So, you are planning your beautiful wedding day and at the top of your list is your celebrant. Do you know that without your celebrant, there is no wedding, no ceremony and no marriage? They have superpowers beyond what we know! The question is, there are so many celebrants to choose from – how do you decide on ‘the one?’ What makes a great celebrant?
Some couples will say choosing a celebrant is difficult; however, I like to add a little bit of my own beautiful layer here. Choosing your celebrant is probably one of the most sacred and heart-aligned decisions you will make. It is a trusting decision; it can be intuitive and most couples don’t know where to begin as the choices of amazing humans seem so endless, especially here in beautiful Gippsland. Making the right decision is an innate process that plants the seeds for your wedding day and your life together as a married couple.
A great celebrant begins the bringing-together process on your wedding day and will tell your love story, involve your guests and make it a moving, palpable and loving experience for everyone in attendance. They are incredible storytellers and will take you and your guests on a beautiful emotional journey, sharing with intention your unique love story. They will make you laugh, and cry and they will love you in this sacred moment of time. This is you and your celebrant creating a passage of history.
A great wedding celebrant knows that the best marriage ceremonies are deep-rooted in truth, rich in authenticity and created with love, soulfulness, and intention.
The value of a great celebrant is that your marriage ceremony will be unique. It is exclusively yours – personal and heartfelt. A great celebrant understands the power and meaning of words. They use them sparingly and accurately to move a couple and their guests from an expectant atmosphere to a joyful celebration, with tears and chuckles along the way. A great celebrant understands the couple and picks up cues from the room to make the journey safe, smooth and enjoyable for all. Ultimately, a great celebrant simply understands people and the universal delight of being in love.
Your love story is a beautiful moment in time. Your wedding day is a sacred moment in time. Your ceremony is about bringing together all of your moments in time, and your celebrant has the most incredible role in facilitating another beautiful moment in time for you and your partner. Your wedding ceremony should be crafted to reflect the journey the two of you have travelled, and a great celebrant will craft and create a true reflection of your love story in words that are soulful and true.
In this beautiful moment, I would love to introduce to our gorgeous readers a GREAT celebrant, the amazing and beautiful Maureen Miles. Maureen is warm, friendly, joyous, professional, and unflappable. She believes in creating a safe and stress-free space for everyone to celebrate the special moments in their lives and she is a guiding light that will guide you through every aspect of your ceremony, whether it is big, small or legals only. Maureen values warmth, fun, inclusivity, and authenticity. She shares “It is very important to me that you have the best experience through the whole process and that your ceremony is as unique and personal as your love for each other. I believe my role as a celebrant on your wedding day is to chaperone your love story. I believe that sharing your dreams, goals and love story with compassion, kindness, grace and a dose of laughter is my superpower.” We asked Maureen to share with us the following.
Why did you become a celebrant?
Maureen shares with us “Over the years, I have attended numerous weddings, some not even talking about the couple, some funny ones, to beautiful heart-warming ones that celebrated the couple. When they did work well, I loved the occasion, the joy, the heart-fluttering moments and the big smiles. I wanted to be part of that. I intended to ensure that every couple that chose me would feel cared for by me, that they knew I was walking beside them at all times and that they trusted I would produce a memorable occasion celebrating their love story. They could stand together on their wedding day in confidence as they knew in their hearts that their ceremony was created in such a way that was deeply genuine to them and the people that they had chosen to witness their love story would walk away with a full heart and pride that they had been chosen in such a moment of history in this couple’s life.“
What skills did you bring to this role?
Maureen’s background offers a beautiful richness and she shared “Forever, I have been a nurse and midwife, I lectured at Monash and Deakin universities in Nursing and Midwifery at the beginning of 2005. My philosophy is to always understand the other person, to walk beside them and provide tools for them to make their own choices with as much information as they require and to provide impeccable support. That goes for whether they are people in my care, women pregnant and giving birth, students, or couples getting married. I believe these skills are present when I work with couples. The importance of getting to know them, walking with them, providing them with choices and creating a wedding ceremony that is them.”
What are your tips for couples seeking a celebrant?
Find a celebrant that you trust and someone who gets you and can see your vision. All celebrants will get you married and in saying that this day is far too important to be based on cost. Think about what you want from all your vendors and what the vibe of your day is. Seek someone that matches your values, gives you options for you to consider, and finally, is excited about your wedding and is focused on you, so you feel ‘loved on’ at this moment in time.
Contact Maureen Miles www.maureenmilescelebrant.com.au
Imagery // Kinship by Kristy // Words written by Maureen Miles & Robyn Bull