Monday, March 31, 2008

20th Wedding Anniversary Celebration - Part One



Keith and I have many blessings in our lives, one being our marriage of 20 years. We felt a strong desire to celebrate this 20th wedding anniversary with our families and friends. In addition to having a party (I will write more about that in a later post) we had a very intimate "anniversary blessing" ceremony that preceded our party. Our parents, and a handful of our dear friends attended the ceremony that was officiated by our minister. For us it seemed like the right time to rejoice in our marriage and to celebrate our commitment to each other over all the changes that the last 20 years have brought into our lives. Sharing this blessing with our friends, family and minister honored our marriage in a very special and meaningful way.

The ceremony took place outside, on the deck of our friend's beautiful home in Bittersweet Woods. On this cool spring evening, we were not only surrounded by friends and family, but also by the beauty of magnificent budding trees and flowers.

Our ceremony was beautifully written by our minister and it reflected what is dear and important to us. The ceremony included a family blessing, a Wendell Berry poem, and blessings written and read by Amy and Stephanie. Mac and Ethan also shared a beautiful gift of music - a piano and violin duet of Pachelbel Cannon in D.

Below I posted only a few excerpts from ceremony.


Family Blessing written by our minister:

Keith, Kim, Mac and Ethan,
May the home you’ve made together continue to be the kind
That helps to make this world more home-like.
May it be a place of virtue and honor
Of hospitality and peace
Where all who arrive in peace are welcome
Where both adults and children are nourished.

Above all, may each of you always find such fulfillment there,
That you never cease to reach out in love and concern for others
So that those who have cause to follow your lives
Will rejoice not only in your success and happiness
But in your brave and generous living.

As this anniversary blessing brings a new meaning to love,
So allow this love to enrich the meaning of your life.



Excerpt from The Country of Marriage, by Wendell Berry


Sometimes our life reminds me of a forest
in which there is a graceful clearing
and in that opening a house,
an orchard and garden,
comfortable shades, and flowers
red and yellow in the sun, a pattern
made in the light for the light to return to.


The forest is mostly dark, its ways
to be made anew day after day, the dark
richer than the light and more blessed,
provided we stay brave
enough to keep on going in.

5 comments:

Kelly said...

How wonderful! Kim, you look beautiful! We wished we could have been there.

Anonymous said...

You two are an inspiration to all of us who know and love you. Chris and I were honored to be there to celebrate with you. MKP

Steph said...

Congratulations! It was a blessing for me to be part of this!

GRANDMA R said...

Everything was beautiful and Dad and I are both so happy we could make it. Thank you for letting us share with both of you a very special time. You both can be proud of twenty years especially nowadays. Enjoy every day because that time will go quicker than you think. We love you both! Love,
Mom and Dad R.

Mad Queen said...

What touching and beautiful words. I especially love what your pastor wrote... I want to write those down... that is how I want my home and family to be. Truly inspiring sentiments. Thank you for sharing such a personal moment. Blessing to your family,

-Tracey