Life-spiral Rituals
Bespoke. Be special.
I delight in crafting bespoke life spiral rituals at every stage of life. By braiding ancient traditions with what is resonant in the modern moment, we can make your milestone meaningful and memorable.
Before the baby arrives
Whether marking the transition to parenthood for the first time, or the expansion of a family, the arrival of a new baby is a time of excitement and change, and it can feel nourishing and right for a mother to be celebrated and blessed as she prepares.
Birthway gatherings can focus on offering spiritual support in preparation for the birthing process, or can be a time of blessing the journey of motherhood ahead; in each case, the ritual is customised to reflect the desire of the mother-to-be.
Welcoming your baby
The arrival of a precious one is cause for celebration and reflection. Whether following the Jewish tradition of naming/dedicating on the 8th day, or bestowing a Hebrew name at 1 year, I will work with you to create a ceremony which captures the joy, significance and gratitude for the newest addition to your family.
Brit Shalom / Brit Milah
Circumcision is not the right choice for every family and yet some nonetheless feel strongly about wanting to dedicate their child to a Jewish path. I can officiate a new-traditional ritual of Brit Shalom for those who wish to have a bespoke ceremony which upholds Jewish value and tradition without circumcision.
For those who wish to blend ancient custom with the modern sentiment, I can hold ritual space alongside a traditional mohel.
Welcome Ceremony
Celebrating the arrival of a child (at whatever age) through adoption can ease the transition and create a sense of welcome and wholeness, for the child, the family and the community. It can be grounded in prayers of gratitude, celebrate the child’s new name (whether new last name or additional Hebrew, or other, name), or function as a general welcome and introduction to the wider community.
Mitzvah-nitiation / B’mitzvah
Mitzvah-nitiation is the rite of passage for young people who are preparing to come of age. Grounded in the Jewish custom of B’Mitzvah, this year-long process is geared toward ensuring that your child feels not only prepared for, but also excited by, what it means to cross the threshold from childhood to young adulthood. Foundational to the individual’s evolving identity, a well-held rite can have significant impacts on healthy development, and strong family and communal relationship.
This process is intended to support deepening into mentschhood and the embodiment of Jewish values in an active and meaningful way, culminating in a ceremony where the child thrives in the opportunity to lead and inspire their community through prayer leadership.
Through guidance and partnership, together we can create a rite of passage which is effective and meaningful for your child, family and community.
Wedding
When two people come together in love, magic happens, and it is my great pleasure to work with couples who want to formalise their love through ceremony. As a ritual creatrix, I weave their stories in a way that reflects the path that each them has taken to reach their meeting, and celebrates the love and joy in their union.
My layered approach is fuelled by curiosity and supported by my cross-cultural knowledge and experience, allowing me to incorporate cultural, spiritual and/or religious customs which are meaningful to the couple. Whether joining under a chuppah (Jewish wedding canopy) or creating a blessing circle for the rings, I strive to curate each element of the ceremony so that loved ones and guests understand what’s happening, and can be inspired by what they’re witnessing.
I specialise in officiating multi-faith and multi-cultural ceremonies, as well as ceremonies which are “spiritual but not religious.” While I’m always excited to explore and learn about cultures, faiths and practices which are not my own, I am equally thrilled to officiate custom Jewish-style ceremonies which honour tradition while also creating a space of welcome and warmth.
Vow Renewal
Renewing vows is a great way to mark a milestone anniversary and can also be a powerful way to honour other life transitions for a couple, including coming back together after a period of separation, reconstituting the boundaries of a relationship, becoming empty-nesters, or entering into retirement. It would be my pleasure to help you celebrate your love in a way that balances where your hearts are today with a recognition of the path you’ve travelled to get here.
Enhance your ceremony
For couples renewing their vows, or for couples entering into marriage where one (or both) party has children, including the children in a ritual (or receiving a blessing as a family), can be a heart-warming way to deepen the bonds between the whole family.
For pregnant couples, this can be a particular auspicious time to receive a blessing as they prepare to embark upon parenthood.
For those who wish to bring forward the ancient custom of mikvah immersion, this can be a time of deep spiritual connection and celebration. I can guide and curate a customised ritual privately or with a small group of dear ones.
Funeral, Memorial, Shiva Gathering and Unveiling
When a loved one dies, we are gifted with the opportunity to honour their life in a way that deepens our familial ties and offers witness to our grieving.
As a living bridge, I am ever conscious of the value in guiding death rituals in a way that invite people to honour, remember and grieve, and I am committed to guiding in ways which are aligned with the faith practices (or lack thereof) of both the mourners and the one whom they mourn.
In the immediate aftermath of a death, these rituals can include funerals (in a funeral home, at home, or at the graveside), cremation ceremonies, shiva minyanim or memorial gatherings.
Within the first year after a death, I can also support additional closure through the unveiling of a matzevah / gravestone.
Conscious Uncoupling
In a time when we are under constant pressure to “live happily ever after”, it can be gut-wrenching to embrace a change in relationship status. The ripples which come from the end of a marriage or long-time partnership are significant, not only for us, but for those in our families and communities. Choosing to ritualise the end of a relationship can, if done well, can be as beautiful as that which started it all, and can leave everyone involved with a blessed sense of wholeness and resolution.
It would seem that when all is said and done, we realise that how well we live is inextricably tied to how good we are at endings. To meet them with grace, resolve, and wholeness can happen powerfully when we enter into ritual and allow our families and communities to hold us.
We live most fully when we experience the whole gamut of emotions and, while heightened joy is among my favourites, I also come into myself most truly when I allow myself to be melancholic. Far from collapsing into unfettered sadness, to grieve is a skill. As a believer in the value of learning to end well, I continually strive to find meaningful and grounded ways to honour what has been, so that we can carry on with ever more fortitude and presence.
Whether grounded in interpretations of Jewish tradition (gett ceremony, mikvah, havdallah, etc) or something new entirely, I will seek to understand what has been, and help you to envision what can be, as we walk together toward this threshold.
Marking Menopause
Reaching menopause is a universal rite of passage for those with wombs as they enter the autumn season of their lives. Change comes at every level and ritual can be useful and powerful in releasing and honouring what has been, and preparing to embrace the next stage of life with joy, or at least be with what is unfolding in a way that brings wholeness.
Moving into Retirement
Whether simply downsizing or moving into a retirement community, leaving a home can be liberating, relieving, overwhelming, grief-inducing and more. Our sense of “home” is fundamental to our identities and a range of emotions can resurface as we move, especially if we are leaving a long-time home (whether the physical dwelling or a neighbourhood or even city). I enjoy working with individuals and families to bring closure, offer gratitude, remember what has been, and bless what will be, in a ritual that is both an ending and a beautiful new beginning.