This week I’m talking about….the dreaded Covid. Hang on… don’t run for the hills just yet! Now, you’d be forgiven for thinking “Helen, why are you talking about COVID? Because, I’ve just had about enough of it. We’ve had restrictions, we’ve had lockdowns – I just want to get on with stuff now”. And I get that – I am absolutely with you on that one! So give me a sec and hear me out…
Yes, Covid has wreaked havoc all over the world, for everybody, and in all sorts of ways – not least for couples and families trying to plan ceremonies, whether that be a wedding, funeral, naming ceremony or something other important life celebration.
Unfortunately, Covid is not going to go away – something that we all know and accept now…I say Covid safe-r because we can’t 100% mitigate against every single possible risk from Covid. Unfortunately we can’t shut a door on our ceremony and tell Coivd it’s not on the guest list, so can’t come in! (that would fab if we could, wouldn’t it?!) – But there are things we can do alleviate those risks to the best of our ability whilst doing everything that we possibly can to make sure we have a brilliant time, we enjoy ourselves, we have the ceremony that we want – and it’s all done is a really safe way that will make everyone involved feel better about their own personal safety.
So, we need to find a way to live with it and do the best we can to get on with our lives, have fun, have our ceremonies, get together with our loved ones, and do it in as safe a way as possible.
And we also have to acknowledge that everyone’s perception of risk will be different. There will be those of us that are thinking “even the thought of going to a ceremony/gathering /party/event is still freaking me out – I’m not sure I can deal with that”. And there will be those of us at the other end of the spectrum thinking “Covid, Schmovid! I’m getting on with my life now – I’m ready to do my ceremony, I’m ready to get together with my loved ones”. And then there’ll be everyone in between!
So, some ideas for having a Covid Safe-r ceremony?
- Have face masks available – seems obvious, but you can have fun with it – you could have ones printed with Mr & Mrs on the front (for a wedding or renewal of vows), you could go transparent, so people’s body language and facial expressions are easy to read, or you could have any theme you wanted (maybe you’re a big Marvel/DC comics fan and fancy having some fun with superhero expressions to be printed on the face masks?!)
- Wristbands or badges for your guests to wear so it’s easy for others to know whether hugging, for example, is appropriate or not
- Use your ‘save the date’ cards or invitations to let guests know what will be available
And Risk Assessments are really useful – and every good supplier that you work with should have one to show their commitment to keeping you and your guests as safe as possible to you can sit back and have a great time!…And that’s why The Authentic Celerant is the proud bearer of the Wedding Safe accreditation (woo hoo – break out the party poppers, please!). This accreditation demonstrates that we are as Covid safe as we possibly can be in our approach to working with couples and families, and that we’re transparent about how we operate too.
If you have any questions about how you can make your ceremony Covid safe-r, or want to ask anything at all just get in touch www.theauthenticcelebrant.co.uk/getintouch ; You can sign up to the newsletter for ceremony tips, advice and ideas on the homepage www.theauthenticcelebrant.co.uk ; Or message me via facebook or Insta. Go on, I dare you! – find out what the possibilities could be for your ceremony!
Useful links to follow up some of the ideas in this blog, and to find others:
https://www.guidesforbrides.co.uk/wedding-ideas/how-to-help-guests-feel-safe-at-covid-wedding/