We mark the days that tell us who we are,
staccato days that give our lives their form,
this wedding day, when happy hearts and warm
are joined beneath July’s auspicious star.
Count them, the golden days of greatest joy
holding the hope of children yet unborn
and, knowing there will be days enough to mourn
the loss life brings, now celebrate the boy
become a man and come at last this hour:
the lovely bride before the bridal bower,
their family and friends, all smiles, embrace
love writ so large that time cannot efface
this silver night’s unbridled happiness.
There will be but a few as bright as this.
Dear Reader,
Can I be direct with you?
War abroad. Socialists on the rise. AI upending human life. Endless uproar online. The modern attention economy doesn’t want readers — it wants users enslaved to the tyranny of the present.
First Things is the antidote: literary excellence, timeless truths, and a fixed point of reference in a culture that has lost its bearings.
But we can’t do it without readers like you.
Our goal: Raise $150,000 by November 1 to sustain First Things in the year ahead.
Your gift anchors readers in the permanent things.
Make your Fall Campaign gift now using the button below.
If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact Giovanni Del Piero, Director of the Editor’s Circle, at gdelpiero@firstthings.com or 212-627-1985.
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