As gentle as the subject itself – in “Funerals for Children”, Celebrant and author, Veronika gently guides the reader through the steps of caring for ourselves and the families we serve as we undertake this privileged work.
Ranging from babies in utero, through to the death of a teenager or young adult, this book has a wealth of information and techniques to truly honour the life we are celebrating, and a reminder that each of us are (and always will be) someone’s child.
Having officiated very few ceremonies for children under the age of 5, I found the early sections particularly beneficial.
Reflecting on my own Celebrant experience and knowledge, this book is grounding and a great reminder of what we all know but sometimes may not put into practice.
“The quieter we become, the more we will hear” to remembering that “People start to heal the moment they feel heard” – words of wisdom from the pages.
This book is an exploration of spaces: the space we, as celebrants, hold for others; the myriad spaces that a person inhabits when they experience the death of a child; the spaces children live and love in; and the spaces we, as celebrants, hold for ourselves.
Each section of the book is broken down in to learning/reflective size portions and supported by many real time examples/situations, with space for the reader to write their own thoughts.
Going beyond creating the ceremony, there are many aspects of ritual included and some sound reminders of “self-care of the Celebrant”.
This will be my go-to resource for all funerals for children in the future. Fortunately, the funerals of babies and youth are few and far between in my area and this resource is easy to pick up, dip in to, and reground me before meeting the family. If this is a resource for your bookshelf, you can purchase it directly from the publisher at https://www.starflowerpress.com/books/funerals-for-children/ or through Amazon Australia