Your loved one has passed away. Whether a fitting end to a life well lived; or a tragic life cut short, it is always a loss.
To me funerals are the last chapter for the deceased. A chapter some run from and others embrace; I am the later.
Sometimes the opportunity arises to meet a dying person before they pass. This is such a privilege. But more often than not, my job is for those left behind. Their loss can be ever so slightly softened by a well written, sensitive and heartfelt tribute. The supporting families, delegating, helping focus and making the best of what I have come often to call “A lovely horrible day”.
In 1999 my 18 year old nephew was tragically taken by another motorist.
I closely witnessed my heartbroken sister’s life change through this earth shaking loss. I was helpless to fix it.
That event forever changed me. My attitude to death and the dying and also the impact on their nearest and dearest.
Death is a part of living, it is the only thing we all have in common, ‘no one gets out alive!’. I now see funerals as more than a service. It’s a time of grief, yet if there is joy to be had we must celebrate that. It’s a time of saying goodbye in the very best way possible. A time of sharing memories and even finding out things you may not have known before. A time of tears and laughter, a time of forgiveness and reconciliation. A time of laying to rest the deceased.