At Jewish funerals, the traditional greeting to mourners is “I wish you a long life”. I can see where they’re coming from, but a long life is not always a blessing.Here in Britain, one in five 80 year olds already suffers from dementia. The Alzheimer’s Society has just published a report which suggests that if current trends continue, we … Continue Reading
Category
Universal Humanism
A celebration of the life of Bob Barclay, 1954 – 2014
It’s easy to forget that our lives are getting longer. The average life expectancy when I was born in the 1950’s was 65: now men can expect to live to 78 and women a further four years, to 82. And most deaths come at the end of a long life: they may be sad, they may come … Continue Reading
A celebration of the life of Evelyn MacArthur, 1935 – 2014
Your flawless delivery of your beautifully written tribute brought Mum right into the room. As one of my cousins said ‘I expected Auntie Evelyn to stand up and speak herself!’
Carol and George’s Humanist Wedding in The John Muir Grove at The Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh
I love what I do, and never more than when I get emails like this one from the lovely Carol and George… I don’t think we can put into words how thankful we are that a) we decided on a Humanist wedding and b) chose you as our celebrant. From the first … Continue Reading
Meeting death without religion: an article in New Humanist Magazine
Irresistible image by Martin Rowson… And excellent words by Sally Feldman in the Autumn 2014 edition of New Humanist
Isla’s Naming Day on Witchcraig Hill
Isla’s very much an outdoor girl, which is why Sue and Simon decided to hold her Naming Ceremony on Witchcraig Hill, near Torphichen in West Lothian, which is where I met all of their friends and went for a little walk. Over the past year Isla’s climbed Schiehallion and gone to Orkney for … Continue Reading
Alex and Sandra’s Humanist Wedding at The Royal Botanical Gardens, Edinburgh
I don’t know why the gorgeous Sandra apologised for the delay in sending me these photos from her wedding – it was less than a fortnight ago, and we were very lucky because the John Muir Grove at the Botanics was bathed in that amazing golden light that you only get on an autumn afternoon. … Continue Reading
Joanne and Mido’s engagement in Princes Street Gardens
Lots of couples ‘reverse into’ marriage these days. They live together, have kids and then five or ten years later decide to make it legal: it’s almost the new normal, and it made me wonder how many reverse into their engagements too? I’m looking forward to conducting the wedding of Joanne and Mido … Continue Reading
Donna and Graham’s Humanist wedding at Marlyn’s Wynd
There’s usually a good four month gap between the wedding and me blogging about it, but this has to be a record. I married Graham and Donna four YEARS ago! It was meeting them at Kevin and Lindsay’s wedding at the Hub last Christmas that brought them right back to mind. Marlyn’s Wynd is one … Continue Reading
Things to think about if you don’t want a rehearsal
As I’ve said elsewhere on this blog, rehearsals aren’t mandatory, but they’re a good chance to work out what happens when and who does what. I first met Julie and Dougie at a wedding fair at The Corn Exchange last November, and I remember we got on like a house on fire. They’re getting married … Continue Reading