Aug 30, 2010

Our Custom Sand Ceremony

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From the start I liked the idea of a unity ceremony.  Having a physical object symbolizing our union that I could take home after the ceremony just gave me the warm and fuzzies.  The most popular unity ceremony is the unity candle.  You have probably all seen this at some point where the bride and groom light a candle together.  Knowing that lighting a candle outdoors would present a challenge, the sand ceremony was a heaven sent solution and TOTALLY fit in with our wedding on the beach.

I read through many wordings for the sand ceremony but nothing was exactly right. I wanted something that mentioned our families coming together and also had a part for our mothers to participate in. I found the wording I liked the most at celebrateintimateweddings.com but it still wasn’t exactly what I was looking for.

As usual when I can’t find something I want I just make it myself.  I thought I should share it with all of you in case anyone else can’t quite find that right wording either:

OFFICANT:
Mama Meerkat and Mama-In-Law Meerkat please come forward and fill these two smaller containers with sand. (Our moms fill the two small vases from the beach we are on.)

Miss. Meerkat and Mr. Meerkat , you come here today from two separate families. From these two families a new family will be created. Today you join your lives and families together. (Our moms hand us the vases.)

The two separate bottles of sand symbolize your separate lives, separate families and separate sets of friends. They represent all that you are and all that you'll ever be as an individual. They also represent your lives before today. As these two containers of sand are poured into the third container, the individual containers of sand will no longer exist, but will be joined together as one. (We pour our two vases into the large container.)

Just as these grains of sand can never be separated and poured again into the individual vases, so will the love and bond between the two of you render you inseparable.

Have you re-written a ceremony or reading to make it more personal?

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