Unfortunately, I've had a lot of experience in the past few years when it comes to death and funerals. One thing I realized is pre-planning and taking the burden off your family will ease the pain and make the funeral planning a lot easier. When you plan in advance you can also have the option to prepay for your own funeral arrangement, which will also help your loved ones in their time of grief.
A few of the reasons why I believe you should preplan your funeral are:
1. Your wishes will be carried out – to a lot of people making sure your final wishes are taken care of is of high importance.
2. The Funeral Director's costs are taken care of – your family will be spared financial obligations with no hidden costs. Make sure you have a signed contract outlining the agreed upon fees so the funeral director can't increase them after you pass.
3.You can choose the plan you want and you can specify your own ‘extras' – you choose what YOU want so your family doesn't feel obligated. Maybe a memorial marble headstone, cremation or even a titanium casket are your wishes, by pre-planning you will take care of all the details and you'll be satisfied with your choices.
4. You spare your family from difficult decisions – to me, this is one of the most important reasons. In a time of grief, I feel that nobody can make informed decisions. By pre-planning, you're taking all the guesswork and decisions out of the funeral.
5. Another family member may need the plan before you – an unlikely circumstance but sometimes life likes to throw curveballs. Most of the time you can easily transfer your plant o another family member if their need arrives before your own.
6. Those you leave behind will remember your thoughtfulness – leaving less of a burden on your loved ones will show how much you care. Taking the money and decisions out of the grief process will help your loved ones remember you in a respectful way.
We never know when our time will come and it might seem like I'm putting the cart before the horse but you never know. Being prepared is beneficial to yourself as well as your loved ones, you get to choose the way you are remembered and they don't have to make tough decisions and be financially burdened after your passing.
Do you believe in pre-planning?
8 Comments
My grandmother pre-planned her and my grandfather’s funerals. I’m so glad they did. It allowed us to spend those days after their deaths just grieving and spending time with family, rather than making a ton of phone calls and rushing for funeral arrangements.
Sparing your family of the difficult decisions is a really nice thing to do when you die. Pre-paying for something like the funeral home can also save them the hassle of choosing one, who pays for it, etc. I would really suggest making sure that even if you don’t pre-pay that you at least plan it out for them.
The thought of pre-planning your funeral really scares a lot of people, but it is the best thing to do. I have heard countless stories of families being left with a huge financial burden. This is why I plan on pre-planning my funeral.
I have honestly never thought about planning my own funeral before. However, you do have some good points here about why that is a good idea. I especially like the second one you mentioned about taking care of the costs upfront, I’m sure that would be helpful.
I agree that planning your funeral beforehand can spare your family from making difficult choices. It makes sense that remembering to do this can help you find the services you want and get the best deal you can. I can see that this can also help your loved one focus on other things and have peace of mind.
Funeral planning makes a family closer, Funeral planning is a very serious topic but necessary also. Nice article.
My mom is always talking about her funeral, and she’s not even that old yet. But I guess it’s good because we’ll know exactly what she’ll want when that day inevitably comes around. It’s good to plan ahead, even for less pleasant events.
I am a demanding person and I like the idea of getting my wishes done when the funeral ceremony takes place. My wife and I plan to have an upstart funeral service as well. We will need a funeral director who can guide us on the technical side of things while running a funeral.