{The Lingering Pleasure of a Pause}

Dear Bride-to-Be:
The words you speak during your wedding ceremony have a depth and power to them . . . choose them well, then speak them from your heart.

Here’s a tip. Borrow a technique from seasoned public speakers: the intentional pause. And here’s a way to practice: Take some deep, easy breaths then slowly (and out loud), read a favorite love poem or some other passage you really like—either to yourself or to a friend—with a deliberate pause between each phrase. (Read like you’re sharing the words with your beloved.)

What did you notice? Was it easy or hard to slow down? Did you want to rush and fill the silence? Did you remember to breathe as you spoke?

Practice some more (and remember to take deep, slow breaths.) Find yourself—your heart—in the spaces as you read. Give the words space to breathe . . . and continue to find the grace in the pause. Did you feel more ease in your body? Life becomes sweeter when it’s a practice of what gently serves love instead of a rush to the finish line!

This will be great practice for your wedding day: to slow down and find the luscious spaces not only in your words, but also in your steps, your touch, and in your hugs and embraces. Enjoy the lingering pleasure of each moment, of each pause. (It’s okay to slow down. You will get to the wedding altar—or wherever your journey takes you—at the perfect moment.)

Love. Listen. Let go.
...with love from Cornelia

[Photograph: Meg Smith]