New Years Handfasting/Commitment Ceremony

New Years Eve started just like every other morning. I get up, take my meds, pour me a cup of coffee, go brush my teeth, go get my coffee, and go to the basement with my coffee & open email just before I do my morning prayer dedications. I opened my 1st email on New Years Eve and it was from one of Sunnie's long lost friends whom I have become friends with through several emails due to several Goth Groups I belong to. The email was asking me if I could perform a Handfasting preferably that night. I was like....WOW! Our friend Lynnea had just become it turns out reconnected with the father of her daughter Faith, named Jem, and well they wanted to be Handfasted ASAP. I told her that as a High Priest I can Handfast couples, but since I am not ordained, it would not be legal. She was fine with that because they would use this as more or less a Commitment Ceremony, and what then occurred was about a dozen or so emails back and forth and it was decided that we would do it that night. I started to prepare because I had alot of work now ahead of me.

I made a mental list of what needed to be done: first I had to ask my wife, Sunnie if it would be alright to do everything at our house that night since we were staying in, second was that I needed to get a hold of my HPS BerKana, third was to write a Ritual, fourth was to get the necessary Ritual supplies, and fifth and final was to make a Handfasting Ribbon. I asked Sunnie and called my HPS and both were fine with the day and location. It took me about an hour, but I found a Ritual that I liked on line and tweaked it a bit by adding some things and getting it where I liked it. I emailed a copy to the bride to be and she loved it. I went out to the dollar store to get some more ribbon on top of what I already owned and a pink candle for the Ritual. When I got home, I grabbed my son Bobby to help me with delivering Christmas cards that we never delivered before Christmas to our friends around Pennypack. I talked to Lynnea while we were delivering the cards and it would be that night and she would call me when she got home from where they were. Then things took a turn for the worse.

I started to get busy with other things & forgot to make the ribbon! After I finished doing what I needed to do around the house, I got a shower, ate, and was ready to get started, but by now it was 8pm & I haven't heard anything of what was happening. Finally around 8:30 pm I got a hold of Lynnea & she and her son to be hubby and daughter had an exausting day and decided that we would do it on New Years Day around 8 0r 9 pm. I was reprived and had another day to make the ribbon & be more nervous! I made a beautiful ribbon out of 3 wide ribbons with 10 knots of different color ribbon tied on it symbolizing different good things.

Anyhow to make a long story short, it is now 9:30pm on New Years Day, the HP & HPS are patiently waiting along with the photographer (Sunnie) and no couple to Handfast! The couple was relying on their witnesses to bring them to my house, but something happened and they were stuck for a ride. They were going to call for a cab & Sunnie said, "Why not go pick them up?", so I did and after Sunnie & Lynnea rapped for a bit, we went down to "Man's World" aka our basement and the awaiting Altar. I'll explain "Mans World" in another post, but the couple and their little princess were ready, the photographer was ready, the presiding HP & HPS were ready, and the Gods were ready!

We did a beautiful Ritual & topped it off with another beautiful Ceremony called the Rose Ceremony which Sunnie & myself used when we were Handfasted. When all was said & done, the couple was happily Handfasted and jumped the broom, all before midnight! The couple got their wish for a New Years Day wedding, we Handfasted our first couple as a HP & HPS, Sunnie found a log lost friend, my son Aidan found a new friend Faith, and I was happy that everything worked out!

We ended the evening by grounding our energies through food & drink. Sunnie broke out a bottle of Asti and we all toasted the Handfasted Couple! We all hung out, ate cake, laughed and had fun celebrating the Handfasting. I took the happy couple home and came home to just relax and reflect on the evening's events & how happy I was to be there to share in the Handfasting!




It is alot different when you are performing one as the presiding representation of the God & Goddess than the one being Handfasted and it did take me a while to go to sleep, but before I went to bed, I thanked the Gods for the opportunity to be able to serve them in this capacity. I knew that this was one down with many more to come! Congratulations Lynnea, Jem, and most of all Faith for becoming a happy family this New Years Night & wishes for many happy years as a family!





New Years Blessings,


Caedmon
High Priest
Coven of the 13 Moons



ps: The couple chose Eternity Ankh rings form Sandman/Death comics by Neil Gaiman for this Ceremony as a sign of their devotion for each other. I did print up a Commitment Certificate & signed it as well as giving the couple the pink Altar candle as a momento of the Handfasting. They are planning a big wedding at Disney World in the near future. A couple of days after I did this Handfasting, I started the process for me to get ordained as an official Minister so that I can officially marry people sign an official marriage certificate going forward.