Where would you have chosen to enter the world, if you could have chosen? Where would you have wanted to take your first breaths and smile at your extended family for the first time? Chances are it would be somewhere like the Akamas Peninsula, where this beautiful christening at Anassa Hotel took place. You’d relax in your mother’s loving arms as the warm sun bathed you in light, inhale the fresh pine-scented air, and let the deep jewel blues of the Mediterranean sea soothe you. You’d feel the lullaby of mother nature in your spirit, powerful and primordial.
This is one of the reasons why christening ceremonies are so vital: Though we may be born within the confines of white hospital walls, our parents can lovingly choose where we’re christened and gift us with a truly magical introduction to God’s creation… And don’t think that the haziness of the infant memory diminishes this experience in any way, either. On the contrary, though we may not consciously remember our christening, research shows that having positive formative memories like these can set the tone for who we become and how we see the world around us. Experts have found that babies who are immersed in joyful experiences go on to develop stronger relationships, a better tolerance to stress, and a calmer, happier outlook. And besides, where memories fade, photographs are forever: Who knows what these images will one day stir in Amare’s subconscious?
Such wisdom was understood innately by Yiannoula and Tom when they selected the Anassa Hotel for baby Amare’s christening. They knew that the soaring cliffs overlooking the seaside near this pearl of the Mediterranean would instill high hopes and aspirations in their child; they felt that the deep sea would nurture a reflective soul. They took the time to ground baby Amare in all of the elements, here where they meet and combine at Anassa: The ancient earth, the life-giving waters, the fresh sea air, and the crowning fire of sunset that blesses the land every evening.
Christening provides parents and child alike with an incredible opportunity: The chance to unite two forces we all understand innately, before we ever have words for them—beauty and love—in an act of spiritual family union. As you gaze at the images of this beautiful christening at Anassa Hotel, take a moment to let your imagination be purified in sunset flame and the cool kiss of the sea. Accept the new beginnings forever offered by the beauty that is all around us, and remember that all of us, no matter where we come from, are facets of a grand and miraculous creation.
