Preplanning your own funeral may be a difficult prospect, but many people prefer to do this to ensure their wishes are respected and to keep their family from having to handle funeral arrangements after their passing. Whatever your reasons for preplanning your own funeral, note a few important tips for how to do this successfully.
State what you don't want included
You might know to list the things you do want included in your funeral, such as certain music played, certain religious verses read, a letter you might write yourself, and so on. However, it can be good to state what you don't want included in your funeral, if you think someone might take liberties with your funeral plans. For example, if you're an atheist and your family is very religious, they might want to include religious verses or to have a priest handle the arrangements; if these things would bother you specifically, it's good to state that you don't want religious rituals of any sort.
Allow for adjustments
You do need to allow for some adjustments to your funeral, unless you are expecting to pass away very soon. This is because funeral homes might go out of business or someone you want to manage your funeral or take part in it may also pass away, move away, and the like. It can be good to avoid trying to plan your funeral down to the last detail and assuming your family or friends can abide by those details once you do pass; instead, note some general instructions you might include, such as having the funeral in a funeral home rather than a church, having "someone" read a particular poem rather than making direct and personal assignments, and so on.
Have a funeral director review your plans
A funeral director, like one from Caring Funerals, is often familiar with preplanned funerals, and he or she may have some suggestions for things you've overlooked or things you've been far too detailed about. They can note some changes that might occur between now and your passing that you're not planning for, and also note if any of your wording is ambiguous and unclear. They can also tell you if your plans might get complicated, for example, if you want to have doves released at your gravesite, your family might need a permit, a company that supplies the doves, and to pay an extra fee to the graveyard to have this done on their site. Having their expert advice can mean a preplanned funeral that works for you and your family as well.
Hello, my name is Liam and I live in Alice Springs, Australia. I work pretty hard every day out on my farm, so it isn't unusual for me to have aches and pains. I hate going to the doctor so I normally pop a couple of painkillers or open a cold beer to deal with the discomfort. However, my wife kept on nagging me to see a doctor, which I eventually did. The doctor at Fidelity Health Choice discovered that I had a rare infection which was causing the pain. After a course of drugs, I fully recovered. I now attend regular appointments. I hope you enjoy my health and wellbeing blog.