Mike & Geoff
September 15, 2016
Paris, France
« Mariage is fulfillment of one dream, and the beginning of many others »
Mike and Geoff it is a privilege to be with you today.
We gather today to celebrate together the union of Mike and Geoff.
Marriage is the union of two people in love. It’s the desire to share and build a common future, continuity of the path that you’ve already walked together.
With this ceremony, you want to consecrate the love you have for each other.
Every individual, every couple, has their own respectable opinion on marriage.
Some believe that marriage no longer has its place in our era, that it is enough to live one with another to make the union legitimate and that once the passion has vanished, we can go our separate ways and begin a new story.
If that were true, life would limit itself to a succession of encounters that marriage would never punctuate.
Others even believe that marriage is useless, that it is just an old fashioned custom that should be abolished as it only victimizes the naïve ones.
But there is a point at which commitment is total.
Mike and Geoff believe, in fact, that marriage is a symbol of great importance, one that will mark a turning point in their lives.
They are also conscious of the fact that marriage is a bet, a risk that force them to push their sentiments to their limits and truly recognize the value of these sentiments.
Mike and Geoff you chose to celebrate your love in Paris, the eternal city of love.
Walk around this town where each street, each stone, make you feel they are owned by you. I invite you to follow the tradition of so many lovers from around the world by declaring your love on La Butte Montmarte in front of “Le Mur des Je T’aime.” Walk along the river’s banks, hand in hand, while discovering the“Bouquinistes” and the flowers market…
Add just two letters to the word Paris and you will get Paradis in French. Add three and you will reach the “paradise” in English.
You can hold hands
These are the hands of your best friend, young and strong and full of love for you, that are holding yours on your wedding day, as you promise to love each other today, tomorrow, and forever.
These are the hands that will work alongside yours, as together you build your future.
These are the hands that will passionately love you and cherish you through the years, and with the slightest touch, will comfort you like no other.
These are the hands that will hold you when fear or grief fills your mind.
These are the hands that will countless times wipe the tears from your eyes; tears of sorrow, and tears of joy.
These are the hands that will help you to hold your family as one.
These are the hands that will give you strength when you need it.
And lastly, these are the hands that even when wrinkled and aged, will still be reaching for yours, still giving you the same unspoken tenderness with just a touch.
Exchange of vows
Mike and Geoff you are here today because you want to promise each other, love, respect and faithfulness.
Mike, do you take Geoff for your companion to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better and for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health,
until death do you part ?
Mike : yes, I do.
Geoff do you take Mike for your companion, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better and for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health,
until death do you part ?
Geoff : yes, I do.
Exchange of the rings
In the roman mithology, the ring symbolizes the circle of life and eternity.
This is why in Antique Rome, the newlyweds exchanged rings of metal to mark their union.
The fact that the wedding ring is on the third finger of the left hand is based on a very ancient belief. Indeed, in Antique times, both Greek medecine men and the Egyptians believed that the vein of love linked this finger directly to the heart.
Therefore, wedding rings have been the visual symbol of the union, of attachment to the other, and of the commitment to marriage for centuries.
Geoff, repeat after me :
Mike, I give you this ring as a symbol of my love and faithfulness.
As I place it on your finger, I commit my heart and soul to you. I ask you to wear this ring as a reminder of the vows we have spoken today, our wedding day.
Mike, repeat after me :
Geoff, I give you this ring as a symbol of my love and faithfulness.
As I place it on your finger, I commit my heart and soul to you. I ask you to wear this ring as a reminder of the vows we have spoken today, our wedding day.
Mike and Geoff, you can kiss
May this important day mark the beginning of a long life filled with happy moments to be shared by you both.
When you reach out your hands, may you find trust and comfort.
When you open your arms, may you find tenderness and warmth.
When you open your heart, may you find love and happiness.
Now you can go into the world and continue your lives and a unified couple.
Hold fast to your ideals.
Give to one another new experiences of joy.
Challenge one another that you may grow.
May the love you hold for each other, now sealed in marriage, continue to mature, that your life together may be a source of strength and inspiration to your family, community and the world.
« Marriage is fulfillment of one dream, and the beginning of many others »
The only fact that you dream is already very important.
I wish you dreams that never end
And the strong desire to make some of them real,
I wish you to love what needs to be loved
And to forget what needs to be forgotten,
I wish you many passions,
I wish you many silences.
I wish you songbirds at sunrise,
I wish you to fight the monotony, the indifference, the wrong virtues of our present time,
And more than anything else I wish you to be yourselves.
Finally, I will leave you a few words of the famous song of Edith Piaf : “La vie en rose” :
« Quand il me prend dans ses bras »
Il me parle tout bas
Je vois la vie en rose
Il me dit des mots d’amour
Ces mots de tous les jours
Et ça m’fait quelque chose
Il est entré dans mon coeur
Une part de bonheur
Dont je connais la cause
C’est lui pour moi, moi pour lui dans la vie
Il me l’a dit l’a juré pour la vie
Et dès que je l’aperçois
Alors je sens en moi mon coeur qui bat »
Please sign the certificate of union.
Congratulations from your celebrant
Philippe Deneubourg