Introduction
This
is a day steeped in tradition and we are
surrounded by symbols of all kinds: Something old, something new,
something borrowed and something blue. We are comforted and encouraged
by the familiarity of such symbols and yet we know that a marriage
can not survive if it looks only to the past.
Therefore (Name
of Groom) and (Name
of Bride) have elected
today to begin a new tradition, a custom which now becomes their
own.
Groom hands rose to bride and says:
(Name of Bride), I
give you this rose. Because this beautiful flower grew from a tiny
seed, it symbolizes the way my love for you has grown. From the
first tingling of its inception, it has become stronger and larger
until today it blossoms for all to see. Each year on our anniversary,
I will give you another rose. In so doing, I will remember this
day and the vows we have made. I am confident that each year my
flower will be symbolic of ever deeper and stronger feelings of
love.
Bride hands the vase to the groom
and says:
(Name of Groom), I
give you this vase of water. Because water is the one element without
which we would surely perish, it symbolizes the importance of your
love in my life. Water, like love, can take many forms.
Sometimes it is steam, sometimes ice, but
no matter what happens to it, even if for a time it seems to disappear,
it always returns. Each year on our anniversary, I will refill this
vase offering it to you as a symbol of my ever renewing feelings
of love.
Minister:
On
each anniversary, as you re-enact the giving and the receiving
of the rose and the water, may you remember with joy this day, when
you pledged your love and your lives to each other. May this only
be the first of many cherished traditions in a home filled with
much happiness.
