15 Reasons to Consider a Living Funeral

Sometimes when you know the party’s coming to an end, you want a chance to give everyone a goodbye before you go. Some people think a living funeral is a selfish or egotistical way to say your farewells. But when you’re dying, it should be all about you and what you want. You deserve to go out on your terms because there is no life experience that impacts you more.

A living funeral, also known as a pre-funeral or a celebration of life, is a ceremony held for a person who is still alive, allowing them to witness the love and appreciation from friends and family. This shifts the focus from mourning a person's death to celebrating their life, achievements, and the impact they've had on others. Typically, it's done for an elder, someone with a terminal diagnosis, or someone who has applied for Medical Assistance In Dying (MAID). Below are 15 reasons why a living funeral could be your ideal way to celebrate the end of your life.

1) Celebration of Life:

A living funeral allows you to celebrate your life with friends and family while you are still alive to enjoy it. You get to see firsthand the love and respect people have for you, turning your farewell into a meaningful event.

2) Closure:

This ceremony provides emotional closure for both you and your loved ones. Experiencing this celebration together can offer a sense of peace, knowing that your life has been celebrated in your presence.

3) Final Goodbye:

Saying goodbye on your terms can be deeply fulfilling. It’s a way to see and bring together the people most important to you, ensuring your farewell aligns with your desires and preferences, and that nobody gets left out.

4) Gratitude:

Expressing gratitude to those who have been important in your life can be a profound experience. It allows you to thank and recognize your loved ones, making them feel seen and appreciated before you go. This is something deeply personal they can hang onto after you’re gone.

5) Legacy:

The celebration often includes acknowledging your achievements, milestones, and contributions to your community, family, and friends. Sharing and passing on your legacy, stories, and life lessons during a living funeral allows you to reflect on your life and share your thoughts, wisdom, and experiences with those present.

6) Control:

You can have control over how you are remembered and celebrated. Customizing the event to reflect your personality, interests, and passions ensures it’s a unique and personal celebration. It also provides peace of mind before your death, knowing that you are celebrated how you want to be and that family won’t have to worry about guessing what you want afterwards.

7) Reduce Regret:

A living funeral minimizes regrets by addressing unresolved issues or relationships. It provides an opportunity for meaningful conversations, helping to resolve any lingering emotions before you go. You and attendees alike have the chance to say things you might not have had the opportunity to express otherwise. 

Knowing that love and appreciation have been communicated, and received in return, can bring peace of mind and a sense of completeness at the end of your worldly relationships, ensuring neither party has to endure too much grief (see why death isn’t the definitive end of a relationship here).

8) Strengthen Bonds:

This event strengthens relationships and creates lasting memories. It allows you to reconnect with loved ones, fortify relationships, and make new memories.

It is relatively common for people not to attend funerals and wakes because they feel as though they weren’t close enough with the deceased to mourn them. This type of event has the potential to allow people who might have wished to spend more time together or know you better to let you know that they admire you and will be thinking about you after you’re gone.

9) Witness Love:

Seeing and hearing the love and appreciation from friends and family firsthand can be incredibly uplifting. Creative tributes, such as videos, photo albums, and music performances, surround you with a sense of community, support, and love.

This can be a meaningful activity not only for you receiving these loving memories but also for those putting them together, who might be sitting at home with their families pouring over old scrapbooks and sharing stories while they prepare to pay their respects.

10) Reduce Grief:

Sharing the experience collectively can create a strong sense of community and mutual support, between friends, family members, colleagues, and the dying, which is comforting and affirming. 

The celebration helps initiate the grieving process while you’re still alive, allowing loved ones to begin processing their emotions in a supportive environment. The conversations and interactions that take place can facilitate emotional healing, making the eventual loss slightly easier to bear.

11) Honest Conversations:

Facilitating honest conversations about life, death, and what truly matters encourages a healthy acknowledgment of mortality. It helps both you and your loved ones come to terms with the inevitable aspects of life and death. The open expression of love and appreciation can be cathartic for everyone involved, letting things that need to be said have room to come out, and it makes room for people to share their difficult thoughts and feelings.

12) Joyful Experience:

The event is often filled with laughter, music, and activities that you enjoy. It turns what would typically be a sombre occasion into a joyful and positive experience and creates positive memories for your loved ones to cherish after you pass away.

13) Inspiration:

Your journey, wisdom, and perspective on life can inspire others. Sharing what really matters in the face of death can encourage others to be more open and honest in their own lives.

You’re not alone if, after someone’s death, you find yourself searching for meaning or trying to live with fewer regrets. The sharing about what really matters in the face of death by someone going through it can inspire others to be more open and honest in the time ahead, remembering how they would want to live in order to feel satisfied when their time comes.

14) Resolution:

For the person being honoured, it can be a profound emotional experience to see how much they mean to others, helping them find peace and emotional closure. It helps reconnect and strengthen relationships, providing a sense of unity and support. Ensuring that personal affairs and rocky relationships are resolved provides emotional peace. You might do this by airing grievances, looking for forgiveness, or even choosing to set your differences aside.

15) Personal Wishes:

Creating a personalized ceremony that reflects your unique personality and preferences ensures your wishes are honoured in real time. It allows you to express your final wishes in alignment with your values.

It also gives you some peace of mind in having a chance to express certain logistics of what you want after you die, such as body disposition preferences, the giving away of personal belongings and assets, or the reading of an official last will and testament.

In sum, a living funeral transforms the traditional concept of a funeral into a heartfelt celebration of life, focusing on joy, gratitude, and meaningful connections. It provides emotional and psychological closure, creating a lasting legacy of love, appreciation, and acceptance.

xx That Death Girl

Dying or just dying to know? If you are interested in living funerals in Ontario, book a free consultation or send an email to halle@thatdeathgirl.com.