Write Your Own “I Do”
Sticking solely to traditional wedding ceremonies is no longer the trend here in the Philippines because, let’s be honest, where’s the fun in not putting personal touches on your wedding? But what truly makes your wedding personal and romantic above all else are the wedding vows. And since couples go through different paths of ups and downs, writing their own wedding vows is what marks the journey of their relationship.
However, writing your personal vows is not an easy task. There may be times when you don’t know how to stop and end it, or you may have problems expressing what you want to say or when to tell what. That’s why we’ve come up with a few steps to guide you in writing your wedding vows:
Get some pen and paper, or use your smartphone.
It’s important to get comfortable when you’re writing so you could write and think properly. In writing your wedding vow, we suggest that you use your favorite (or a proper) notebook and pen as you write. But if using pen and paper is a too much hassle for you, you can always type in your laptop or your smartphone so you’ll have it with you wherever you go.
Read/watch personal wedding vows online for inspiration.
Writer’s block? There will be times. But you could always refer to other couples’ wedding vows to get you going. Here are some of the excerpts from the wedding vows of celebrity couples that made all of us kilig to the bones and even wipe out a few tears with their creative and heart-melting vows:
Toni Gonzaga & Paul Soriano
Paul: Everyone in the eight years that we’ve been together said that we’ve been perfect together. The only reason we are perfect together is that we have a perfect God in the center of this, and let’s make sure we keep that perfect God in the center of all this at all times. I don’t say this in public, we only do this in private, but I love you, Celestine!
Toni: From now on, your happiness is my happiness; what makes you sad will make me more sad, and what hurts you will hurt me the most. It has been a long journey, my love, and now, we are finally getting married. And it is a great love story because God wrote ours.
Drew Arellano & Iya Villania
Drew: I promise to give you the freedom to be the successful girl you were destined to be. In this journey, I will hold your hand, I will always be there. Honey, I will never ever be a good writer, but I promise you I will be the best father. We’ll change their diapers, bring them to school, and shout happy day like how my papa used to let me know that he’ll be there for me every step of the way.
Iya: I promise to only continue to love with each fancy omelette you cook, with each corny joke you crack. I promise to consider you in my career choices, no matter how big a dream it may be. Count on me to show you what more we can be with God’s love and his blessing. Great job, love. We made it through nine wonderful years and I know it’s only going to get better.
Saab Magalona & Jim Bacarro
Jim: Today is my greatest fantasy, one that goes beyond my imagination because it’s you, my precious. Saab, marrying you and raising our family will be my greatest legacy. So before God today, I promise you a life of laughter, my loyalty, my love, and a whole lot of rock and roll. This is our masterpiece. I promise you, I will never get tired of singing it.
Saab: You are a rare breed of Pokemon and I caught you right when you evolved into your final form. You are the man my dad would have wanted for his baby girl. There is no doubt in my heart that he’s happy to be giving me away to you today. I think my dream about you was some sort of sign, but I would have been afraid to act on it alone. Whatever force it was that nudged you towards me the very next day, I’m ever so grateful for it.
Jericho Rosales & Kim Jones
Jericho: That house we will make a home, nothing will shatter nor destroy. The God of unity built its pillars, nothing will tear us apart. No man can separate what God has put together and there will be no other home, but in your arms. I can’t wait – sexy time.
Kim: I just want you to know that I feel so blessed to be here with you today and I thank you for everything that you’ve done for me. I love you, I love you forever. We’re a team now. I believe that God has ordained this relationship and because of that I’m going to spend the rest of my life loving you.
Take down notes about your relationship.
Your personal wedding vows will be based mostly from the journey of your relationship. Take some time for a trip down memory lane to reflect and take note of the beginnings, milestones, and even the little things about your relationship.
Set limitations.
Wedding vows shouldn’t have to be long for it to be beautiful. Since you have a limited time for the wedding ceremony, it’s important to also set a limitation for your wedding vows. Take note of only the essential parts of your wedding vows and cross out some details that are not. There may be also some details that your witnesses may find too personal to share. You may want to cross that out too. It’s also not encouraged to make your sentences long since your witnesses may find it hard to keep up. Keep wedding vows at least 2 to 3 minutes long.
Clichés are a no-no.
Sometimes using quotes from other sources are very helpful for your wedding vows to hit it home, but using lines that have been used so many times is just going to make your wedding vows sound generic for the most part. Find lines and quotations that most people have never heard before. Most importantly, find ones that are specifically relevant to your relationship.
Conclude it with promises.
The promises are the most essential part—that’s why it’s called wedding vows. But don’t make it lengthy too. And as we’ve already pointed out, make it unique and personal. Be specific and, as some say, don’t make promises you can’t keep.
Finalize.
After writing your first draft, you may want to check it again for incorrect spellings, grammar, and punctuations. If you’re having second thoughts, you can always ask someone close to you to help you check what you’ve written. Sometimes a fresh pair of eyes could spot something that you’ve missed. And remember that one of the reasons you’re making your wedding vows personal is to not make it sound very formal, but not too casual that others may find it unpleasant. And although you are actually reciting your wedding vows to your husband or wife-to-be, you have to take note of the factor that you have witnesses too.
Practice it out loud.
Practice your wedding vows out loud and in front of a mirror. Yes, just like when you were a student. Why? Because you’ll be able to practice the level of your voice, your posture, hand gestures, eye contact, and how you deliver your wedding vows. While this is not a classroom setting and you can have a copy of your wedding vows at the altar, it’s also important that you familiarize your wedding vows so you could remain eye-to-eye contact with your partner.
Keep it somewhere safe.
When you’re satisfied with your wedding vows, keep it somewhere safe like your personal drawer if you wrote it on a piece of paper or in your notebook. But if you’re going to write it on paper, we encourage you to write it on your notebook so it doesn’t get lost easily. If you used your smartphone, make sure it’s in a folder that’s private if you want to keep it a secret from others. Make a printed copy too just in case it gets deleted or your smartphone gets lost or wet.
Tip: If you have a team that will document your wedding, chances are the paper you used for writing your wedding vows will be on the photos. You may want to put some thoughts on the presentation of your printed wedding vows. You could put it somewhere that would match the theme of your wedding.
Now that you have a guide to follow, make sure you have a lot of time before your wedding to prepare your wedding vows so you don’t procrastinate and forget some things that you want to say. Don’t think of impressing other people with your wedding vows. It’s not mandatory that your vows should be tear-jerking or tweet-worthy. As long as it’s personal and sincere, it’s a perfect one.
Image credits: MatrimoniedEventi.it | StacyKnows.com | LasAdiccionesTienenSolucion.com | Stawh.org
