Cindy and Brett ~ The Love Story Begins.... Cindy, pretty as a princess On this, your wedding day I recall back to when I first met you� You have a face of innocence, You remind me of someone so much younger, Fresh and vibrant So much energy and enthusiasm, for life Now you are Brett�s wife. A more vivid memory I have of Cindy, Is how you generously give Reaching out to others Meeting people at their need Even to the cost of yourself. You give out of love, To others, in need And you ring a chord, of compassion, with me For those acts alone inspire me. You�re a princess girlfriend, And not just on your wedding day. Brett, when I first met you Your trust in my poetic ability Truly amazed me. Placing a poem of mine In Zenith, our church youth magazine, Even before, I regularly started attending. You had faith in my writings, You saw my talent. You encouraged me to contribute, Always appreciating what I wrote, for the youth. Through this magazine Not just the poetry, But articles too, You got to know the real me. Revealing truth, opening up You saw me as courageous. Your faith in me, Helped me to be so honest, open, real With you, and everyone else Who read Zenith, our church youth magazine. Even though, this magazine is taking a rest For who knows how long? Regardless of whether, I will ever Be involved in the magazine again. Those days of Zenith, are some of my most treasured Within this church of ours. Cindy and Brett, individually Cindy and Brett, together You�ve just become newly wed And I, along with everyone else here Could not be happier Or see someone more suited, as marriage partners Than you two This love will last forever� We can all so clearly see The devotion you have for each other And the plans you�re making together How it will be, How you will love, Grow old and be happy In the bed and breakfast business You plan to retire in� Looking at you, when your eyes first locked, at a Bush dance Teenage romance, didn�t last A fight over homework and it was over Almost before it began� Young in love, young emotionally It�s all a part of growing up Sometimes you grow apart. A little older and wiser, You found each other again. Mid-twenties more certain Of what you wanted in love. But it�s also a time of adventure, And Cindy wanted to travel. You decided it couldn�t work, long distance You let each other go, As painful as that was. Whilst Cindy travelled Brett did too Not just physically But travelled through maturity You both did Then met up again, in love After Brett returned from Papua New Guinea I recall seeing you together And sensing that something was transpiring At the Bowling Presentation Night The real romance began here The seriousness of your unity Was born two years ago Even though, you�d been dancing with romance, for 15 years previous 10 months into this relationship You decided you were ready for the commitment The proposal was so memorable Brett asked your parents permission Your mother so excited, revealing to Cindy Before Brett had a chance to formally propose Brett did so, at the beach, He stopped the car Got down on bended knee The 24th of October will be remembered forever As Cindy said yes And slipped her grandmother�s engagement ring Upon her finger All friends and relatives rejoiced Just as we�re doing today Weddings, you�ve been to a few Bridesmaid Cindy And best man, so many times over. Now it�s your own wedding, So much more meaningful, Than anyone else�s With your future plans, in mind You have found a love of a lifetime. Missionary work and travelling You want to do it all together Your future is set How do we see this future of yours? How do we see the commitment of marriage�? Those who are about to wed, Often discuss this with their closest of friends, In asking themselves and each other, What�s in store for our future? What makes a marriage last? Those of us close to you, Who are sharing in this special day, Brett and Cindy, Can obviously see this future of yours Will be filled with bliss. Of course, with your share Of blood, sweat and tears� No relationship is easy, But the rewards are grand! We can all see the treasures in store for you. What makes a marriage forever? Is when you marry your best friend. Being so in synch together. When your deepest secrets are shared between each other When the intimacy is in the right balance Sharing the most private aspects of yourself together. When your partner�s welfare is more important than yours� When you would freely give up your life for them It�s when you share each other In love, thought and deed, It�s when you share outside interests, With enough difference, for contrast It�s when you mix so well, It�s hard to tell, Where you end, and they begin� Soul mates forever, is what you have found When you�re mature, Have faith and can trust each other. With an understanding only you share. Respect each other, Honour and defend in public. Through good times, and bad, For better or worse, In sickness and in health. A blissful marriage Goes way beyond the honeymoon� My prayer for you, this day, this hour Is that you, Cindy and Brett, will forever be found� Rich in the friendship of each other, Together as best friends, forever, Warm in the love you share Happy in life, content with where you�re at now. And where you�re going together? With enough wealth to meet your needs, Yet humble enough to appreciate. This poetic gift, is written in love, and signed with smiles, For you, my dearest Cindy and Brett, Congratulations to you. I know I speak on behalf of all of us, in this here church. When I express my joy, for the joining of your two hearts And spirits as one, in holy matrimony Congratulations and cheers to your love. � Elizabeth 9th October 2001 I wrote this poem for my friends: Brett and Cindy, for their wedding day in December 2001. Brett has always supported my poetry and was the editor of a church magazine I used to write for. He always supported and encouraged my contributions to that mag of his. As a thank-you to his wonderful support, and friendship I share with him and his new wife, I wrote this poem and read it out at their wedding, during the ceremony. It was well recieved and everyone enjoyed it. For those who know Brett and Cindy, know every word of this poem is true, and that they're very much loved. Brett and Cindy, you're wonderful! I know you enjoyed this poem on your wedding day, and now here it is for you to enjoy again today, in my website. Thanks for all of your love and support. And may this poem bless you again, here and now, as it did on your wedding day. With many blessings for love and happiness to follow you two always