A Poem (for Marriage)

My nephew is getting married this weekend. (My nephew is getting married this weekend!?!) In trying to figure out what to write in their card with my gift to them, this kind-of-sort-of poem kind-of-sort-of slipped out. (Writing skills are escaping me at the moment.)

I have no way of knowing what the future holds for these two young people, one whom I have loved for his whole life and the other whom I have just begun to love. They have both been raised in the Catholic faith and, so, they both take the sacrament of marriage seriously. (As seriously as two 22-year-olds can.) But they don’t know what the future holds for them either. All that they can know is that God’s gifts of faith, hope, and love should never be abandoned or taken for granted. I pray that they will learn the importance of good communication, and put it into daily practice; that they will support each other, trust each other, and help each other when help is needed (sometimes even before it it’s asked for); that they will forgive each other with compassion, understanding, forbearance, and a humble, generous spirit that recognizes that we are all imperfect; and I pray that God will bless them with good health, well-being, stability, and the joyful fruitfulness that God desires from their marriage, be that through children or the sharing of their other gifts with family and community.

And now to the words that didn’t make it into the card:

When pleasures overflow,

                        sip gently;

When cupboards run bare,

                        act simply;

When poverty is met,

                        give generously;

When injury is felt,

                        love mercifully;

When hardships come your way,

                        sing bravely;

When riches come your way,

                        share humbly;

When sorrow breaks your heart,

                        pray hopefully;

When you sleep and when you wake,

                        breathe gratefully;

When in struggle and in peace,

                        live faithfully;

And when the day ends in y,

                        dance joyfully,

Because God is good.

© 2025 Christina Chase

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Feature Photo by Saeed Sarshar on Unsplash