Celebrant Life: A Guide to Elevating Your Energy

 

Here in the northern hemisphere, we’re almost at the point where we have the fewest amount of daylight hours. When you’re an Aussie girl like me, the bleakness can seem relentless. I’ve been thinking about my personal self-care practices and how these augment my celebrant practice, too. The stronger, happier, content and more at peace I am, the better for my clients. Afterall, how we do anything is how we do everything. Raising our energetic frequency benefits everyone, not just ourselves.

Gratitude

At the heart of my life is deep-level gratitude. It’s not something I pay lip service to but a day-long practice of mindfulness. Before I even open my eyes in the morning, the first words going through my head are: “I am so thankful for my beautiful life. I am so thankful for my comfortable bed, bedding, pillow. I am grateful for this new day. I am grateful for Paul and our girls. I am so grateful for being in the right place at the right time and with the right people.” The list goes on. It comes naturally and easily to me but to be clear: these aren’t just thoughts. They are deep feelings and I can feel my heart open up with joy as I express them.

 

My gratitude practice began decades ago. I would write down at least five things every day that I was grateful for though the list often grew to about twenty things. If you’d read my gratitude journal through my difficult times you’d have had no idea of the suffering I was going through because every single day I found something to be genuinely thankful for. Science now shows us that it isn’t the thing, item, person or experience we’re grateful for that makes the difference so much as the act of ‘searching’ for something to be grateful for; and I’ve found that when we do this the list can go on and on. Isn’t that lovely?

This practice can change your life. It certainly changed mine. I’m naturally a grateful person anyway, but I do know that opening one’s heart brings even more magic to your life. Even if things are shite, you can flip them around. Say, you’ve had a difficult client for example. You can give thanks for the positive learnings you can take from that experience.

Make Your Bed

Once I bounce out of bed (energetically, I’m like Tigger excited for the day; physically, old injuries make it less ‘bounce’ and more ‘five-point-turn’ out of bed!) It matters not one jot that no one will know if your bed is made or not, but this I do know: it’s the first job of the day and creates a sense of achievement whether we realise it or not. It also means, that when you enter your bedroom later in the day or that night, the bed will be made and neat and that gives a sense of calm. Anything we do to create calm in our life elevates our vibrational frequency. This makes us more ‘attractive’, energetically, to others. Just because your ceremony clients don’t see your bedroom, it doesn’t mean that chaos and clutter aren’t following you around all day. These words aren’t mean to shame but to enlighten.

Water

Have A Shower

Water is the great healer, across all cultures and throughout time. Without it, we die. It could be argued that a nice hot shower is a luxury and yet, for me, it is a necessity. As the water runs down my body, I say “Anything that doesn’t belong to me, leave. Everything that’s meant for me, stay.” In many ways, the shower is like my psychic chamber and I also use this time to give thanks or say words of affirmation. A shower isn’t just for cleansing ourselves of dirt but of unnecessary energies.

Hydration

So tempting to grab a coffee or tea first thing and yet what the body truly craves after detoxing all night long is a refreshing glass of water. Anyone who knows me also knows that I always have water with me. Even in my ceremonies, there’s a glass close at hand if needed. Whole books have been written on the necessity of ample hydration. As a rural celebrant there’s always that thought of ‘where are there loos on the way’ but I don’t let that get me into a dehydrated state. Water helps us think. It nourishes our nervous system. Hydration brings us balance. Some people say they don’t like the taste. Add lemon slices or mint or cucumber or blueberries.

High-vibrational Food

When we choose our foods, how often do we reach for distilled sunlight? Ensuring we consume adequate fresh fruits and vegetables is one of the quickest ways to bring our body into alignment. As busy celebrants, it can be tempting to go for quick snacks and meals but the truth is there is nothing quicker than an apple or banana or grapes, for example. Let go of your fears about ‘sugars’. Fruits are nature’s original food. Try reading Life Changing Foods by Anthony William.

Deep Breathing

We come into this world on a breath, and leave this world on a breath. Today, and our whole life long, our moments are bookended by breaths which come in pairs. Many people are shallow breathers. Learning to teach yourself deep breathing, through the nose, is one of the quickest and most effective ways to bring calm and resilience to your life.

Hum A Happy Tune

Singing or humming are great ways to change your energy. In fact, singing for half an hour is something that is worth being integral to your celebrant lifestyle as it really warms up the voice and can make it sound better if you’ve got a ceremony the next day. My husband Paul, the Voice, Communication and Presentation Coach at Heart-led Ceremonies Celebrant Training says “Make a playlist of songs which aren’t too high or low for you and sing with a certain amount of gusto. The next day your voice will almost certainly be functioning on all cylinders and be as good as it currently can be.”

 

A simple ‘mmmmm’ sound or humming a tune can be a daily part of your pick-me-up kit. I often do this in the shower.

 

Nature as Nurture

Last, but definitely not least, on my list is immersion in Nature. At every step of the way Nature has something glorious to offer: a dandelion sprouting in the sidewalk, wispy clouds scooting across a fragile-blue sky, the twinkle of stars after twilight, waxing and waning Moon cycles, every sunrise and sunset, rivers and streams, lakes and ponds, the tug of the tides, and more. When was the last time you hugged a tree or walked barefoot on the grass or touched moss or breathed in the scent of daybreak or picked up a feather? If you don’t have time to walk through a woodland or along a beach for an hour, sit on your doorstep and breathe in the day or night. Just be. Observe and give thanks for any ounce of nature that you experience even, and especially, if you live in a city.

Elevating our energy feels good! It’s beneficial in both the short and long term. As self-employed celebrants, we don’t have ‘sick leave’ to fall back on. The onus is on us to create ways of protecting our well-being. If we don’t make time to look after our health, our body will make time for us.

 

Veronika Robinson has been officiating all manner of ceremonies since 1995, and alongside her husband Paul www.paulrobinsonvoicecoaching.co.uk are industry leaders offering one-to-one professional celebrant training.

Veronika Robinson has a Master’s Degree in Creative Writing from the University of Cumbria, and is the author of over thirty books, including several for celebrants including The Five Elements; The Successful Celebrant; Write That Eulogy; Funerals for Children; The Discrimination-free Celebrant.  Published by Starflower Press.

She is a certified Infant Loss Professional; founder of Penrith’s first Death Café; has a TQUK Level 2 Certificate in Self-harm and Suicide Awareness and Prevention; is a celebrant for the charity Gift of a Wedding; mentors celebrants around the world in all aspects of celebrancy, including mastering writing life stories and love stories; and hosts retreats for celebrants. Veronika founded and edited The Celebrant magazine. Issues 1 to 13 can be found here.