Opening Ceremony Podcast with Jess May
Podcast blurb
Welcome to ‘Opening Ceremony Podcast’ with me, your host, Jess May.
I'm on a mission to keep ceremonies alive! Join me to hear all about why!
In the UK people are giving up on ceremony and I believe it is making us sick.
I don’t want that for you and that is why we’re here.
Ceremonies remind you that you belong here, you’re precious and you’re never alone.
I hope that this podcast will do that too.
On my podcast we connect with Academics, Professionals, colleagues, friends & clients share their life events, passions, careers and the ceremonies associated with them.
Ceremonies hold power to create meaning and are a vital source of connection and belonging for human beings.
As cultures evolve, ceremonies do too, how we approach that shift matters, because even as they disappear and change shape, they continue to hold power for both good and bad.
I want to empower you to create ceremonies which honour your values and remind you that you and yours belong in this world.
Good ceremonies tell your own story and help you to find your own meaning by reflecting who you are, healing you and showing you how much you matter.
But they can also be used in damaging ways.
If you don’t claim that power and choose your own way of celebrating your life and telling your story, someone else will do it for you.
Even as they fall from fashion, they will continue to matter to us societally, historically, personally & culturally.
There is never a time in human history where people don’t use them somewhere in the world for myriad reasons.
Focusing on ceremony shows us the interconnected multitude of human lives throughout history and across cultures. Ceremonies help us to hear those voices, their differences and similarities and understand the world-views behind the ceremonies they create.
Jess May is an Award Winning Celebrant who started her career in 2013 creating hundreds of life changing ceremonies for every occasion.
Join the Opening Ceremony constellation to learn more about why ceremonies still play a central part in human and animal societies.
Episodes
Samhain! Is it CHRISTIAN or the OG of HALLOWEEN? with PAGAN specialist Dr Jenny Uzzell
CEREMONY & SELF WORTH with MIRANDA ASH
WHY DO WE PUT THINGS IN GRAVES WITH OUR DEAD? DR JENNIFER RILEY
REAL LIFE WEDDING FOLLOW UP, Gareth Tanner
"Why I married the river Avon" with Mrs Meg Avon & Celebrant Ruth Sidgwick
THE DEAD PET GIRLS
SOUL FILMS with Wendy Pye & Sybil Ah-Mane
Karen Sutton THE WIDOW COACH
POSTAL SERVICE FOR THE DEAD & BRIGHTON DEATH COLLECTIVE
SACRED STONES & long barrows for memorials with Toby Angel
EXQUISITE SHROUDS. Dagmara Rudkin from Sacred Wings Burial Shrouds
Sally Garozzo Menopause Mindset Mentor on ceremonies for life transitions
'THE DAVIDS'...Meet Dave & Dave...Dave the Plant Man and David Holmes from Ashes to Blooms
Amy Dugmore on the language of death
Coffin Club UK with Kate & Kate Celebrants
Death of the Party NYC founder Melanie Wilson invites 'Grievers' to the Party!
Professor Howard Williams, Archaeologist of Death & Memory on Donkey Sanctuaries as memorials!
Lucy Rabbit's Legacy with David Holmes from Ashes to Blooms
Roxy Celebrates Love; Award Winning Humanist Celebrant talks about The Hoffman Process, Relationships & Love!
Drag Idol Semi-Finalist Celebrant Maria Hurtz talks Safe Spaces & Allyship in the Wedding industry
Exploring Plant Medicine & Ceremony with Nigel Pedlingham!
'Death should not be a surprise!' Katie Costello, Multi Award-Winning Soul Midwife & Funeral Celebrant