Funeral planning is not an exciting topic and yet it is so very important. Most of us wait too late for such plans, and the burden falls upon those left behind.
The goal here is to provide you with a few things to consider about your own pending funeral, or for the funeral of any member of your family. Consider this issue carefully and prayerfully and then take action...before it is too late.
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Consider locking in your funeral costs by paying for them in advance. My In-laws purchased their grave sites in the 1960's for $100 each. Today those same grave sites cost about $5800 each. What a great investment! You won't be able to purchase burial sites for $100 any longer but you will save money by purchasing them at today's prices. You'll also help your reduce a lot of stress and financial strain for your family.
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Make a Living Will and express your burial desires in detail. Eliminate the guessing and provide the details yourself. Does your family know you want to be cremated? Put it in writing so they don't have to make difficult decisions during a very stressful time.
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Choose your casket or urn in advance. Better yet, purchase them in advance. If you've ever been through the funeral planning process you'll know how difficult this step can be on everyone. There are payment plans to help with this and you'll save both money and stress for your family.
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Pick out the type of headstone you want. It's a big job so try doing it yourself if possible. If you are married and plan to share a gravesite then do it with your spouse. Choosing the type of stone, the eulogy, the font size and type, pictures, etc. are all time consuming and stressful for grieving family.
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Discuss viewing options with your family. Do you want a closed or open casket? Do you want a private viewing for family and close friends. People have strong feelings about this so it's good to decide viewing options in advance and put it in writing. Be aware that a viewing does add extra costs to the funeral so this may be a big consideration.
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Make a list of songs you would like to have played. This sounds simple and yet it can be a big help to know what songs you really enjoyed. You may even want to pull the songs together on a CD. If you want something like a bagpipe player then make sure family is clear with them on what to play and how long to play.
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Are there special Scriptures or poems you would like read or put in the program? If so, make sure they are documented and known by your family. It's easy to miss this step until the family is in the middle of the funeral planning process. Little things like this can be a huge help later.
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Start pulling together special pictures that highlight your life. Most likely your family will put together a DVD to show at the service and having the pictures already selected will be extremely helpful. They may also want to have pictures on tables or in albums to display your life so choose at least 50 or more pictures to give a good selection.
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Make a list of people that you want invited to the funeral service. Chances are your family does not know about everyone in you would like to have notified so provide a complete list with names, phone numbers and addresses. With all this great funeral planning taking place you want people there to fill the service.
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This is the time to make any special requests known. Is there a favorite outfit? Do you want to be buried with your wedding ring left on? Is there something special you want mentioned in your obituary? Think about things your did or will do for your own parents and then make those things known to your family today.
There is nothing fun about funeral planning and yet it is an inevitable part of life and death. If you don't do the hard parts of funeral planning yourself then the task falls on your family when they are the least capable of making emotional decisions. Do what you can to help them today and you'll be able to bless your family one last time after your death.
