Unusual Funerals.
ee-ay
Posts: 3,963 Forum Member
✭✭✭
My son is attending a funeral next week, the lady was his college mentor, she was his shoulder to cry on from 16 to current age 21
Sadly she died last week due to Leukaemia. My son has been invited to the funeral. Her last instructions from her family are for all mourners to attend dressed as a Punk Rockers. My son is to call into the chapel of rest this weekend with her family, friends and love ones to sign her unvarnished coffin with graffiti. No flowers are requested, she wants items from joke shops instead. She was in her mid 50's
When my son visited her in hospital a few weeks ago when she had seriously got worse, he told me she went out for a cigarette and pulled out a foot long penis lighter.
What a remarkable and much loved lady.
Sadly she died last week due to Leukaemia. My son has been invited to the funeral. Her last instructions from her family are for all mourners to attend dressed as a Punk Rockers. My son is to call into the chapel of rest this weekend with her family, friends and love ones to sign her unvarnished coffin with graffiti. No flowers are requested, she wants items from joke shops instead. She was in her mid 50's
When my son visited her in hospital a few weeks ago when she had seriously got worse, he told me she went out for a cigarette and pulled out a foot long penis lighter.
What a remarkable and much loved lady.
0
Comments
God, that sounds absolutely terrible.
Well, one person's " remarkable Lady " is another person's " royal pain-in-the-butt " .
However, I'm all for people being wacky and CarAzEEEE, but when someone stipulates that they want a Rocky Horror Show themed funeral I do wonder if they are taking a last opportunity to stick two fingers up at convention and protocol [ and maybe certain family members too ] .
It robs family and friends the opportunity of a formal public display of solemnity and mourning, OK, it's their wish for there to be no sadness but it doesn't sit well with me at all.
Sadness and mourning are just that, you can't switch them on and off. I would respect the lady's wishes rather than dwell on her motives.
That is pure genius! I love that! My mum insists that she wants 'Always Look on the Bright Side of Life' which I also think will be good, but your aunt's song... genius!
It is a good idea to make light of death because lets face it, it is the hardest thing in the world to comprehend.It must help relatives in the longrun to be able to have smiley memories of the funeral.
I don't think it was a good choice as it wasn't a "joke" thing and it was all just really surreal.
My husband and I have discussed this. He is going out to Disco Inferno!
I'm all for things like that. I want everyone to wear pink dresses at mine. Might as well annoy some homophobes with my last wish!!
Convention only exists to have two fingers - or even one - stuck up to it at every available opportunity.
The local paper even reported on it because he was well thought of and because it was seen as so unusal and nice to have happy memories at a funeral instead of just the solemnity. I can look back on that now and smile and think that was how he was and that is what a funeral is about remembering the person.
My dad told me plenty of tales of strange and odd requests at funerals over the years believe me there is some things that you would struggle to believe that do happen.
Speaking personally having the more unusal funeral has made it easier in the months following my dads death as he was such a lively person it makes it easier to remember him that way rather than dwelling on the sad aspect of the funeral. Having been around this growing up I wouldn't have changed the way my dads funeral was for anything only that it hadn't happened and I still had my dad.
^ What she said.
My mum had an unusual funeral, it wasn't wacky or eccentric but she had a woodland burial, it was very relaxed and had almost a pagan feel to it. Lots of nature, everything was natural right down the the wicker coffin. We released doves and stuff.
If you hate graveyards and I did, so did mum, I strongly recommend a woodland burial.
They had a brochure which offered "Funeral dancers", heaven knows what they are...
Suited him perfectly.
She arrived on the back of a motor bike, was carried in by some strapping rugby players to the tune of lean on me, as sung by the staff and patients of the hospice she did a lot of charity work for. myself and her twin both spoke about her raising a few laughs! the middle song was sung by the lead singer of a local band that she did photography for ( it was beautiful and one of her fave songs by her fave artists. Everlong by Foo fighters) and at the end as we were leaving the song played was pinks 'get the party started'.... which we did, there was a party straight after at the local rugby club!!
And everyone wore bright colours... she didnt want dark colours she was a party girl!
Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life
Smoke Gets In Your Eyes
If I Knew You Were Coming I'd Have Baked A Cake
Another One Bites The Dust
Disco Inferno
Probably numerous others that I can't remember just now but there are a couple there when you put it in the context of a crematorium environment that make them funnier and more unusual.
My dads funeral whilst the music was not wacky in that sense was not the traditional sad songs it was all quite lively and again not what you would expect. The main thing his ex colleagues wanted and the minister and I guess us because he wasn't a sad person and well given he worked in that industry he had a wicked sense of humour to survive it and that was reflected in the funeral.
While yes I appreciate most people do want the solemnity and the seriousness I think it has to reflect the person you are remembering and well if it means unusual then so be it.
My choice is the 1974 Hudson-Ford classic Burn Baby Burn.
Everyone filled past the corpse at the end and kissed his forehead (or whatever)
I just touched his hand.