Poème de mariage

Here is our poème written for us by Buster back in 2004 to celebrate our marriage. It is written half in French and half in English, so that all of our friends would be able to understand at least half of it!

Buster was Allan's best man at the wedding, and as he knew he would be addressing a multi-lingual crowd, he decided to make the poem a part of his speech. He started by having us open our present from him, and inside was a framed print of the poem which he then read out to our guests.

So it truly was a part of the wedding day, and the same print is now hung up in our Reunion House.

(translations found below - traduction ci-dessous)

In English

Allan & Madeleine

They left their union, until the best years of their life,
And I have confidence in the joy, that life will give them
For this is a beautiful time, a great stage of life,
For them to now be pronounced, Man and Wife.

Because now, they have the whole world
And all the things which together, they can do
So much to see and do, this world has so much in store,
But with someone to share it with, it means all the more.

Perhaps they’re not the most obvious couple,
In fact it’s easy to see, how different they are
Madeleine's a true Parisian, with beauty, style and poise,
Al's an old cockney, with West Ham, Beer and noise!

Of course there are things which they both really like,
Like international cuisine, and bottle of wine
They both enjoy South Africa, being absorbed in culture and fun,
And whilst Allan's playing Golf, at least Mads has the sun!

And I believe that their lives, will improve now
For each of them brings, different things to the relationship
Allan's a mix of practicality, with extravagance and flair,
And Mads with her heart of gold, is always elegant and debonair.

I hope that you will remember, this wonderful day,
For many happy years, and a life full of love.
So good luck to you both, as you move on from this day,
I'm sure it will be great, in every possible way!