In this variation on The Unity Candle ceremony,
the couple chooses a glass bowl that they'd like
to have in their home. Each person involved,
instead of lighting a candle, pours colored
marbles or colored glass rocks into the glass
bowl--each person has a separate color. When
everyone has poured their colors in, including
the bride & groom, I reach in and swirl the
layers of separate colors into one big
mosaic--a true blending of lives into an
ongoing, living piece of art.

One newly-combined family with five children
(plus parents, of course) chose bud vases
holding seven different colors of stones. At the
same moment, everyone poured his or her
vase of stones into a large Art Deco-style bowl
chosen by the parents. Each family member's
color joins everyone else's color, and yet each
keeps its individuality as well! I then used my
hand to mix all the colors together, and to place
a stick of curly bamboo (symbol of joy and long
life) into the rainbow of stones. When the light
hit the glass vase at this outdoor ceremony, the
effect was absolutely dazzling!

This vase now has a permanent place in the
family's home, right in front of a window, so that
the colors can truly shine!
thepreacherman.com
"Who so findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and
obtaineth the favor of the Lord."  Prov. 18:22
Unity Bowl Ceremony
This ceremony was developed  as a way to honor
multiple generations of the bride‘s and groom’s
families, and/or a way to include any children that the
couple may have.

The couple selects a glass bowl they would enjoy
having in their new home. Each grandparent, parent,
stepparent, godparent and so on is given a bud vase
filled with a different color of flat colored marbles, with
the separate colors signifying the individuality of each
family member.
The grandparents pour their separate colors into the
Unity Bowl as the foundation of the wedding of the
bride and groom. Each set of parents does the same.
After each set of grandparents, parents and so on
have added their marbles to the mix, I stir the colors
with my hand, creating new mosaics each time.

Siblings and other special friends may be invited to
participate, as well. Then the bride and groom add
their two colors, and I mix the Unity Bowl contents
again. I suggest the bride and groom have about twice
as many of their color than the other participants.  If
there are children, they add theirs after the bride and
groom, as we are honoring each generation.
Ultimately, the family members are reminded that each
of them, in their own way, has colored the lives of the
bride and groom.  Therefore, each has developed
specific tastes, goals, morals, choices...and thus the
bride knows she has found her perfect groom, and the
groom knows he has found his perfect bride.

Finally, it is noted that, just as the mosaic has
continually changed, so is change the most
dependable constant in the couple’s married life.  They
are called on to embrace change, find what can be
learned from each change, and to put their own hands
in and stir up the design in the bowl with every change
they encounter.

Thus they get to keep a memento placed in their Unity
Bowl by all the family members and other loved ones
who were present at their wedding–an emotional value
that always grows with time–and also a reminder that
change is always beautiful, as long as we keep the
right perspective that we can always learn from
change.