Promises

On Monday Bert and I were stranded in the Houston airport for several hours. I spent my time wandering through the shops and he caught up on his reading for seminary classes. At one point I saw him chuckling--not the typical reaction for a run-of-the-mill seminary textbook. From the book _Divorce and Remarriage in the Church_, he read to me the following from a marriage service authorized by the bishop of Salisbury 1085:


"One vow has changed: in the earliest English marriage services the bride's vows included a promise to 'be bonny and buxom in bed and at board.'"

The book then clarifies that 'bonny' and 'buxom' had different meanings then.
'bonny' - from the French for good 'bon'
buxom - from an old German word meaning pliant or obedient.
board - the table where food was served
bed - nighttime

So in the end is meant: "behave properly and obediently through night and day."