5 Mary Oliver Love Poems for a Wedding

Five heartfelt Mary Oliver wedding readings that are honest, playful, and memorable

Mary Oliver is one of the most beloved modern poets, and her works are among the most quoted poems of all time – especially as wedding readings! “You only have to let the soft animal of your body love what it loves,” she famously wrote, daring us to love wildly and without fear. “Keep some room in your heart for the unimaginable,” she wrote, knowing life is full of more love and beauty than even the bravest of us can conjure up.

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Mary Oliver poems are often used as readings for LGBTQ+ weddings. This is partly because her words give us permission to be ourselves, celebrating who we are and how we love even when others don’t understand. “Love yourself,” she wrote, “Then forget it. Then, love the world.” This dedication to love was seen in Oliver’s own life too; she spent 40 years with her partner, photographer Molly Malone Cook, living happily in the joyfully-queer city of Provincetown, Massachusetts.

But Oliver’s poems are just right for any wedding ceremony, and for any couple that embraces individuality, joy, the beauty of nature, curiosity, hope, and whimsy. Especially whimsy in love!

Below are 5 of our favorite Mary Oliver wedding readings. We think you’ll love them too.

We hope they inspire you. Add these readings to any wedding officiant script from AMM’s Wedding Ceremony Script Library to create an original, personal demonstration of your love and commitment.

1. “What is the Greatest Gift?”

“What is the greatest gift?” Oliver asks in this heartfelt love poem. “Could it be the world itself – the oceans, the meadowlark, / the patience of the trees in the wind? / Could it be love, with its sweet clamour of passion?”

Or is the greatest gift in life none of these – but rather, to be so enthralled by someone’s soul, by their courage and intellect, that you wonder more about their life and soul than your own?

As Oliver says, “I find my soul clapping its hands for yours more than my own.” What a beautiful sentiment to share between spouses during the ceremony!

Read the full poem on the official Mary Oliver Instagram page, What is the Greatest Gift, or on p76 in the collection Red Bird: poems, 2008

2. “Not Anyone Who Says”

In this short love poem, Mary Oliver describes real love as “something invisible and powerful and uncontrollable and beautiful and possibly even unsuitable.” This poem perfectly captures the unplanned nature of true love – of love that moves fast, catches you off guard, and makes you act in surprising ways.

Only those people who understand this unseen force, Oliver writes, “know what I’m talking about in this talking about love.”

Read the full poem on the official Mary Oliver Instagram account, Not Anyone Who Says, or in the printed collection Felicity: poems, 2015.

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3. “I Did Think, Let's Go About This Slowly”

In this sweet, relatable, and funny love poem, Oliver describes being carried away by new love, and how grateful she is that they went for it. "I did think, let's go about this slowly," she writes, and that such an important relationship should probably be built in "small thoughtful steps." 

But like many of us who can relate to love at first sight, in the very next breath, she writes, "But, bless us, we didn't." You have to laugh! And then be grateful that such a wonderful, quick love has lasted so long. 

Read the poem full poem on the official Mary Oliver Instagram, I Did Think, Let's Go About This Slowly, or in the printed collection Felicity: poems, 2015. 

4. “I Have Just Said”

This poem is perfect for playful couples – couples who love to laugh together, snuggled up together as the day starts and again in the evening, finding joy and easy gratitude in each other’s company.

“I have just said / something / ridiculous to you / And in response, / Your glorious laughter,” Oliver writes, completely at ease with someone she loves completely.

“I can’t remember / Every spring, / I can’t remember / Everything- / So many years!” she writes, reflecting on a relationship that’s spanned a long time and many seasons. “Are the morning kisses / The sweetest,” she asks, “Or the evenings / Or the inbetweens? / All I know / Is that “thank you” should appear / Somewhere.” This poem is a beautiful reading for a vow renewal or wedding anniversary ceremony too!

Read this poem in full on the official Mary Oliver Instagram account, I Have Just Said, or find it in print on page 75 of Oliver’s collection Felicity: poems

5. “How Do I Love You?”

This short, funny love poem is the perfect end to our list – and the perfect way to end your wedding vows!

“How do I love you?” Oliver writes. “Oh, this way and that way. / Oh, happily. / Perhaps I may elaborate by demonstration? / Like this, and like this / and no more words now”.

Imagine finishing your vows with this playful single stanza, then kissing your new spouse before the ceremony continues? It makes us wonder… Why do they leave all the kissing for the end of the ceremony, honestly? When you could be kissing “like this, and like this,” all along?

Read this poem on the official Mary Oliver Instagram account, How Do I Love You.

Find all of Mary Oliver’s collected words for sale directly from the poet’s estate: maryoliver.com

Explore More Wedding Ceremony Readings from American Marriage Ministries

• 5 Spanish Love Poems for Your Wedding Ceremony
• A Simple Wedding Script to Use When a Friend Officiates Your Ceremony
• Funny Love Poems & Whimsical Wedding Readings for a Ceremony that’s YOU & Truer than True
• 3 Pablo Neruda Love Poems for a Romantic Wedding Ceremony

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