you pretend you are saving me
If I am getting ready to pop a paper bag,
then you are getting ready to jump HOORAY.....

And I like you because when I am feeling sad, You don't always cheer me up right away
Sometimes it is better to be sad
You can't stand the others being so googly and gaggly every single minute
You want to think about things. It takes time.

I like you because if I am mad at you, Then you are mad at me too
It's awful when the other person isn't
They are so nice and hoo-hoo you could just about punch them in the nose….

On the 4th of July I like you because it's the 4th of July
On the fifth of July, I like you too
If you and I had some drums and some horns and some horses
If we had some hats and some flags and some fire engines
We could be a HOLIDAY
We could be a CELEBRATION
We could be a WHOLE PARADE
See what I mean?

Even if it was the 999th of July
Even if it was August
Even if it was way down at the bottom of November
Even if it was no place particular in January
I would go on choosing you. And you would go on choosing me.
Over and over again.....

More Wedding Poetry

I'm starting off the week with poetry.

Let's hear a cheer from all my fellow English majors out there!

(A little louder next time, okay?)

Here's another one of my favorite poems, by one of my favorite poets.....

love by e.e. cummings

love is more thicker than forget

more thinner than recall

more seldom than a wave is wet

more frequent than to fail

it is most mad and moonly

and less it shall unbe

than all the sea which only

is deeper than the sea

love is less always than to win

less never than alive

less bigger that the least begin

less littler than forgive

it is more sane and sunly

and more it cannot die

than all the sky which only

is higher that the sky

Wedding Poetry

Many couples mention that they'd like to have a reading during their ceremony, but have no idea where to begin looking.

When I first meet with a new couple, I give them samples of readings and poems to give them a jump-start in their search for the perfect reading.

Here is one of my favorites:

You Came, Too by Nikki Giovanni

I came to the crowd seeking friends
I came to the crowd seeking love
I came to the crowd for understanding

I found you

I came to the crowd to weep
I came to the crowd to laugh

You dried my tears
You shared my happiness

I went from the crowd seeking you
I went from the crowd seeking me
I went from the crowd forever

You came, too

Happy Valentine's Day!

I've always been a collector of quotes - don't ask me why. But, in honor of Valentine's Day, I'd like to share my favorite quotes about love . Enjoy!

"Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it." -Rumi

"When you are in Love you can't fall asleep because reality is better than your dreams." -Dr. Seuss (who knew!)

"Love is born with the pleasure of looking at each other, it is fed with the necessity of seeing each other, it is concluded with the impossibility of ever being apart." Jose Marti

"The sound of a kiss is not so loud as that of a cannon, but its echo lasts a great deal longer." - Oliver Wendell Holmes

"To keep a marriage brimming, with love in your loving cup. Whenever you're wrong, admit it;Whenever you're right, shut up." -Ogden Nash

"If you judge people, you have no time to love them." - Mother Theresa

"Love is a canvas furnished by Nature and embroidered by imagination." - Voltaire

What a great blog!

No, I'm not referring to my own.....

Today I heard about a very cool blog called Word Arrangement's Blog. I'm especially excited because it contains an interview with one of my Celebrant colleagues, Celia Milton. Celia has some great tips for couples who are planning an upcoming wedding.

The blog is by poet Chloe Yelena Miller, the creator of WordArrangement.com. Chloe creates beautiful, personalized poems for couples, especially for weddings. Her blog is addicting - don't say I didn't warn you! I just spent waaay too long reading stories about other couples' weddings, especially the Inauguration-themed celebration.