Mother-blessing is my preferred name for a ceremony to celebrate a person towards the end of their pregnancy. The ceremony respects and honours the Native American Blessingway ceremony. As I don’t come from that tradition, I don’t feel that I should use the name for a Western ceremony. However, Blessingway is the better-known term.
A Mother-blessing takes place at around the same time as a baby shower would but is focussed more on the mother than on the baby.
It’s less about presents and more about your presence.
The ceremony is all about support, community and love. It’s a reminder that the woman* about to give birth has a village of people around her. Her guests are there to celebrate her and the transition she is about to take into motherhood. It doesn’t matter if this is a first baby or if she is already an experienced mother – each pregnancy, each labour, each birth, each child is a different experience.
There are several different activities that can be included as part of the blessing, and we’ll tailor the ceremony to what resonates for you. This can be done online or in person, but either way, all the participants will feel connected and supported, linked to each other until the safe arrival of your baby earth-side!
*I have used mother and she throughout for simplicity, but all genders are welcome. Trans-men who are pregnant – this is for you too, and if the name need changing, we’ll change it. This is perfect for people who are adopting or using a surrogate and are approaching parenthood. You need a village around, too.
Look out for special offers on the way for online Mother-blessings during lockdown!
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