My Story
Born and brought up in Ayrshire, just a few miles from where Robert (Rabbie) Burns himself was born, I became a fan of his poetry from an early age, and can vividly remember as a wee girl, being taken to visit the Brig O Doon in Alloway… the setting for the poem Tam O’Shanter, where my dad would sit us down on the bridge and animatedly recite the story of Tam as he tried to flee the witches and warlocks in “Alloway’s Old Haunted Kirk”. And then he would tell us that if we closed our eyes and listened carefully, we might be able to hear the ghost of Tam’s horse Meg, galloping over the cobbled stones as she and Tam tried to escape capture. Of course, I was convinced I heard them every time!
In 1992, after having my two children, I joined the Scottish Ambulance Service, where I worked my way up from Care Assistant to Ambulance Technician, to Paramedic, until in 1999 I became Scotland’s first female Helicopter medic. In 2004, I left the Ambulance Service for pastures new, and after completing a 4 year Psychology degree at the University of Glasgow, followed by a Postgraduate qualification in Mental Health Recovery, I began my Coaching & Professional Speaking business.
In 2015, while working as a lecturer in Edinburgh, I was asked by friends to conduct their beautiful forest wedding in Dumfries & Galloway and it was such a wonderful experience that I made the decision to retrain and become a full-time Celebrant, and it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I absolutely love it! And as they say in Scotland… “You can take the lassie out of Ayrshire but you can’t take Ayrshire out of the lassie” and so as you might have noticed, there’s a wee bit of Scottishness running through my work!
In late 2017, I began a two-year spiritual training programme with the Interfaith Foundation … a journey that deepened my understanding of the sacred, of service and of the power of ceremony. That experience laid the foundations for the work I do today, and shaped the values that continue to guide me.
In 2021, I founded Rites & Rituals Scotland, a community where people of all backgrounds can explore spirituality through ceremony, ritual, and connection to the land. Our gatherings, training, and ceremonies are grounded in a reverence for life, a deep respect for each person’s unique beliefs, and a belief in the transformative power of ritual. In 2024, Rites & Rituals Scotland was authorised to conduct legal weddings in Scotland … a recognition of the sacred work we offer to couples from all walks of life. In early 2025 we launched out own podcast ‘Gaun Yersoul‘ to talk about all things Ceremony, Ritual, Spirituality and Scottish!
As for what I believe?
It’s easier to begin with what I don’t believe…
I don’t believe in a God who has form.
I don’t believe in a God who judges, punishes, or excludes.
I don’t believe that love … in any of its beautiful, consensual forms … is ever wrong.
I don’t believe in literal resurrections or eternal damnation.
I don’t believe any one holy book holds all the answers. And I certainly don’t believe anyone … clergy or otherwise … has a closer relationship with the sacred than anyone else.
But I do believe in magic & mystery. I believe in God as a central symbol of meaning. I believe in presence. In kindness. In wonder. I believe in angels and parking faeries! I believe in the sacred held within ordinary things.
I believe in something beyond this world that we don’t have words for… a feeling of something bigger than us that we just can’t explain.
And if you want to call it God, I’m absolutely okay with that. But I’m also okay if you call it Love, Spirit, the Diving, the Universe, Mother Earth, the Sacred, or if you’re a Star Wars fan, The Force.
I also believe that promising your life to another is a sacred commitment between two people, and that they should be allowed to enter into this commitment in the presence of God, Grace, Peace, Love or whatever word a couple wants to give to the idea that they are being witnessed by a higher power when exchanging their vows with each other.
More than anything in this world, I believe in Love.
And just incase you’re wondering what happened to my hair!… in early 2024, I was diagnosed with breast cancer, and began a year of chemo, radiotherapy, big mad jags and terrible hospital food! Throughout that time, I continued to conduct ceremonies (because in truth, the work nourished me), and I was constantly reminded of how precious and powerful this work really is. I’m now on the other side of treatment, and thankful for still being here, doing the work I love!
When I’m not Celebranting!.. I spend my time in the beautiful village of Abernethy in Perthshire, where I can usually be found baking cakes for The Abernethy Nook or hanging out with my adorable grandsons.
Copyright Aye Do Ceremonies 2018.
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