Pre-funeral planning

This is a relatively new concept and yet not. You may have heard an elderly relative say, “When I die, I want no fuss.” or “When I die, I’d  like you all to wear bright colours and have a laugh.” Leaving a  pre-planned funeral ceremony can be a way of communicating one last time  with your family and friends after you’ve gone. This can bring a sense  of comfort and connection with you. It gives you an opportunity to tell  your story one last time, to pick songs that you want to play for those  assembled and it’s a way of making your ceremony very personal. You can  leave words to be read out for those closest to you, you can ensure that  your eulogy is accurate and you can include those things in your ceremony that are meaningful to you, and that will be meaningful to those attending.  

You can arrange a meeting with me to plan what you would like in your ceremony. This can include:

• pre-recording your life story
• discussing songs
• any rituals you would like if you follow a spiritual path
• favourite words or readings
• messages to loved ones from you
• requests to those attending (for example, instead of flowers, a donation  to your favourite charity, or a request for them to wear a particular colour or to bring a small item to decorate your casket)
• we can also discuss other practicalities that you may want to consider, such as making lists of items you might want family members to have, or how family members can access your social media etc afterwards - this is just a discussion about what else you might wish to plan for and no lists or passwords are given to me. 

Then leave the funeral ceremony plan and/or the celebrant’s details with your will or your family members so that when the time comes, your  ceremony of farewell is truly from you to your family and friends, as  well as from them to you.