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Good Evening! For those of you who don’t know me, , the very proud big sister of our glamorous Bride. I want to start by congratulating Ruthy and Ryan, and thanking all of you for coming here today.

When I look at the bride and groom, I feel such a kaleidoscope of emotions. I know that Ruthy has found her true match and I know that theirs will be a marriage of long standing. My heart is bursting with love for you two today. I know you have a wonderful adventure ahead of you, and with God’s blessing your marriage will last for decades to come.

I never knew Ryan before he dated my sister, so I can’t tell you horrible stories about him, but I can tell you that I think he’s perfect for my sister! He’s easy going, interesting, easy to talk to, and he has a great sense of humor! We are very happy to welcome Ryan into our family. We know he’s made for us, and we hope we’re made for him!

Ruthy, I want to note how beautiful you look today, and to tell you that this has truly been a special day for me. Thank you for giving true meaning to the word sister and for sharing the last 25 years with me. My parents and I have just loved this girl from the day she was born. We’ve coddled her, enjoyed her, and laughed with her. I know how much joy she has brought into our lives, and I know that she’ll bring that joy into Ryan’s life as well.

As children, Ruthy and I were pretty much inseparable, and we always managed to keep each other laughing. When I think back on our adventures in childhood, I have nothing but fond memories. The fondest memories include the times we spent at the river having picnic lunches and searching for clams for our “clam club.” I also remember us frequently riding our bikes to the corner store to buy “suicides.” For those of you who don’t know, a suicide is a fountain drink made with all the soda flavors mixed together. Of course, we had to buy the jumbo size and poor Ruthy could not handle holding the drink and riding her bike at the same time. She would inevitably drop hers on the pavement before we left the parking lot, cry about it, and make me go back in to get another one with her. I also vividly remember the time Ruthy and I shared a room. We usually stayed up well past our bedtime throwing stuffed animals at each other, building forts under our beds, and laughing about anything and everything. To this day, Ruthy is the only person I know that can make me laugh so hard it hurts. I have a lot more funny and embarrassing stories about her, but because this is her special day, I will leave her alone now.

Being married for three years now, my husband and I thought about the words of advice that we’d like to give to the newlyweds. Together we came up with this:

The two secrets of a long lasting and happy marriage are a good sense of humor and a short memory!

Always