At the moment, it’s not possible to have a funeral service for our loved ones in the traditional way. A limit of between five and ten members of the immediate family can attend and this in itself is far too distressing for many. We need to look at an alternative way of remembering our loved ones and celebrating their life.
We could conduct a conference memorial service via Skype or WhatsApp, or we could celebrate their life while isolating at home the same way. Technology being what it is today means that it may be possible to view a funeral service online, remotely, instead of attending in person. As such, it could also be recorded to watch at a more convenient time. We have to do the best we can at this difficult time… If you should ever find yourself in a position where someone has died, either in your family, or a member of the public, from COVID-19, you should keep well away from the deceased. You should call the doctor, or 111, or an out of hours number. You should also call 999.
Last week I went to a socially distanced funeral for my colleague. It was very strange actually, only 11 people attended (I believe the maximum number is now 15) and it was very quiet, very sparse and very quick. Never have I been to such a fast paced funeral service. I was very happy to be there for the family and the eulogy was lovely, read by the daughter of the deceased. But I couldn’t help feeling like I was on a funeral conveyor belt. Looking at the schedule for the day outside the crematorium, we were the first of many booked in and it’s clearly a busy time. Even so, I felt slightly uncomfortable with the speed by which I was whisked in and whisked out. In spite of this, you can still make a funeral special at this time. To be honest, I believe a good eulogy is the key, real memories from real people speaking from the heart. That to me makes any funeral very special, personal and memorable. Lockdown presents a difficult situation for us all and funerals aren’t easy at the best of times. I suppose we have to make the best of what we’ve got at the moment.
One more thing I have to say after my COVID-19 funeral experience, the next family that came in with their loved one had them presented in a shroud. I must say, it was wonderful to see this eco-friendly solution being used rather than cutting down and killing a tree simply to burn in the crematorium!