The Country Celebrant: Home

The Country Celebrant: Home: I thought that it would be nice to wish all my friends and supporters a very peaceful Christmas and very many good wishes for 2016.

With very best wishes

Cindy Groves

The Country Celebrant

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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 snatched from those that love them in a way that is cruel and heartless. A cold, bleak time when all you can do is hug the pain into some sort of temporary submission. There have been slow lingering departures where there has been time to prepare and say goodbye, to plan the ending and to tie up all the loose ends, so to speak. I have been in awe of the dignity and composure of both those leaving and those being left. The stories that I have had the honour of retelling. The poignant words written by children about their Grandparents. The gut twisting pain of listening to a husband talk of his wife and what she meant to him. The keepsakes that I ha...

Confessions of a Doula's Dog | Compassion | Country Walks

I thought that some of you might be interested in my work as a Doula. I have worked with families for a very long time; I am a Mother to three wonderful and very nearly grown-up people and I have run a pre-school in Hampshire since forever. When my Father died I wanted to honour him by burying him on his farm. I struggled to talk to him about his wishes right until the end; I did not have the courage to raise such a personal issue. As is so often the case, events overtook us ... he was terminally ill and had made it clear to the doctors that he wanted no further intervention. He died in his own bed with those whom he loved carrying on as best they could around him. We buried him in a clearing on the farm. The only people present were his immediate family, a very compassionate funeral director (who happened to be my son's rugby coach) and the dogs. I knew then that I needed to learn to do this job properly and by that I don't mean the formality of being a ce...

Naming Ceremonies

What is in a Name? It has been a marvellous summer in Hampshire. We have had beautiful, balmy days and there have been some glorious Naming Ceremonies. I have been able to work with families who have had a new baby and wanted to create a truly personal celebration of the arrival of that joyous little bundle into their lives. I have also been immensely impressed by a young man who, at the age of 7, was able to join his Mother and Step-Father in a new family with a whole fresh start to his life. The ceremony was pocket sized, very few honoured guests and although there was an underlying sadness of what had been lost; I thought that this young man made everyone feel very hopeful and positive for him and that is quite something for someone so young. I wrote this poem for a Mother and her Daughter in advance of her naming day. Her celebration will be in the early New Year. I can't wait to find out what she will be called. What is in a Name? I will look a...

The Country Celebrant and The Country Carer

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