Sarah York opens her beautifully-crafted book,
Remembering Well , with a personal story about how her family chose to pay tribute to her mother. "My mother died in April 1983... She didn't want a funeral. 'Get together and have a party,' she had said when the topic was allowed to come up." However, York is quick to tell readers that the survivors did not honor the request. "We needed the ritual. We needed to say goodbye, but we also needed a ritual that would honor her spirit and would be faithful to her values and beliefs."
When Ms. York acknowledges the position of her family — that they needed not a party but a ritual — she teaches us something important: the celebration of life events we plan with families should be shaped as much by their own emotional and spiritual needs as their desire to celebrate the life lived.
While celebrations of life are not burdened by social expectations — they can be pretty much anything you want them to be — it's important to realize that the event you're planning should meet the emotional needs of the guests. So, think about exactly who will be there, and what they're likely to want or need. Then, bring in those unique lifestyle and personality characteristics of the deceased; perhaps add live music or refreshments, and you've got the beginnings of a remarkable celebration of life.
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Coastal Camden Funeral Home
935 East King Avenue
Kingsland, GA 31548
Fax: 912-809-4980