Bringing recollections to life through words. When I was a teenager I was introduced the The Wasteland by T S Eliot. I remember having the most wonderful time studying the imagery and analysing the poet’s intent and losing myself in his words and the pictures that they created. I wanted to make a film of READ MORE
Author: The Country Celebrant
Respect for the Bereaved
In the last year I have conducted all manner of funerals. There have been the timely deaths of beloved people where the ceremony has been one of quiet, or raucous, celebration of a life lived to the full and ended peacefully. There have been tragic deaths through suicide and illness, where the person has been READ MORE
Wedding Fayre or Fair!
The Country Celebrant: Reflections on a Wedding Fair The Country Celebrant in delivery mode! Last Sunday dawned warm and bright, a perfect, bucolic country day to spend in idyllic surroundings talking to people who are embarking on the great adventure of “tying the knot” with the love of their life. There were a number of stalls READ MORE
The Country Celebrant: Creating a memory | working with others
The Country Celebrant: Creating a Memory | Working with others I was asked a while ago by another Celebrant if I could paint a celebration tree for her to use at an 80th birthday party. It is great to do something for a friend and it is good to see what happens to your creation. I READ MORE
The Country Celebrant: Scripting | Dementia | Loving words
The Country Celebrant: Poem for Hilda I have been thinking a lot this week about a friend who has recently lost her Mum. I wrote this poem for her but also for other friends who are losing their loved ones to dementia. Poem for Hilda Do not judge me, I am not heremy sentient mind has READ MORE
Working with people | Kindness and Support | Civil Celebrant
Reasons to be Cheerful! Oh bother, I am going to have to eat them all! In my life and work I have the chance to work with a variety of people. The joy of being both a civil celebrant and a pre school teacher is that I get to work with families and individuals at READ MORE
What it means to be a civil celebrant | how I can help
Welcome, my name is Cindy Groves and I am The Country Celebrant. I am a civil celebrant which means that I can conduct weddings, naming ceremonies and funerals.#WeddingsMy wedding ceremonies are personal – no two are the same; they are hand written and my aim is to distil the spirit of the couple that I READ MORE
The reader’s view | A love of books #real paper #technology
A wonderful place to read a book It was my birthday yesterday and amongst the lovely presents I received was a Kindle.I have been wanting one for ages and now it is beside me, loaded with a couple of books that I want to read and primed to go.I feel a sense of trepidation of READ MORE
Funeral Celebrant | A personal view
Five years ago today since my darling Father died. Some may find these images hard to view; for me they are a poignant reminder of a special person who we honoured in a way that was fitting and has brought comfort to us all. It was in memory of my Father that I trained as READ MORE
Gardens of Stone | My Boyhood in the French Resistance by Stephen Grady
I thoroughly recommend this book … a true story of courage and steely determination in the face of adversity. The writing style is journalistic and does not pull any punches. It is the first book that I have read that is specifically about the resistance. What a nightmare it must be to share your country READ MORE