Hi, I'm Christel Stuart - Wedding Officiant
What does a wedding officiant do?
Anyone can officiate. Heck, how do you think I landed the gig in the first place?
Picture it - 2014 Spring, Costa Rica. A breathtaking waterfall in the background…
All I see are my cousin and his bride holding hands in front of me, and 13 more of our families and friends.
I prepared some words. They prepared some words. We all agreed after that it was TOO MANY WORDS.
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I finished with, [a mix of both our words]
“We recognize with full awareness only a couple can administer the sacrament of marriage to each other. And only a couple can sanctify it. Neither my church nor any power vested in me by any state can grant me the authority to declare only what two hearts can declare and only what two souls can make real,
So now, in as much you Cousin and you Cousin have announced the truths that have already been written in your hearts and have witnessed the same in the presence of these your family and friends and the one living spirit of the All. In the essence of Pura Vida, we observe joyfully, that you have declared yourself to be married!"
And that *dusts hands* was that!
Now almost 10 years later, my words are different, and the message is the same.
That’s what an officiant does.
They make it more important-er. (not a real word)
So that the other people in the world will agree that you can be married.
What do I do?
When I was little, I never wanted to be caught “telling stories”.
Today my dreams are realized as a result of my storytelling.
I use my unique filter to express the way you love each other in ways that you didn’t know existed.
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I spoke with a couple who mentioned learning to dance together. I think it’s truly magic to watch people who have never danced with each other. How they can find the space within the music and trust in the subtle movements from their partner to move in ways that seem unfathomable.
Clearly, my skills don’t include dancing. Your dance floors are safe!
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After almost 700 weddings, friends, I have seen some stuff. I have learned from mistakes. Mine included. Trust me, one lets go of the ring-bearing llama’s harness only once!
Trusting your caterer to make delicious food, your photographer to capture moments, your music people to play that one song that makes your booty move is … invaluable.
Trusting your officiant to not stand in the shot for your first kiss, make sure you’re centered (mentally and physically) and tell YOUR love story… EXPERT LEVEL
If these two things align with your hearts, call me. Let’s talk more about your love story.
If you ONLY need the first one, I can still do that - I’ll keep the gooey stuff to a minimum.
Cross both my hearts.
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I can't wait to hear from you!